The Ycua Bolaños V supermarket opened on December 7, 2001 in the capital of Asunción, Paraguay. The two-storey building consisted of an underground car park in the basement and a food court sales area on the second floor.
According to the property owner's defense, the bakery's kitchen and food court were not properly ventilated, causing smoke and gases to accumulate on the property. The structure also lacked a sprinkler system and the smoke detectors did not work.
The fire started on August 1, 2004 with two explosions on the first floor.The fire burned for seven hours before firefighters could extinguish it. The final death toll was 424 and more than 300 wounded. A defective grill chimney is suspected to be the cause, which allowed hot combustible gases to escape into the roof and ignite.
Several survivors of the fire and volunteer firefighters claimed that when the fire broke out, the doors inside the complex were intentionally closed to trap people inside, on the instructions of the owners, Juan Pío Paiva and his son, Víctor Daniel, to prevent that people run away with goods without paying for them. The management of the shopping center rejected the accusation.Paiva, her son and a security guard turned themselves in to the police and were formally charged.
On December 5, 2006, Juan Pio Paiva, Víctor Daniel Paiva and the guard were convicted of involuntary manslaughter with a maximum sentence of five years in prison. However, prosecutors asked for a 25-year prison sentence. As the verdict was read, angry survivors and relatives of the deceased started a violent demonstration in the courtroom that later spilled onto the streets of Asuncion. The public prosecutor's office called for a new trial.On February 2, 2008, a new court ruled that the trio had committed involuntary manslaughter. Juan Pio Paiva, the company's president, was sentenced to 12 years in prison. His son Víctor Daniel Paiva, who was present when the fire broke out, was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The security guard Daniel Areco who locked the doors was sentenced to 5 years in prison. In addition, shareholder Humberto Casaccia, who was also present when the fire broke out, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for endangering
people at his workplace.The architect Bernardo Ismachowiez, who designed and built the complex, was under house arrest for two years for "dangerous construction activities". Both Víctor Daniel and Juan Pio were paroled in 2013 and 2014 respectively after a Court of Appeal ruling ruled that they should serve the rest of their sentences at liberty for good behavior.
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