Published on 27 March 2023
THIRD SECTION
Application no. 71757/13
Igor Yevgenyevich SMIRNOV against Russia
and 15 other applications
(see list appended)
PROCEDURAL INFORMATION
Following a preliminary examination of the admissibility of the applications on 2 March 2023, the Court decided, under Rule 54 § 2 (b) of the Rules of Court, that notice of the applications should be given to the Government of Russia.
In the applications marked by an asterisk, other complaints were raised. This part of the applications has been struck out of the Court’s list of cases or declared inadmissible by the Court, sitting in a single-judge formation, assisted by a rapporteur as provided for in Article 24 § 2 of the Convention.
In the enclosed list of applications, whenever an applicant is referred to using initials, this indicates that the Court has authorised anonymity for that person, whose identity will not be disclosed to the public (Rule 47 § 4).
For further information on the procedure following communication of an application brought against Russia, subject of well-established case law of the Court, please refer to the Court’s website.
SUBJECT MATTER
The applications concern the complaints raised under Article 3 of the Convention concerning the torture or inhuman or degrading treatment subject of well-established case law of the Court (see Lyapin v. Russia, no. 46956/09, §§ 128-40, 24 July 2014 and Samesov v. Russia, no. 57269/14, §§ 54-63, 20 November 2018).
APPENDIX – STATEMENT OF FACTS
List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention
(torture or inhuman or degrading treatment)
No.
Application no.
Date of introduction
Applicant’s name
Year of birth
Representative’s name and location
Factual information
Medical evidence of ill‑treatment
Date of first complaint
Decision issued in response to complaint of ill‑treatment
Decision under Article 125 of the CCrP
Appeal decision
Information relating to conviction
Other complaints under well-established case-law
71757/13*
14/10/2013
Igor Yevgenyevich SMIRNOV
1970
On 17/07/2012 the police interviewed the applicant in connection with a murder. When on 19/07/2012 he arrived at police station no. 2 in Saratov for another interview, officer K. and his colleagues subjected him to ill-treatment until 20/07/2012 to make him confess to the crime: they beat him on the head and neck with fists and plastic water bottles. The applicant confessed under duress.
Medical examination report no. 3333 completed on 23/07/2012 by the Saratov Forensic Bureau: bruises on the shoulders, right elbow and ankle, left shin, abrasion on his left shin, caused by at least ten blows of hard blunt objects, inflicted between several hours to three days prior to the examination on 20/07/2012.
On 23/07/2012 the applicant complained to the Saratov Investigative committee/On 11/10/2012 refusal to open a criminal case as according to the police officers, the applicant’s wife and daughter, the applicant had already had some injuries upon his arrival at the police station on 19/07/2012.
On 02/11/2012 the applicant’s appeal against the refusal was rejected by the Zavodskoy District Court of Saratov as unsubstantiated/ The applicant did not appeal further as the criminal case against him was sent for trial in December 2012/The Zavodskoy District Court examined during the trial the ill-treatment complaint and dismissed it as unsubstantiated with reference to the refusal and stating, in particular, that the injuries recorded by the forensic examination on 23/07/2012 indicated that they could have been inflicted after the applicant’s interview with the police/On 20/06/2013 that decision was upheld by the Saratov Regional Court.
On 22/02/2013 the Zavodskoy District Court of Saratov convicted the applicant of causing injuries leading to death / Upheld on 20/06/2013 by the Saratov Regional Court.
75937/17*
10/10/2017
Yevgeniy Valeryevich MINKIN
1975
Kseniya Aleksandrovna Dolgopolova
Cherepovets
At 9 a.m. on 17/03/2015 during a planned operation the police and a special squad stopped the applicant’s vehicle and took him, handcuffed, to police unit no. 2 in Cherepovets. Allegedly, he had to stand on several occasions for up to an hour, in a strained pose (bending over and facing the wall with his legs spread wide and his arms on the wall or handcuffed); any move resulted in blows to legs or arms; one officer hit him with a fist to the plexus; another one grabbed his cheek and neck. He was interviewed as a witness and spent the night sitting on a chair. On 18/03/2015, still without counsel, he gave "spontaneous confessions" to two thefts of snowmobiles and was released at
5.45 p.m. on 18/03/2015.
The wife, parents and two co-workers testified to the official inquiries to have seen on 18-20/03/2015 abrasion on the applicant’s forehead, hematomas on his wrists and behind the left ear.
On 30/07/2015 complaint to the Cherepovets investigative committee/Between 31/08/2015 and 06/07/2017 four refusals to open a criminal case, each overruled by the investigators’ superiors / last refusal on 06/07/2017 issued for the lack of evidence of ill-treatment was overruled on 19/07/2017, new inquiry ordered, its outcome unknown.
The applicant contested the investigators’ inaction before the Cherepovets Town Court, which on 29/06/2017 dismissed his complaint as unsubstantiated/ On 15/08/2017 the Vologda Regional Court issued a special ruling criticising the procrastination in the inquiry into the ill-treatment complaint.
On 09/02/2017 the Cherepovets Town Court convicted the applicant of theft / upheld on 05/07/2017 by the Vologda Regional Court
Art. 5 (1) (c) - unlawful pre-trial detention - Detention for more than three hours without any written record (see Fortalnov and Others
v. Russia, nos. 7077/06 and 12 others, §§ 76-79, 26 June 2018), forced attendance without evidence of proper summons to appear or of failure by the applicant to comply without a valid excuse (see Rozhkov v. Russia
(no. 2), no. 38898/04,
§§ 91-96, 31 January 2017) - the applicant was arrested, while being a witness, and detained from 9 a.m. on 17/03/2015 to 5.45 p.m. on 18/03/2015.
45833/18
11/09/2018
Viktor Sergeyevich FILINKOV
1994
Igor Nikolayevich Sholokhov
Kazan
On the night between 23 and 24/01/2018 the applicant was arrested by FSB officers in St Petersburg on suspicion of membership in a “terrorist” group “Network”. According to him, he was severely beaten during transportation; according to the officers, the force was used as he attempted to abscond. He was taken to the FSB headquarters in St Petersburg where the officers continued to beat him and used electric shocker on him to make him confess. No record of the arrest made for more than 28 hours.
Medical ward of the remand prison: skin injury in the area of right hip and chest, haematoma on the right shin, chin injury, handcuffing traces.
On 25/01/2018 and 02/02/2018 to the St Peterburg investigative committee /refusal to open a criminal case on 17/04/2018.
On 16/08/2018 the Appellate Division of the Leningrad Regional Military Court upheld the refusal in the final instance.
On 22/06/2020 the Western Circuit Military Court sentenced the applicant to seven years’ imprisonment for participation in a terrorist organisation. On 21/12/2021 conviction was upheld by the Supreme Court of Russia (cassation decision).
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful deprivation of liberty, including unrecorded detention and detention without a judicial order and any other legal basis - unrecorded detention between 23 and 24/01/2018 (no court order, the fact of arrest was officially noted more than 28 hours after actual arrest).
Art. 6 (1) - lack of fair hearing - confession under duress, Final decision (cassation) by the Russia Supreme Court on 21/12/2021.
48608/18*
17/12/2018
Vladislav Khamitovich MIRKHAYDAROV
1977
On 03/08/2015 police officer B. arrested the applicant, following test purchases of drugs from him on 31/07/2015 and 03/08/2015. Officer B. and two other officers beat the applicant up on the way to police station no. 8 in Ufa and then at the station until 05/08/2015, pressuring him to confess to the crime.
Medical certificate of 06/08/2015 by trauma unit of hospital no. 21 in Ufa: multiple abrasions on the neck, head and the right upper shoulder.
In late 2015, complaint to the Oktyabrskiy District Investigative department in Ufa/ On 15/05/2016 and 10/12/2016 refusals to open a criminal case; on 28/09/2018 last refusal to open a criminal case: the use of force justified as the applicant had resisted the arrest and attempted to run away; according to B. and investigator D. he had had no injuries and had been released on 03/08/2015/ that refusal was overruled by the investigators’ superiors on 27/12/2018; no information on the outcome of the new inquiry.
28/08/2018 the Oktyabrskiy District Court in Ufa dismissed the complaint as the refusal of 10/12/2016 had been overruled /upheld on 22/10/2018 by the Ufa Town Court
On 18/05/2016 the Oktyabrskiy District Court in Ufa convicted the applicant of drug trafficking/ Upheld on 03/08/2016 by the Bashkortostan Supreme Court.
58772/18
06/12/2018
Aleksandr Sergeyevich IVANOV
1996
Lev Nikolayevich Ivanov
Astrakhan
At about 2 p.m. on 28/10/2016 the applicant was apprehended during a test purchase of drugs. He was allegedly pushed to the ground and kicked by the police officers. He was taken to police station no. 4 in Astrakhan, where the package was seized and he gave confession statements in the form of his “surrender and confession” and "explanations", allegedly as the police officers promised to release him without any consequences. He was released at about 8 p.m. that day. His detention was not recorded. The police officers acknowledged the use of force as the applicant had allegedly punched one of the officers in the face and attempted to flee. No proceedings against the applicant in relation to his alleged use of force were brought; there is no medical evidence of any injuries to the police officers.
Certificate of 29/10/2016 by the Volodarskaya District hospital: contusion to the face and lower extremities. Forensic medical expert’s report of 31/10/2016 by the Astrakhan Forensic Bureau: small abrasions on the left side of the forehead, a bruise on the chest 0.8 by
4.7 cm, and a bruise on each shin (0.5 x1 cm and 0.8 x 2 cm).
On 12/04/2017 to the Astrakhan Regional investigative committee/multiple refusals to open a criminal case, the last refusal on 14/02/2018.
On 07/06/2018 the Astrakhan Regional Court refused to examine the appeal against the last refusal as the judgment had been delivered in the applicant’s criminal case/The applicant complained of the ill-treatment before the trial and appeal courts which left the complaint without examination but found his confession statements admissible and that on 28/10/2016 he had not been detained as a suspect.
The applicant was convicted of attempted sale of drugs and sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment/ Final decision on 07/06/2018 by the Astrakhan Regional Court.
Art. 6 (1) - entrapment by State agents - incitement by police officers to commit a drug related crime.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment,
Art. 6 (1) - unfair criminal proceedings - The applicant complains that he gave confession statements on 28/10/2016 as a result of ill-treatment and deceit by police officers who used unnecessary force during his arrest, did not record his detention as a suspect and promised to release him without any consequences. The statements were not excluded, despite the applicant’s complaints, and were used as evidence.
11559/19*
13/02/2019
Sergey Valentinovih DAVYDOV
1967
Larisa Valentinovna Alferova
Perm
The applicant was detained in remand prison IZ-1 in Perm. On 19/03/2017 he refused to leave his cell at the request of guards saying that his feet were aching. The guards then forced his arms behind his back and took him out of the cell and up the stairs. One guard grabbed his neck and another guard kicked him on the head.
Medical report no. 2837 of 08/08/2017 by the Perm Forensic Bureau: on 27/04/2017 the applicant had a consolidated collar bone fracture which had been caused more than a month earlier.
Complaint to the Perm prosecutor on 30/03/2017/ Several refusals to open a criminal case, the first on 17/06/2017, the last on 01/11/2018. It was found that the guards had legitimately used force against the applicant as he had refused to comply with their order. The force used was limited to taking the applicant out of his cell. There was no evidence that he had been beaten or otherwise ill-treated as he had received no injuries. In particular, it was not possible to establish when the collar bone fracture had been caused and there was no evidence that it had been the result of the incident of 19/03/2017.
On 22/01/2019 the Leninskiy District Court in Perm overruled the refusal of 01/11/2018 stating that the inquiry had been incomplete. In particular, it had not been established when the applicant’s collar bone had been fractured, the applicant’s allegations of aching feet had not been verified and the inmates with whom he had shared the cell after the incident had not been questioned. The outcome of the new inquiry is unknown.
On 01/06/2017 the applicant was convicted of extortion, criminal libel and hindrance of justice by the Sverdlovskiy District Court of Perm and sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and a fine/ upheld on appeal on 24/07/2017 by the Perm Regional Court.
12910/19
25/02/2019
Pavel Viktorovich OKULOV
1977
Maksim Yuryevich Izhikov
Vnukovskoye
At about 2.30 p.m. on 13/10/2017 the applicant was arrested while exercising at gym by armed policemen in black outfits and balaclavas. They handcuffed him and led him in a bended position, in his sport shorts and a shirt, to a car in the presence of bystanders. In the car he received a blow to the head after a bag was pulled over it; for an hour he was forced to sit with his chest tightly held against his knees which impeded breathing. At the police station of Kamensk-Uralskiy, in the Sverdlovsk Region,
he was ordered to sit in the same position handcuffed and with the bag over his head for two more hours. The bag was removed, and he was interviewed by police officers in relation to a criminal case concerning arson. He had to sign a statement. At 7.10 p.m. he was taken back to the gym and released. No criminal proceedings were brought against him.
No medical evidence enclosed as the treatment complained of did not result in injuries; it involved public humiliation and anxiety the applicant experienced during the heavy-handed operation to arrest him. He submitted statements by several witnesses who confirmed the circumstances of his arrest and the fact that he had offered no resistance.
On 22/01/2018 complaint to the police/on 16/02/2018 it was transferred to the Sverdlovsk Regional Investigative committee/Five refusals to open a criminal case, the last on 28/12/2018 (previous refusals were overruled by the investigators’ superiors for failure to carry out a comprehensive inquiry).
The applicant did not appeal against the refusals to open a criminal case but complained under Article 125 seeking to declare the actions of the police for his detention unlawful/On 05/09/2018 the Sverdlovsk Regional Court rejected the appeal on procedural grounds.
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful deprivation of liberty, including unrecorded detention and detention without a judicial order and any other legal basis - Fortalnov and Others
v. Russia, nos. 7077/06 and 12 others, 26 June 2018.
16364/19*
05/03/2019
Dmitriy Gennadyevich AVTUKHOVICH
1971
On 27/09/2016 during a search in the applicant’s flat police officer K. kicked the applicant on the face and legs, in the presence of B.; K., officers Be., G. and Ba. then subjected him to beatings in police station no. 2 in Krasnoyarsk to make him confess to robberies and two murders; the beatings continued in the temporary detention unit until 05/10/2016.
Certificate of 27/09/2016 by the Krasnoyarsk Inter-district Medical Emergency Hospital: abrasion on the nose, traces of the use of restraints on the wrists, redness of the skin on the nose. Similar findings in the register of the temporary detention centre.
Certificate of 28/09/2016 by paramedics: subcutaneous hematoma of the frontal part of the head. Medical assessment report compiled by the investigators on 29/09/2016: hematomas under the right eye and on the upper eyelid of the left eye; swelling, scratches and abrasions on the hands.
Certificate of 30/09/2016 by paramedics: chest contusion.
Report of 01/10/2016 by officers of detention centre no. 1 in Krasnoyarsk: chest contusion (rib fracture); possible brain concussion.
Certificate of 05/10/2016 by the Krasnoyarsk Inter-district Medical Emergency Hospital: chest contusion.
On 28/09/2016 complaint to the Oktyabrskiy District prosecutor in Krasnoyarsk and 10/10/2016 complaint to the Oktyabrskiy District investigative committee / On 09/11/2016 first refusal to open a criminal case and then 11 more refusals by mid-2019 / the last refusal to open a criminal case of 07/06/2019 overruled on 21/06/2019 and a new inquiry ordered; no information on the outcome.
On 11/02/2019 the Oktyabrskiy District Court in Krasnoyarsk acknowledged failures to provide the applicant on time with decisions relating to his ill-treatment complaint and to grant him access to the inquiry file/On 30/05/2019 the court acknowledged delays in the inquiry and that the superiors’ instructions remained uncompiled with by the investigators/On 30/07/2019 the court acknowledged the investigators’ inaction after April 2019 and the delayed receipt by the applicant of the refusal of 07/06/2019.
On 16/11/2018 the Oktyabrskiy District Court in Krasnoyarsk acquitted the applicant of robbing victim I. and convicted him of robbing victim P. On 14/03/2019 the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court quashed that judgment as regards victim I.
Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms - Oktyabrskiy District Court in Krasnoyarsk, February-December 2018.
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - convoy cell in the courthouse 13/02/2018 to 26/12/2018 (overcrowding, lack of or insufficient natural light, no or restricted access to toilet, lack of fresh air, passive smoking, lack of or insufficient electric light).
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment.
44031/19*
08/08/2019
Lecha Vakhidovich GADAMAURI
1993
Rustam Yakhyayevich Matsev
Moscow
On 08/06/2016 unidentified officers of the Federal Security Service (the FSB) apprehended the applicant in Sunzha and took him to a basement of a building, where they pulled a bag over his head and handcuffed him, threatened him, beat him on the head and torso and applied electric shocks to him, urging him to confess. At 7 p.m. on 09/06/2016 his arrest was recorded by an investigator of the Ingushetia FSB (the record was allegedly complied ex post facto on 10/06/2016), and the applicant was questioned as a suspect and confessed in the presence of a State-appointed lawyer. On the night between 09 to 10/06/2010 he was allegedly beaten again. On 10/06/2016 he was placed in the temporary detention centre (the IVS).
An undated record on admission to SIZO-1 in North Ossetia, as referred to in the refusal to open a criminal case of 03/11/2017 (a bruise under the left eye, a bruise to the left shoulder).
Forensic expert report no. 291 of 21/07/2016 (pigmentation on a neck as a result of an abrasion’s healing; the abrasion could have been caused between two to three weeks prior to the examination; the expert was unable to comment (i) on its origin, including electric shocks or an impact of a blunt object; and (ii) on the absence or presence of bruises inflicted 42 days prior to the examination date, as any bruises would have healed and disappeared in the meantime).
Having studied the documents, the applicant’s lawyer commented that he had requested a forensic expert examination of the applicant as early as on 10/06/2016, and that a failure to conduct it in good time had resulted in an inability to record evidence of ill-treatment, as the bruises had healed in the meantime.
1) 10/06/2016 the applicant’s lawyer requested that a forensic examination of the applicant be ordered: he had visited the applicant in detention and then had informed the investigator in writing that he had seen multiple injuries on the applicant’s face and that there could have been more injuries on the body/On 16/06/2016 the investigator rejected the request as irrelevant for the criminal case. Following the lawyer’s complaint to the investigator’s superior, the forensic medical examination was conducted in July 2016.
2) The applicant complained about the ill-treatment at the trial and the court ordered an inquiry into these allegations. On 03/11/2017, by a single decision concerning both the ill-treatment complaint and his co-defendants’ similar allegations, the investigators refused to institute criminal proceedings, for the lack of evidence of a crime. As regards the applicant, the decision referred to the forensic medical expert report of 21/07/2016; the applicant’s written statement of 26/07/2016 that he had no complaints about the FSB officers; and the applicant’s failure to raise the duress issue between June and September 2016. The decision referred to a testimony of an IVS officer that on 10/06/2016 the applicant had had no injuries or complaints; and a record in an IVS log to the effect that the applicant had had no complaints.
The ill-treatment complaint was examined during the trial on 03/11/2017: the court heard the applicant, the lawyer who had seen injuries on him on 10/06/2016; the applicant’s parents who had complained of the applicant’s abduction and who stated that they had seen injuries on their son’s face during the court hearing concerning his arrest. The court heard the law-enforcement officers and the investigator; ordered a pre-investigative inquiry and referred to its results. The applicant stated that the IVS officers had failed to duly record his poor state of health and challenged authenticity of the document submitted by the authorities as an IVS medical record, pointing to the lack of a title page, dates or signatures on it, and alleging its forgery, including forgery of the applicant’s signature; he further complained about the authorities’ failure to conduct his forensic expert examination in good time. The court rejected the abduction and ill-treatment allegations as unfounded. It referred to the "lack of complaints" on admission to the IVS; the lack of injuries on 21/07/2016 and the applicant’s own statement of 26/07/2016 that he had no complaints about the FSB officers.
On 06/02/2018 the Military Court of the North Caucasus Military Circuit convicted the applicant of organising and leading an illegal armed group, illicit fabrication and storage of arms and explosives and attempted fabrication of explosives and sentenced him to nineteen years’ imprisonment/ upheld on 12/02/2019 on appeal by the Supreme Court of Russia.
Art. 6 (1) - unfair criminal proceedings - use of confession statement of 10/06/2016 obtained as a result of duress (Turbylev
v. Russia, no. 4722/09,
§ 90, 6 October 2015, and Aleksandr Konovalov v. Russia,
no. 39708/07, §§ 53-56, 28 November 2017).
44356/19*
13/08/2019
Dmitriy Dmitriyevich PCHELINTSEV
1992
Eldar Seifovich Garoz
Moscow
The applicant played a mock-combat game Airsoft with a group of friends. The FSB suspected them of membership in a terrorist cell called "the Network". On 27/10/2017 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of having created a terrorist cell and placed in SIZO-1 in Penza. While in SIZO, he was subjected to regular beatings. On a daily basis, officers of the Penza Region FSB allegedly repeatedly electrocuted him via his toes and hung him up with his head down, for periods of time demanding that he make self-incriminating statements. On 01/12/2017 the applicant made a self-incriminating statement.
Record by medical ward of SIZO-1 (as described in the domestic decisions) of 29/10/2018: cuts to the arms and neck. On 01/12/2017 the applicant’s lawyer witnessed his injuries; on 21/02/2018 the visitors of the Moscow Helsinki Group witnessed injuries on the applicant compatible with electrocution and beatings.
Medical certificate No. 12-18 of 05/12/2018 stated that it was still possible to identify the injuries should the forensic examination be conducted. No forensic examination has been commissioned.
On 08/02/2018 the first ill-treatment complaint/
On 26/02/2018 the applicant’s lawyer complained to the Penza Military Garrison Investigative Committee that the officers had brought the applicant to the brink of suicide/On 27/02/2018 the Moscow Helsinki Group complained to the Investigative Committee on behalf of the applicant/on 15/03/2018 refusal to open a criminal case.
The refusal of 15/03/2018 was upheld by the Penza Garrison Military Court on 10/12/2018/ then upheld on appeal on 14/02/2019 by the Privolzhskiy Circuit Military Court.
On 10/02/2020 the Privolzhskiy Circuit Military Court convicted the applicant of terrorism-related crimes and sentenced him to eighteen years’ imprisonment/ upheld by the Appellate Military Court on 20/10/2020 and the Supreme Court of Russia on 27/04/2021.
Art. 3 - use of metal cages and/or other security arrangements in courtrooms – the Privolzhskiy Circuit Military Court, 10/02/2020; the Appellate Military Court, 20/10/2020. The applicant was held in a glass cabin with six co-defendants during the hearings between May 2019 and 20/10/2020 (see Yaroslav Belousov v. Russia, nos. 2653/13 and 60980/14, § 127,
4 October 2016).
Art. 6 (1) - lack of fair hearing - Use of testimony of third persons who complained about ill-treatment and argued during the applicant’s trial that their pre-trial inculpating statements had been made under duress.
Art. 6 (3) (d) - examination of witnesses Four key witnesses for prosecution were anonymised, their identities hidden behind aliases.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment.
45620/19*
17/08/2019
Svetlana Valeryevna AKHMETOVA
1981
On 28/09/2018 the applicant failed to comply with the bailiff’s requests at the Moscow City Court. Allegedly, then one officer hit her on the back with a fist and grabbed her arm, while another pushed her face with the palm of his hand, causing her to hit the entrance door with the back of her head. An ambulance was called for the applicant.
Certificate of 28/09/2018 by Krasnogorsk City Hospital no. 1: soft tissue bruises on the right shoulder, right shoulder blade, the back of the head (subcutaneous hematoma).
Medical expert report no. 79 of 15/05/2019: the hematoma could be caused by or in contact with a hard blunt object.
Prior to March 2019 complaint to the Moscow Regional prosecutor and then on 19/04/2019 to the Moscow Region investigative committee/ On 14/03/2019, 06/06/2019 and 06/08/2019 refusals to open a criminal case as no force had been used against the applicant /Each of the refusals overruled by the investigators’ superiors. The outcome of the new inquiry ordered after the last refusal is unknown.
-
-
39744/20
03/09/2020
Ali Gadzhiyevich UMAROV
1987
Memorial Human Rights Centre
Moscow
At 12.30 a.m. on 01/02/2018 the applicant was allegedly abducted by unidentified men in Makhachkala and taken to the Dagestan Centre for Combating Extremism where he was detained until 05/02/2018. During the detention he was repeatedly beaten and electrocuted to make him cooperate. After he agreed, the abductors dropped him off at a place where he was subsequently discovered by patrolling officers, who seized from him some evidence which had allegedly been planted on him by the abductors.
On 05/02/2018 he was taken to the Sovetskiy police department in Makhachkala where he signed a confession. On the same day his arrest was recorded, and he was placed in the temporary detention centre. On 08/02/2018 he was transferred to remand prison.
1) Medical examination act on admission to SIZO-1 in Makhachkala on 08/02/2018 (two bruises on both buttocks, 10x8 and 12x7 cm).
2) Forensic medical examination report no.1090 of 03/05/2018 by the Dagestan Forensic Bureau: the report based on medical notes of an unspecified temporary detention facility of 06/02/2018 stating that the applicant had had no injuries and on the applicant’s statement that he had not been beaten after the arrest; medical examination act of 08/02/2018 was not submitted for the assessment.
1) On 05/06/2018 and 06/02/2018 the applicant’s lawyer noted on the records of the applicant’s interrogation as a suspect and as an accused, respectively, that the applicant’s confessions had been obtained under duress, and that a forensic medical examination was necessary to record the applicant’s injuries. On 06/02/2018 the investigator rejected the request, without giving any reasons.
2) On 16/02/2018 the applicant’s wife complained to the Dagestan Investigative Committee about the applicant’s abduction, torture and coercion to give a false confession, stating that on 06/02/2018 she had seen injuries on his face.
On 26/03/2018 the applicant, when in the remand prison, complained to the investigator in his criminal case about his abduction and ill-treatment, revoked his confessions as given under duress, provided a detailed description of the ill-treatment, and stated that he had not informed the IVS personnel thereof out of fear, as the examination had been carried out in the presence of the police officers/
Refusals to open criminal proceedings: 11/05/2018, 21/07/2018, 28/08/2019 (with reference to the applicant’s lack of complaints in the IVS and his confessions), all overruled by the investigators’ superiors for failure to question the applicant and obtain and assess the medical documents compiled on 08/02/2018 on admission to the SIZO.
On 03/12/2019 the Sovetskiy District Court of Makhachkala rejected the applicant’s complaint as the refusal to open a criminal case of 28/08/2019 had been overruled on 02/12/2019 / No appeal, as the impugned refusal had already been set aside.
On 05/03/2019 the Sovetskiy District Court of Makhachkala convicted the applicant of participation in an illegal armed group and illegal storage of arms and sentenced him to
8 years and
6 months’ imprisonment and a fine/upheld on 02/07/2019 by the Dagestan Supreme Court.
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful deprivation of liberty, including unrecorded detention and detention without a judicial order and any other legal basis - Detention without a court order between 01/02/2018 and 05/02/2018, that is beyond the 48-hour time-limit (see Fortalnov and Others v. Russia, nos. 7077/06 and
12 others, § 82, 26 June 2018)
13176/21*
16/02/2021
Anton Borisovich RASIN
1989
Dmitriy Vladimirovich Zubarev
Vladivostok
About 1.30 p.m. on 19/07/2020 the applicant was allegedly beaten during a civil protest held in support of the former governor of the Primorye Region
Mr S. Furgal by two police officers of the Primorye Regional anti-extremist crimes unit. They allegedly applied a chokehold technique, twisted an arm behind his back and hit five times his right eye and left temple area with a fist.
Ambulance certificate (no number) of 19/07/2020 by the Vladivostok Ambulance Station: bruising of the right eye.
Admission report no. 7893 of 20/07/2020 by the IVS of the Primorye police: hematomas of the forehead area and the right eye.
Medical certificate no. 5275 of 25/07/2020 by the Vladivostok Eye Trauma Unit: mild concussion, hematoma of the right eye and of the right eye lid.
Ultra-sound examination report of 29/07/2020 by the Vladivostok Private Medical Centre: swelling of the right eye;
Forensic Medical Examination Certificate no. 17-13/2647/2020 of 05/08/2020 by the Primorye Regional Forensics Bureau: hematomas on the face, left shin, abrasions on both wrists and right knee which had been inflicted by a blunt force object no more than
5-10 days ago.
Medical certificate of 12/08/2020 by the Medical Unit of the Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences: infected wound of the right knee joint.
On 21/07/2020 complaint to the Primorye Regional Investigative committee/ Between 20/08/2020 and 26/03/2021 at least three refusals to open a criminal case.
On 19/03/2021 the Frunzenskiy District Court of Vladivostok dismissed the applicant’s complaint against the refusal 18/12/2020/On 27/04/2021 the Primorye Regional Court upheld the decision.
20/07/2020 the Frunzenskiy District Court of Vladivostok convicted the applicant of failing to comply with a lawful order of police officer.
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings.
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful deprivation of liberty, including unrecorded detention and detention without a judicial order and any other legal basis - arrest and detention on 19/07/2020 for the sole purpose of drawing a record of administrative offence.
Art. 8 (1) - unlawful search - search on 06/02/2021 of the applicant’s flat, search warrant issued by the Pervorechenskiy District Court of Vladivostok on 05/02/2021, on 23/03/2021 the Primorye Regional Court dismissed the applicant’s appeal: broad terms and scope of the search warrant; the applicant was not a suspect
(see Misan v. Russia,
no. 4261/04, § 63,
2 October 2014, and Kruglov and Others
v. Russia, nos. 11264/04 and 15 others, § 127,
4 February 2020).
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment.
41202/22
12/08/2022
Maksim Aleksandrovich MEDVEDEV
2004
Ashot Aleksandrovich Andreyev
Syktyvkar
The applicant was a minor (16 years old) at the time. Around 7 p.m. on 24/02/2021 the police arrested him on suspicion of drug-related crime and escorted to the Syktyvkar police department. The applicant refused to give the officers access to his phone. To get it, the officers started beating him: banged his head on the floor, pressed his head to the ground with a knee, twisted his forearms, stripped him naked. Around 9 p.m. the applicant’s mother arrived and saw his son naked and beaten up. Although, the applicant was unwell and complained about it, the officers refused to call an ambulance until 2:00 a.m. on 25/02/2021.
Emergency medical call sheet No. 100-21-22249.1 of 25/02/2021 by the Komi Emergency Medicine Centre: concussion, soft tissue contusions on the face and wrist abrasions.
Extract No. 2502 from the medical card of 09/04/2021: concussion, intracranial hypertension syndrome.
Forensic medical examination act no. 2/1159-21/1339-21 of 29/04/2021 by Syktyvkar Forensic Bureau: abrasions around the temples and wrists.
On 03/03/2021 the Komi Children’s Clinical Hospital transmitted the information on the applicant’s injuries to the police and the prosecutor. On 31/03/2021 the applicant and his mother lodged a complaint seeking opening of a criminal case / Between 12/04/2021 and 02/08/2022 six refusals to open the criminal case.
The applicant’s lawyer appealed against the refusals of 23/07/2021, 17/11/2021, and 25/05/2022 before the Syktyvkar Town Court. However, as soon as such appeal were lodged, either the refusal had been overruled and the court therefore refused to consider the appeal or the court quashed the refusal and ordered an additional inquiry (see Vanfuli v. Russia, no. 24885/05, § 74, 3 November 2011, and Nechto v. Russia,
no. 24893/05, § 82,
24 January 2012).
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of inadequate conditions of detention during transport.
Art. 3 - inadequate conditions of detention during transport - the transport between 22/02/2022 and 30/05/2022: passive smoking, accommodation with inmates under stricter regime, inadequate temperature. He was transported in a van via a transit cell and had between 0.1 and 0.8 sq. m. of personal space.
52876/22*
28/10/2022
Khasan Danisoltovich ISLAMOV
1998
Elza Albertovna Valiyeva
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 03/02/2019 the applicant was taken from his flat by several police officers to the Naurskiy district police station in Chechnya where he was beaten, subjected to electrocution and suffocation for four hours by the head of the station and his subordinates to make him to confess to terrorism-related crimes. Then, on 04/02/2019 he was taken to the premises of the Kadyrov Regiment where he was repeatedly electrocuted and beaten with a plastic pipe. In the morning on 05/02/2019 he taken to a garage where he was forced to stand with his hand cuffed to a heating pipe for the entire night; he was then detained there for two months. On 01/04/2019 criminal proceedings were opened against the applicant. On 03/04/2019 his pre-trial detention was ordered by a local court.
Statement describing the applicant’s injuries made by the applicant’s lawyer in SIZO-1 in Grozny on 24-25/09/2019: burn on right arm from the pipe in the garage, broken nose, and pigmented areas of the skin of between the middle finger and pinkie finger on the right hand.
On 05/04/2019 the applicant’s mother complained to the Chechnya Investigative Committee about her son’s disappearance in February 2019/ No reply followed/On 05/06/2019 the applicant managed to inform her about the torture and the unlawful detention for two months/Shortly thereafter she filed two other complaints with Chechen law enforcement authorities/No reply followed.
On 23/10/2019 the applicant’s lawyer lodged a complaint of the applicant’s ill-treatment with the Chechnya Investigative Committee/Between 26/08/2019 and 30/06/2022 eleven refusals to open a criminal case; all, except for the last one, of 30/06/2022, were overruled by the investigators’ superiors as incomplete and unsubstantiated.
The applicant’s lawyer tried to appeal against three of the refusals. However, as soon as such appeals were lodged, the court refused to examine them as the impugned decisions had already been overruled by the investigators’ superiors (see Vanfuli v. Russia,
no. 24885/05, § 74,
3 November 2011, and Nechto v. Russia,
no. 24893/05, § 82,
24 January 2012).
On 18/04/2022 the applicant was convicted of terrorism-related crimes.
690/23
13/12/2022
Ruslan Sergeyevich MINASOV
1992
Elza Albertovna Valiyeva
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 10/07/2020 the applicant argued with his girlfriend on a street, when someone called the police. The police officers decided to take the applicant to a police station, but he refused. The officers shoved him to the ground and subjected him to beatings. Then they handcuffed him, put him in the boot of their car, and took him to the Yakimanka police station in Moscow. The ambulance was called for the applicant upon arrival at the station.
Extract 20-09/4979-1 from emergency medical call sheet no. 007726507 of 10/07/2020 by the Pirogov City Hospital of 10/07/2020: concussion, closed craniocerebral injury, closed nose fracture, and limb abrasions.
Discharge certificate no. 47560 of 15/07/2020 by the same hospital: concussion, closed craniocerebral injury, spinal cord injury, soft tissue contusions on the chest, multiple bruises on the upper and lower limbs.
Forensic medical examination act no. 2124105261 of 25/05/2021 by the Moscow Forensic Bureau: abrasions to the face, forehead, body and extremities, caused by hard blunt objects.
On 19/07/2020 the applicant’s father complained to the Moscow investigative committee about the ill-treatment/ Between 19/08/2020 and 27/08/2021 six refusals to open a criminal case; on 27/08/2021 the last, seventh, refusal issued.
The applicant appealed against the last refusal to open a criminal case/ On 21/04/2022 the Taganskiy District Court of Moscow dismissed the appeal/On 29/08/2022 the Moscow City Court upheld that decision.