Prosecutors probing deadly Milan fire on slaughter charges

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 16 - Prosecutors are investigating a deadly Milan fire on Thursday night in which three young people were killed on slaughter charges, judicial sources said Monday.
    The emporium managed by a Chinese family was destroyed in a fire in the night between Thursday and Friday, leaving two brothers aged 17 and 18 and a 24-year-old dead.
    The three were sleeping in the large store, which was also used as a showroom for furniture and did not have a safety exit.
    Investigators coordinated by Milan chief prosecutor Marcello Viola and State attorney Luigi Luzi suspect the emporium was intentionally set on fire after the owner's parents received threats both the day before and the morning of the fire, on September 12, which were reported to Carabinieri police.
    Under the Italian criminal code, a slaughter charge punishes those who "carry out acts endangering the public with the aim of committing murder" which cause the "death of multiple people".
    The charge carries a life sentence. (ANSA).