Bangladesh Rana Plaza collapse: Authorities to file murder charges against dozens

Bangladesh authorities have confirmed that they will be filing murder charges against those involved in the 2013 garment factory, Rana Plaza building collapse that killed more than 1100 people.

The charges will be filed against the building's owner Sohel Rana and 40 others, including Rana's parents and more than a dozen government officials for their role behind the deaths of 1137 people, said the lead investigator, Bijoy Krishna Kar, reported Stuff.co.nz.

Investigators initially had said the accused, including the owners of the five factories that the building housed, would be charged with

culpable homicide, but they later changed their plans due to the gravity of the accident which resulted in Bangladesh's worst industrial disaster.

If convicted of murder, the defendants could face the death penalty. The maximum punishment for culpable homicide is seven years in jail.

The police report called the deaths a "mass killing" wherein around 2500 people were injured.