DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) – A Bangladesh court on Monday indicted 41 people for murder in the deaths of more than 1,100 people in the collapse of a building that housed five garment factories and became known as the country’s worst industrial disaster.
Investigators initially said those accused of wrongdoing in the 2013 collapse of the Rana Plaza building would be charged with culpable homicide, which carries a maximum punishment of seven years in jail. But they later changed the charges to murder due to the gravity of the disaster.
Masud Rana, who owned the building outside Dhaka, and 33 other people pleaded not guilty when the charges against them were read out in court.
Another seven who absconded will be tried in absentia, said Mizanur Rahman, a public prosecutor.
District Judge S.M. Kuddus Zaman announced their trial will begin Sept. 18.