The Elbrus cable car accident case has reached court.

The investigation into the collapse of the chairlift on Mount Elbrus, where three people died in September, has been completed. The case also involves 11 injured passengers of the cable car.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot", on September 12, as a result of a cable car break on Mount Elbrus, three people died and several were injured. The director and chief engineer of the company servicing the cable car were detained and arrested in connection with the deaths; they were charged under the article on the provision of dangerous services (Part 3 of Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years). In October, the prosecutor's office filed lawsuits on behalf of the sons of the two deceased men. One of the victims is demanding 10 million rubles in compensation for the death of his father, the other is demanding 15 million rubles. The bank accounts of Elbrus MKD LLC have been frozen.

In Kabardino-Balkaria, a criminal case regarding the deaths of people in the Elbrus region has been sent to court. The defendants are the general director and chief engineer of a single-seat pendulum chairlift.

Investigators concluded that by September 2025, the defendants continued to operate the chairlift without scheduled maintenance and provide paid services to tourists. The cableway's operating life, as established by the most recent inspection at that time, expired in July 2025.

The chairlift's mechanisms were faulty by September 12. While the equipment was in operation that day, the supporting traction cable with the people in the chairs fell onto the rocky surface of Mount Elbrus between the Mir and Gara-Bashi stations.

"As a result, three people sustained injuries incompatible with life, and another eleven suffered injuries of varying severity," according to the official Telegram channel of the Investigative Committee of Kabardino-Balkaria. Caucasian Knot has not yet received any comments from the accused or their lawyers regarding the investigation's findings.

On October 9, the Elbrus District Court banned the operation of the cable car where the fatalities occurred for 60 days. On December 16, cable car operations, including those on the route where the accident occurred, resumed.