Co-owner sentenced in 156-death club fire

A court sentenced the co-owner of a Russian nightclub where 156 people died in a 2009 fire to 6 1/2 years in prison Monday. Konstantin Mrykhin, who arranged an indoor fireworks display that started the fire at the Lame Horse in Perm, also was ordered to pay about $6.6 million in compensation to victims' relatives, RIA Novosti reported. Mrykhin was arrested in Spain after fleeing Russia in 2010. Charges also were filed against eight other people, including Anatoly Zak, another co-owner of the club. The fire, the worst in Russia's modern history, prompted spot inspections at the all of the country's nightclubs, RIA Novosti said. Emergencies Ministry data indicate about 12,000 people died in fires across Russia in 2011, the state-run news agency said. By comparison, the United States, with a population nearly double that of Russia, had about five times fewer fire deaths, the report said.