Omar Chaban

Wikipedia;

Emir Omar Chabán (31 March 1952 – 17 November 2014) was an Argentine impresario, who was sentenced to twenty years imprisonment for a fatal fire in one of his businesses. He remained free on appeal, during which time he died.[1][2]

Born in San Martín, Buenos Aires, Chabán became one of the major figures in the Buenos Aires underground scene during the 1980s as owner of Café Einstein and later Cemento, which became a major venue for alternative rock concerts, theater acts, and dance parties.[2][1][3]

On 30 December 2004, a fire killed 194 and injured over 600 in Republica Cromagnon, a concert venue that Chabán owned and operated.[citation needed] He was indicted as responsible; the musical act on that evening, The Callejeros, had encouraged spectators to light sparklers in the concert hall, even though the ceiling included flammable materials(?), and once the fire started, fire exits were padlocked and did not open, trapping the people inside fatally. Chabán escaped capture for some time, and then surrendered. After spending some time behind bars, the judge allowed him to post bail. After relatives of the victims protested in front of his mother's house in San Martín, Chabán moved to a secluded location on the Paraná delta area.[2][3]

Trials of various people connected with the fire, including Chabán, commenced in August 2008. On 19 August 2009, Chaban was sentenced to 20 years in prison.[2][3]

Omar Chabán died on 17 November 2014, aged 62, from Hodgkin's lymphoma.[1]

FROM http://www.buenosairesherald.com/BreakingNews/View/9549

Omar Chabán, the manager of rock club Cromañón, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his responsibility in the fire that killed 194 people and injuried more than 1500 people at the club of the Buenos Aires City neighbourhood of Once in 2004. The judges said their vote was unanimous.

The members of rock band Callejeros,Patricio Fontanet, Juan Carbone, Cristian Torrejón, Elio Delgado, Daniel Cardell, Eduardo Vázquez, Maximiliano Djerfy, were meanwhile acquitted on charges of paying bribes and for their responsibility in the fire. [Diego Algañaraz, their former manager, was convicted to 18 years in prison.

The City court rejected the annulment requests presented by the defence. Fabiana Fiszbin, former head of Community Safety Watchdog, and her secretary, Ana María Fernandez were sentenced to two years in prison for malfeasance for overlooking safety controls that exacerbated the tragedy.

Raúl Villareal, Chabán's right hand, will serve sentenced to year in prison and community service for being indirectly responsible for the bribes paid to the police.

The defence of the accused had already said they would appeal the adverse rulings. The victims' lawyers, who hold the members of Callejeros responsible for promoting the use of fireworks during their shows, which caused the fire, would file appeals.

All of the people who were sentenced will be free while they wait for the result of the appeals. Chabán is not allowed to leave the country nor to leave his house for more than 24 hours straight.

One year after the beginning of the trial and almost five years after the incident, a court in Buenos Aires announced the verdict in the 'Cromañón rock-club' case. Fifteen people had been accused, including officials of the Buenos Aires City administration of Aníbal Ibarra, of being directly or indirectly responsible for the death of the 194 people in the fire.

Ibarra himself had been charged with the fire and impeached. However, he was later acquitted by the courts, which said the former mayor "could not be responsible for the actions of all the officials of his administration."

Chabán and Callejeros were partners in the organization of the concert, held in December 2004, in which around 3,000 people were let in, despite the place's maximum capacity of 1,031 people.