Ex-manager accuses doomed mall boss of ‘blatant disregard’ for public safety

ELLIOT LAKE, Ont. – The inquiry into the collapse of a shopping centre in Elliot Lake, Ont. resumes today with testimony from the mall’s architect.

The inquiry also has written allegations from a former manager of the collapsed mall who says its owner had no regard for public safety.

In a statement filed with the inquiry, Henri Laroue says mall owner Bob Nazarian always cut safety corners.

As examples, she says he used wood instead of steel studs in walls, and made unqualified staff do electrical work.

Laroue says she quit her job because she worried about the legal liability of his refusal to comply with fire-code orders, apparently because he viewed the orders as part of a conspiracy against him.

The allegations haven’t been tested at the inquiry and Nazarian denies them, saying he always worked very hard on the mall.