The Court of First Instance number 4 of Arona has acquitted the entities implicated in the incident concerning the collapse of the Julián José building, which took place on 14th April 2016 in Los Cristianos, resulting in the deaths of seven individuals. As reported by Canarias 7, the judge concluded, in a ruling delivered last Monday, that there was inadequate evidence to attribute civil liability to the accused parties.
This judicial decision exonerates the Banesto banking institution (which was still under construction at the time) along with several companies involved in the case. The claimants have the option to appeal the decision before the Provincial Court of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
The ruling notes that structural damage identified years prior indicated “significant deficiencies in the original construction” and stresses that, while the subsequent modifications executed by the banking institution may have worsened the condition, there is no definitive evidence connecting them directly to the collapse.
The judge specifically asserts that the plaintiff “failed to demonstrate with evidentiary certainty the causal relationship between the alleged actions and the resulting damage.”
Expert assessments presented during the judicial proceedings identified the “substandard quality of the concrete in the structural pillars” as the primary reason for the collapse.
Initially, the criminal case was filed by court number 3 of Arona in July 2018, a decision that was contested by the Arona City Council before the Provincial Court, which dismissed the municipal objections and upheld the ruling in September 2021.
In addition to the seven fatalities, the collapse of the five-storey building, which contained 28 homes, necessitated the evacuation of ninety other residents from nearby buildings and mobilised 250 personnel during the rescue missions that lasted for several days.
