Published on 27 March 2023
THIRD SECTION
Application no. 26756/18
Yuriy Ivanovich SOLDATOV against Russia
and 22 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
26756/18*
23/05/2018
Yuriy Ivanovich SOLDATOV
1981
Vladimir Nikolayevich Pastukh
Gubkin
At about 8 a.m. on 26/05/2015 the applicant was approached by three plain-clothed police officers, near his home in Gubkin, Belgorod Region. He was then allegedly taken to the forest area in an unmarked vehicle where he was beaten in the chest, a plastic bag was put over his head and repeatedly closed off until he became unconscious. One of the police officers also stepped on the inside part of the applicant’s left foot while stretching his right leg up thereby causing the applicant to experience sharp pain and forcing him to confess to having committed an armed robbery in Voronezh. He was then taken back to his home which was searched (he requested a lawyer but of no avail) and at about 5 p.m. on 26//05/2015 he was taken to the police station no. 4 in Voronezh (отдел полиции но. 4 г. Воронеж).
At about 11 p.m. on 26/05/2015, in the presence of a lawyer appointed for him, the applicant signed a record of his examination as a suspect, without reading it as he feared of being subjected to ill-treatment again. The lawyer made no remarks about the circumstances of the applicant’s case. On 27/05/2015 the applicant was transferred to the temporary detention facility (IVS) in the police station no. 4 in Voronezh.
Act of examination of injuries by medical ward of remand prison no.2 (SIZO-2) in Voronezh no. 183 of 29/05/2015 (including x-ray examination of 29/05/2015) (swollen left ankle, painful to touch, fragmentary fracture of the left foot without displacement);
Medical examination act / Belgorod Forensics Bureau / no. 1037 of 10/09/2015 (fragmentary fracture of the left foot without displacement; it could have been caused on 26/05/2015; impact from a single blow would have been sufficient to cause said injury; this type of fracture does not normally occur from falling down; it could have been caused as a result of jumping and landing on a left foot on a hard surface; [this fracture] is not consistent with having been stomped upon and having a right leg being pulled up at the same time, as suggested by the applicant).
The applicant’s mother stated in the course of pre-investigative inquiry on 30 April 2017 that that she had seen him on the day of his arrest, on 26/05/2015 at about 3 pm, his hands had been swollen and he had been limping on his left leg.
First complaint on 01/06/2015/several (not specified, how many) refusals to open criminal case. Last - on 30/04/2017 by the Belgorod Investigative Committee. It was established that on 27/05/2015, at the time of his placement in the IVS, the applicant had had a swollen left ankle and that the injury had been self-inflicted. The pre-investigative inquiry included (i) questioning of the applicant, police officers that had arrested him and attesting witnesses; (ii) excerpts from the applicant’s hospital records showing that he was undergoing treatment between 30/11/14 and 12/01/2015 for (unspecified) foot fracture; (iii) excerpts from the medical examination act of the Belgorod Forensics Bureau no. 1037 of 10/09/2015. The applicant’s mother stated that she had seen the applicant on the day of his arrest on 26/05/2015 with his hands swollen and he had been limping. The investigators concluded that no physical force or psychological violence had been used against the applicant during the arrest.
On 25/10/2017 the Gubkin Town Court of the Belgorod Region found the applicant’s complaint against the last refusal unsubstantiated/ upheld on 21/12/2017 by the Belgorod Regional Court.
convicted of armed robbery on 15/06/2017 by the Kominternovskiy District Court in Voronezh, sentenced to 8 years 6 months; upheld on appeal on 29/11/2017 by the Voronezh Regional Court (sentenced reduced to 8 yrs). Both courts also dismissed the applicant’s complaint about ill-treatment.
Art. 6 (3) (c) - free legal assistance - On 26/05/2015 - absence of a lawyer immediately after the applicant’s arrest; incriminating statements made by the applicant in the absence of lawyer at around 5 p.m., access to legal aid lawyer granted at 11 p.m., but his presence was a formality: no legal advice rendered before interrogation, no details asked about the applicant’s arrest, no objection made to the night-time interrogation of the applicant.
15380/19
14/03/2019
Igor Ivanovich TARASOV
1969
Yekaterina Vanslova
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 31/03/2018, at 01.00 a.m. the applicant’s probation officer D. from the police operative research unit no. 3 in Orsk (ОУР ОП № 3 МУ МВД России «Орское») arrived at the applicant’s home and beat him up.
Medical record of 31/03/2018, issued by the emergency department of the Novotroitsk public hospital (ГАУЗ БС МП Новотроицка) (abrasions on the hands and arms, bruises on the face; blunt injury of the belly).
Forensic report no. 263 issued by the Forensic Bureau of the Orenburg Region on 18/04/2018 (injury on the parietal region; bruises on the right eye, the right cheekbone, the right cheek, the chin, the forehead, bruises on the right forearm and hand; these injuries could have been caused by hard blunt objects);
Witnesses’ statements (the applicant’s wife and son) about the incident; witnesses’ statements (neighbours and others) about the lack of injuries on the applicant prior to the incident and his injuries after.
First complaint on 31/03/2018 to the police unit. On 07/05/2018 its internal inquiry concluded that the use of force by the probation officer was lawful. The officer explained that he had arrived at the applicant’s home to check the latter’s involvement in drug trafficking and that the applicant attacked him. According to forensic report no. 308 issued by the Forensic Bureau of the Orenburg Region on 19/04/2018, officer D. had some injuries on his face. Between 02/05/2018 and 14/11/2018 six refusals to open a criminal case were issued, all overruled by the investigators’ superiors, lastly on 02/03/2019.
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Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
15492/19
12/03/2019
Yevgeniy Aleksandrovich DOLGUSHIN
1984
Yekaterina Mikhaylovna Vanslova
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 25/05/2016 the applicant was arrested and taken to the Sovetskiy district police department in Chelyabinsk (ОП «Советский» УМВД по Челябинску). According to the applicant, between 25/05/2016 and 27/05/2017 at least ten officers beat him up to make him confess to a robbery. On 26/05/2016 the applicant was taken by the police to the hospital with some injuries, then returned to the police station, from where on 27/05/2016 he was urgently hospitalised.
Medical certificate of 22/08/2016 issued by the emergency unit (травмпункт) of Chelyabinsk public hospital no. 2 (on 26/05/2016 the applicant had injuries of the feet, contortion of the right wrist, injuries and haematomas of the face, body, arms and legs);
Medical certificate of 07/07/2016 issued by the prison hospital in Chelyabinsk (ФКЛПУ СТБ-3) (the applicant had been urgently hospitalised on 27/05/2016 from the police station with a closed fracture of the nose, multiple injuries on the face, neck, back, arms and legs; traumatic neuropathy of the mediaт and ulnar nerves);
Forensic expert report no. 6009 of 16/08/2016 issued by the Forensic Bureau of the Chelyabinsk Region (closed fracture of the nose, caused by a hard blunt object; pseudo luxation of the right wrist, multiple haematomas and bruises on the head, neck, back, thorax, arms and legs, caused by hard blunt objects).
First complaint on 30/05/2016 at the prison hospital no. 3 of Chelyabinsk in the form of "explanation" / Three refusals to open a criminal case, issued between 13/07/2016 and 19/01/2018: according to the investigators, the applicant had injured himself by falling down several times and breaking through the bushes during his attempt to abscond from the police.
5/06/2018 the Sovetskiy District Court in Chelyabinsk / upheld on 13/09/2018 by the Chelyabinsk Regional Court.
On 30/10/2017 the Sovetskiy District Court in Chelyabinsk convicted the applicant of 18 counts of robbery. On 13/03/2018 the conviction was upheld by the Chelyabinsk Regional Court.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
33041/19
11/06/2019
Roman Vladimirovich STASYUK
1994
Igor Nikolayevich Sholokhov
Kazan
On 17/07/2018 the applicant was summoned by a police officer to the Budenovsk Traffic Police Department (отдел инспекции безопасности дорожного движения г. Будёновска) where the officer handcuffed him and subjected him to multiple blows to the head and abdomen; as a result the applicant was taken to the hospital.
Examination report no. 13 of 19/07/2018 by the Stavropol Regional Forensic Bureau
(head injuries, dissection of the eyebrow, abrasions and bruises, sharp pain in the lower back, vomiting and dizziness; injuries inflicted within the last three days).
Expert medical report no. 428 of 19/07/2018 issued by the same bureau (confirmed the injuries and the mechanism of their infliction).
Photos of the applicant’s injuries.
On 18/07/2018 to the Budenovsk inter-district investigative department (Будёновский межрайонный следственный отдел Следственного комитета РФ по Ставропольскому краю)/Refusals to open a criminal case on 17/08/2018 and 19/09/2018.
On 05/12/2018 the appeal against the last refusal was rejected by the Budenovsky Town Court in the Stavropol Region/Upheld on 19/02/2019 by the Stavropol Regional Court.
On 18/10/2018 the Budenovsky Town Court acquitted the applicant of the charges of disobeying a police officer.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
48371/19
11/09/2019
Denis Vladislavovich BELYANIN
1975
Olga Aleksandrovna Sadovskaya
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 02/09/2017 the applicant was subjected to beatings (punched in the chest, kicked in the legs and feet) by special police force officers (OMON) during their intervention after a football match in Orenburg.
Forensic medical report no. 04-8п/1330 of 06/09/2017 by the Samara Forensic Bureau (bruises on the inner ankle of the left shin).
On 11/09/2017 to the Yuzhniy Investigative Department in Orenburg / Between 30/10/2017 and 08/12/2018 eight refusals to open a criminal case, all overruled by the investigator’s superiors. Latest decision – on 16/08/2019 (the use of force was justified to control the applicant’s resistance during the police intervention).
On 09/07/2019 the Leninsky District Court in Orenburg refused to examine the complaint as the refusal of 08/12/2018 had been overruled by the investigator’s superiors on 28/06/2019.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
58985/19
01/11/2019
Aleksey Aleksandrovich SUKHANOV
1971
Olga Aleksandrovna Sadovskaya
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 25/01/2017 bailiffs in the building of the Tverskoy District Court in Moscow hit the applicant’s head against a safe and then handcuffed him in response to the applicant’s alleged refusal to comply with their orders.
Ambulance report of 25/01/2017 by the Sklifosovsky State Research Institute of Emergency Medicine in Moscow (closed head injury, brain concussion, soft tissue abrasions to the head, contusions to the extremities).
Forensic medical report no. 3502m/3226 of 11/04/2017 by the Moscow Forensic Bureau (abrasions in the wrist area caused by sliding hard objects, abrasion of the left parietal region, subcutaneous haematoma of the left temporal region, which could have been caused by an impact of a blunt hard object).
On 17/02/2017 to the Tverskoy Investigative Department in Moscow;
on 01/03/2017 the complaint was joined to a complaint of another alleged victim of the bailiffs’ ill-treatment on 25/01/2017 /Between 02/03/2017 and 09/05/2019 eight refusals to open a criminal case, all overruled by the investigator’s superiors. In each refusal the ill-treatment allegations were left unexamined.
On 24/12/2018, 04/06/2019, and 28/05/2019 the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow refused to examine the complaints as the refusals of 30/11/2018, 17/08/2019, and 09/05/2019 respectively had been overruled by the investigator’s superiors.
By a decision of 22/02/2017, a justice of the peace of court circuit no. 423 of the Tverskoy District of Moscow sentenced the applicant to a fine for obstructing the lawful activity of an official in relation to the incident on 25/01/2017/On 18/04/2017 upheld by the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow.
Art. 13 - absence de recours effectif en droit interne concernant les griefs de mauvais traitements -
59395/19
05/11/2019
Vitaliy Leonidovich LOBODA
1982
Andrey Gennadyevich Lepekhin
Chelyabinsk
On 05/05/2018 the applicant, a political activist, was arrested during a manifestation in Chelyabinsk and taken to the Sovetskiy district police department in Chelyabinsk where he was verbally assaulted. In response to the applicant’s attempted to video record the assault, one of the officers broke the applicant’s finger while trying to take the phone from the applicant’s pocket. The applicant called an ambulance which diagnosed him with a bruised right pinky (little finger). The applicant was released in the evening and immediately went to hospital no. 1 in Chelyabinsk. The hospital transmitted the information about the injury to the police.
Excerpt from the log of the Chelyabinsk emergency care station of 05/05/2018 (bruise on the right pinky).
Medical card no. 4862927290 of 06/05/2018 (closed fracture of the finger).
Forensic medical examination act no. 5066 of 19/07/2019 (closed fracture of the finger that could have been caused by a hard blunt object on/around 05/05/2018).
On 06/05/2018 a doctor who examined the applicant called the Sovetskiy police department in Chelyabinsk and reported that the applicant had been ill-treated by unknown persons at that police station. On the same day the applicant lodged the ill-treatment complaint with the same police department / Refusals to open a criminal case on 04/07/2018 and 08/02/2019.
On 26/03/2019 the Sovetskiy District Court in Chelyabinsk dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the last refusal to open a criminal case/on 07/06/2019 the Chelyabinsk Regional Court upheld that decision.
61438/19
13/11/2019
Timofey Sergeyevich ZHVIKOV
1987
Viktoriya Yevgenyevna Dermeneva
Krasnoyarsk
The applicant was detained in SIZO-1 in Krasnoyarsk pending trial on charges of rape and murder. At about 6 p.m. on 15/11/2018 three prison guards took him out of his cell, kicked him on his right leg, chest and face, gave him several electric shocks and shaved his head pressuring him to confess to the crime at the upcoming trial.
Medical certificate no. 228 of 20/11/2018 by an ambulance doctor (bruising of the right hip);
photographs taken by the applicant’s defence counsel on 20/11/2018 (bruises on the right hip and both knees);
forensic medical report no. 3374 of 10/04/2019 (the bruising could have been caused by a hard blunt object; it was impossible to establish whether the bruising could have been caused by a fall as the expert had been provided with insufficient information).
First complaint at the trial hearing, 20/11/2018 /Refusals to open a criminal case: 09/01/2019, 20/02/2019, 01/04/2019, 15/05/2019, 08/07/2019, 16/09/2019
On 20/08/2019 the Zheleznodorozhniy District Court rejected the applicant’s complaint as the refusal of 08/07/2019 had been overruled by the investigators’ superiors on 16/08/2019 / No appeal.
Acquitted on 26/12/2018 by a jury trial at the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court/upheld on appeal - 06/06/2019 by the Criminal Division of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court.
11410/20*
20/02/2020
Ibragim Saydayevich YANGULBAYEV
1994
Yekaterina Vanslova
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 21/05/2017 the applicant was taken to the Grozny police department under suspicion of managing a social media group critical of the Chechen authorities. Mr D., the Deputy Head of the department, and five other individuals subjected the applicant to ill-treatment to make him confess: they pulled a bag over his head, handcuffed him, electrocuted him, beat him with a plastic pipe and hung him upside down.
The applicant was charged with petty hooliganism and kept at the police station until 25/05/2017 when he was convicted as charged and sentenced to fifteen days of administrative detention.
Medical examination act no. 166 of 25/05/2017 in the IZ in Grozny (СП УМВД России по г. Грозный Чеченской Республики) (multiple bruises on the head, back, upper and lower limbs).
Forensic medical examination act no. 1420 of 21/07/2017 (abrasions on the left and right forearm and right shin that could have been caused by a hard blunt object up to ten-fifteen days prior to the examination).
On 05/07/2017 the applicant lodged a complaint with the Chechnya prosecutor’s office / Refusals to open a criminal case: 16/08/2017, 28/09/2017 and 16/10/2017.
On 22/04/2019 the Staropromyslovskiy District Court in Grozny dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the last refusal/ on 20/08/2019 the Chechnya Supreme Court upheld that decision.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
34695/20
07/08/2020
Andrey Vladimirovich DVORTSOV
1971
Yekaterina Vanslova
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 09/08/2016 the applicant had a scuffle with two other persons in the street in the Druzhniy village (Kstovo town, Nizhniy Novgorod Region), when he was approached by three police officers. The applicant tried to abscond but was caught by the officers and stabbed officer K. in the left palm.
Then the officers handcuffed him, pushed him on the ground and beat him unconscious. Then the applicant was taken to the emergency unit of the outpatient hospital no.50 in the Priokskiy district in Nizhniy Novgorod.
On 16/08/2016 a criminal case was opened against the applicant for the use of violence against a representative of authority, the applicant was convicted thereof on 07/12/2017.
Medical certificate of 10/08/216 issued by the emergency department of the outpatient hospital no. 50 of the Priokskiy District of Nizhniy Novgorod (closed craniocerebral trauma, concussion, facial haematomas and multiple soft tissue bruises on the face and left thigh).
Expert report no. 1034-PL of 11/08/2016 issued by the Forensic Bureau of the Nizhniy Novgorod Region (bruises on the face, left ear, shoulders, belly, left forearm, back, left leg).
Expert report no. 737 of 13/09/2016 issued by the same Forensic Bureau (the applicant’s injuries described in the previous forensic report could not have been caused by a single fall).
Additional expert report no. 788 issued by the same Forensic Bureau (the applicant’s injuries could have been caused by multiple falls and by the police officers’ actions during the applicant’s apprehension).
Expert report no. 289 of 18/09/2017 issued by the Independent Forensic Bureau (the applicant’s injuries could neither have been caused by falls nor in the circumstances described by the police officers).
Witnesses’ (neighbors’) statements and a video recording of the applicant’s beatings by the police officers.
First complaint on 12/08/2016 to the Nizhniy Novgorod Prosecutor’s office. Between 27/09/2016 and 8/02/2018.
Six refusals to open a criminal case, all overruled except the last one. According to the investigators, the use of force against the applicant was justified and proportionate as he had stabbed officer K.
04/05/2018 Kstovo town Court / 05/06/2018 Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court.
16/07/2018 Kstovo town Court (decision to terminate proceedings due to the final decision of 04/05/2018 above).
Request to the investigative committee, under Art. 124 CCrP, to overrule the last refusal to open a criminal case, in view of new evidence – the video-recordings of the incident obtained after the last refusal / dismissal of the complaint on 22/08/2019 / new complaint under Art. 125 CCrP rejected on 04/12/2019 by the Kstovo town Court / upheld on 17/02/2020 by the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court.
On 07/12/2017 the Kstovo town Court convicted the applicant of the use of force against representative of authority.
8101/21
23/12/2020
Ruslan Akteberisovich BADARTDINOV
1973
Vladimir Vladimirovich Krasikov
Samara
On 02/04/2019 officers of the Federal Security Service (the FSB) took the applicant to their headquarters in Samara for questioning on the suspicion of the involvement in a terrorism-related crime. There they threatened him and hit him on the head. Then the applicant was taken to the Samara Regional Investigative Committee for official questioning, during which he stated that earlier that day he had been beaten by the FSB officers. On 02/04/2019 the applicant was released. Between 02/04/2019 and 08/04/2019 the applicant’s state of health deteriorated and he went to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with a brain concussion. The hospital transmitted that information to the police.
Medical card No. 287 of 08/04/2019 by the Samara hospital no.10 (brain concussion and bruises on the head).
Medical examination act no. C/89-ж of 01/07/2019 by the Samara Regional Forensic Bureau (brain concussion and bruises on the head that could have been caused by a hard blunt object up to eight days prior to the first examination carried out on 08/04/2019).
On 08/04/2019 the applicant complained to police department no. 6 in Samara (ОП № 6 УМВД России по г. Самара) seeking to institute criminal proceedings against the FSB officers.
On 04/06/2019 the applicant submitted the same complaint to the Military Investigative Committee in Samara/ Refusals to open a criminal case on 03/07/2019 and 16/08/2019: the investigators found that the applicant’s injuries could have occurred prior to 02/04/2019.
On 24/07/2020 the Military Garrison Court in Samara dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the last refusal to open a criminal case./On 24/09/2020 the Central Circuit Military Court in Samara upheld that decision.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
31362/21
02/08/2021
Sergey Sergeyevich BELOUSOV
1980
On 10/10/2016 the applicant was arrested by the officers from police unit no.11 in Krasnoyarsk (ОП № 11 ГНК МУ МВД России "Красноярское"), who beat him in the chest, face and arms and urged to confess to a drug offence. Then the applicant was taken to the police station, where one of the officers tied a plastic bag on the applicant’s head leading to his loss of consciousness. After that the applicant was handcuffed to a radiator for twelve hours.
Certificate no. 45199 of 12/10/2016 by Emergency Hospital of Krasnoyarsk (fracture of the 10th and 11th ribs on the left side) and certificate no. 45501 of 14/10/2016 by the same hospital (fracture of the left wrist, received according to the patient on 07/10/2016).
Forensic expert report no. 4367 of 27/04/2017 (on 14/10/2016 the applicant had a fracture of the left wrist).
Forensic expert report no. 6125 of 16/06/2017 (on 12/10/2016 the applicant had a consolidated - that is ancient and healed - fracture of the 7th, 8th, and 9ths ribs on the left side).
First complaint to the Sovetskiy District Investigative Committee in Krasnoyarsk on 26/10/2016/ Numerous refusals to open a criminal case, the first issued on 09/11/2016, the last on 14/09/2019. The investigators found that the injuries had been received prior to the arrest. The refusals relied on: (i) statements by the applicant and the arresting officers; (ii) the medical certificates and forensic expert reports; (iii) statements by the applicant’s brother that the applicant had had a fight in September 2016 and had complained of pains in his ribs after that; (iv) statements by the doctor who had examined the applicant on 12/10/2016 and of the forensic experts that the rib fracture had been already healed on 12/10/2016 and could not therefore have been received on 10/10/2016; the discrepancy between the medical certificate and the forensic expert report as to which ribs had been fractured were due to a mistake by the examining doctor in reading the X-ray; (v) the statement by the applicant to the examining doctor on 14/10/2016 that the wrist fracture had been received on 07/10/2016 as a result of a fall; (vi) information that in March 2018 the police had been unable to locate Ms F., the applicant’s girlfriend and a witness to his arrest.
On 13/03/2020 the Sovetskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk rejected the complaint against the last refusal as unsubstantiated/upheld on appeal on 01/07/2021 by the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court.
Convicted of drug dealing on 30/11/2017 by the Sovetskiy District Court of Krasnoyarsk/upheld on appeal on 07/06/2018 by the Krasnoyarsk Regional Court
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
32470/21
21/06/2021
Albert Adamovich KHAMKHOYEV
1992
Yekaterina Vanslova
Nizhniy Novgorod
1) On 14/11/2017 the applicant was handcuffed by plain-clothe police officers, who pulled a plastic bag over his head and took him to their car, where on the way to the Ingushetia Centre for Extremism Counteraction (CEC) he was beaten. Between 14 and 15/11/2017 at the CEC the officers subjected the applicant to punches, beatings with a plastic bottle full of water and electrocution to make him confess to illegal possession of firearms and fabrication of an explosive device. An ambulance was called for the applicant.
2) On 17 and 20/11/2017 the applicant was taken to the Ingushetia Department of the Federal Security Service (ФСБ) where he was again subjected to electrocution to make him confess to the crimes.
Certificate of 24/11/2017 by the Republican Emergency Hospital (an ambulance called for the applicant on 15/11/2017 to the CEC found haematomas on the head and other parts of his body).
Certificate of 21/11/2017 by the Ingushetia public clinical hospital (the applicant arrived at the emergency unit on 17/11/2017 and was examined by doctors who found no “acute pathology.” On 19/11/2017 he was brought again to the emergency with complaints about stomach pain; yellow haematomas and bruises on the right forearm, belly, thighs, and legs were found).
Forensic expert report no. 512 of 01/12/2017 by the Ingushetia Forensic Bureau after the applicant’s examination on 20/11/2017 (multiple bruises and injuries on the torso caused by hard blunt objects between 7 and 10 days prior to the examination).
Additional forensic expert report no. 336 of 13/08/2018 based on the applicant’s medical documents (fracture of the nose bones).
1) On 15/11/2017 and then on 16/11/2017 the applicant and his lawyer complained of the ill-treatment by the CEC officers to the investigator of the criminal case opened against the applicant.
2) On 27/11/2017 the applicant complained about the ill-treatment by the FSB officers to unspecified authorities.
On 22/01/2018 a criminal case into both counts of ill-treatment was opened, the applicant was granted victim status, and a police officer O., from the CEC, was named the suspect. On 27/10/2019 decision taken to terminate the criminal proceedings in respect of O. for the lack of corpus delicti, and the decision to suspend the criminal case for the failure to identify the perpetrators. On 31/01/2020 the Nazran Prosecutor overruled the suspension and ordered that a number of compulsory steps be taken; the proceedings were resumed and on 11/01/2021 they were suspended again without the steps having been taken. On 08/04/2021 the Deputy Ingushetia Prosecutor overruled the last suspension and instructed the investigators to take certain steps (e.g. to question medical staff which had examined the applicant as well as several police officers). The instructions were not complied with.
The applicant did not complain under Art 125 of the CCrP as it was to no avail given that the compulsory prosecutors’ orders remained not complied with by the investigators.
On an unspecified date the applicant was convicted of illegal possession of firearms.
Art. 13 - absence de recours effectif en droit interne concernant les griefs de mauvais traitements -
45092/21*
13/09/2021
Yuriy Vladimirovich SENISHIN
1969
Olesya Anatolyevna Artyushkina
Moscow
On 28/06/2021 the applicant was arrested together with 2 other individuals.
On the following day, the court sentenced him to 15 days of administrative detention for petty hooliganism (Art. 20.1, para. 1 CAO). Between 30/06/2021 and 02/07/2021 the applicant was subjected to torture on 30/06/2021 and on 01/07/2021 (by FSS officers). In particular, the applicant asserts having been subjected to electric shocks, beatings, threats of rape with a baton, placement in stress positions and strangulation with a plastic bag.
On 13/07/2021 the applicant was also convicted of disobeying a lawful order of a police officer (Art. 19.3 para 1 CAO) and sentenced to another 15 days of administrative detention. He was then charged of kidnapping (Art. 126 Criminal Code) and put in pre-trial detention.
The applicant alleges that in violation of the procedure his injuries were not documented by the medical personnel of various institutions.
Forensic report of 05/10/2021: several scars on the applicant’s body the origin of which it was not possible to establish.
On 17/08/2021 the applicant first lodged an ill-treatment complaint with the Military Department of the Investigative Committee. On the same day the applicant’s lawyer lodged an online complaint with the Military Investigative Committee.
06/10/2021 refusal to open a criminal case
02/03/2022 Western Circuit Military Court
Art. 5 (3) - excessive length of pre-trial detention - 27/07/2021 - pending, Leninskiy District Court of Voronezh, Voronezh Regional Court, use of assumptions, in the absence of any evidentiary basis, of the risks of absconding or obstructing justice; failure to examine the possibility of applying other measures of restraint; fragility of the reasons employed by the courts
45103/21*
28/02/2022
Aleksandr Sergeyevich TSVIRKUN
1992
Valeriy Vladimirovich Shukhardin
Moscow
28/06/2021, Semilukskiy District of Voronezh Region / officers of the traffic police of the Semilukskiy District of Voronezh Region, officers of the department of Internal Affairs
Forensic medical examination act no. 4901.21 of 05/10/2021 (conducted on 23/09/2021): a scar on the outer surface of the right forearm, a scar on the dorsum of the right hand; area of pink skin with a purple tint on the inner surface of the right ankle joint. It is not possible to determine the type of the active weapon and the mechanism of causing damage, since by the time of the expert examination, the damage had healed, having lost their morphological features.
First complaint to the investigation office, 05/08/2021; Refusal to open a criminal case of 06/10/2021
13/12/2021 Garrison Martial Court of Voronezh / 02/03/2022 Second Western Circuit Military Court
No information
Art. 5 (3) - excessive length of pre-trial detention - 28/06/2021 - pending; Leninskiy District Court of Voronezh, Voronezh Regional Court; Specific defects: use of assumptions, in the absence of any evidentiary basis, of the risks of absconding or obstructing justice; fragility and repetitiveness of the reasoning employed by the courts as the case progressed; failure to examine the possibility of applying other measures of restraint.
52379/21
24/03/2022
Dmitriy Vladimirovich KAMYNIN
1984
Nayana Dzhon Ludlow
Moscow
On 10/12/2020 the applicant was arrested and beaten by the police officers on suspicion of having drugs on him.
Hospital medical report on 11/12/2020 confirming bruises on the soft tissue of the face
The applicant was also examined by two paramedics at the police station who confirmed bruises on the head and the soft tissue of the face (examinations on 11/12/2020 and 15/12/2020)
29/03/2021
First complaint to the investigative committee
The investigation into the incident was carried out by two investigative departments – Central District and Zavodskoy District of Kemerovo.
On 13/09/2021 the Central District investigative department refused to open a criminal case.
On 24/06/2021 and 15/10/2021 the Zavodskoy District investigative department refused to open a criminal case.
14/04/2022, Kemerovo Regional Court (challenging the refusal of the Central District investigative department).
The proceedings regarding the refusal of the Zavodskoy District investigative department are still pending.
On 04/01/2022 all drug charges were dropped.
Art. 5 (3) - excessive length of pre-trial detention - detention between 15/12/2020 and 04/01/2022 - fragility of the reasons employed by the courts; fragility and repetitiveness of the reasoning employed by the courts as the case progressed; failure to examine the possibility of applying other measures of restraint.,
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
61637/21
02/12/2021
Artur Gendrikovich APOZYAN
1986
Vyacheslav Alekseyevich Dyundin
Orsk
On 04/03/2020 the applicant was arrested on the street by three plainclothes police officers who took him to a police station. There the applicant was handcuffed, his wrists covered with strips of cloth underneath the handcuffs to minimise bruising. Then the arresting officers and one of their colleagues pulled a black plastic bag over the applicant’s head, put him on the floor on the stomach, tied his wrists handcuffed behind the back to his ankles and threatened to kill him; the applicant lost consciousness several times.
Medical examination report by a nurse on 06/03/2020 at SIZO-2 in Orsk (stretching of the articular capsule of the right shoulder joint and subconjunctival bleeding in both eyes).
Expert examination on 17/04/2020 by the Orenburg Region Forensic Bureau (injury of the soft tissue of the right shoulder joint caused by a blunt trauma and subconjunctival bleeding in both eyes).
1) On 11/03/2020 to the Orsk Investigative Unit of the Investigative Committee / Refusals to open a criminal case of 20/03/2020, 21/05/2020, 03/06/2020, 28/09/2020, 07/10/2020 overruled by the investigators’ superiors, last refusal - on 04/03/2021.
2) On 06/03/2020 to the judge sitting on a measure of restraint hearing/ The judge sent a report of a crime to the investigators.
3) On 07/03/2020 report of the warden of SIZO-2 to the head of the Orsk Investigative Unit/ No response.
On 04/02/2021 the Sovetskiy District Court in Orsk refused to examine the complaint as the refusal of 07/10/2020 had been overruled by the investigators’ superiors on 25/01/2021.
On 04/06/2021 the Sovetskiy District Court in Orsk dismissed the complaint against the refusal of 04/03/2021/ upheld on 06/08/2021 by the Orenburg Regional Court.
Convicted on 22/06/2020 by the Soviet District Court in Orsk of sexual violence in respect of a minor and sentenced to twelve years’ imprisonment.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
3199/22
28/12/2021
Temirkhan Magomedkhanovich AMAKHANOV
1957
Arsen Khidirnabiyevich Shabanov
Makhachkala
In the evening of 03/04/2016 the applicant called the police complaining about an allegedly unlawful construction. At 11 p.m. three police officers from the Derbent police department came to the applicant’s flat and, following a verbal argument, officers I. and S. used a stun gun against the applicant; officer I. also choked the applicant. After the applicant refused to go to the police station, officer I. fired his service gun three times, then tried to drag the applicant out of the flat hitting him in the lower back with that gun, but to no avail. Then the officers left. The applicant made a video recording of the incident on his mobile telephone.
Certificate of emergency care no.72 by the Derbent Interdistrict emergency station of 04/04/2016 (multiple abrasions and haematomas of the soft tissue on various parts of the body which could have been caused in the circumstances alleged by the applicant).
Expert report no. 151 of 10/05/2016 by the Derbent Forensic Bureau (multiple abrasions, possibly traces of stun gun, on the ribcage, left shoulder, left forearm, right shoulder and left foot and a haematoma on the left sheen).
Besides, witness statement of the applicant’s wife Ms A. and a copy of the video recording of the incident.
On 06/04/2016 a complaint to the Derbent interdistrict department of the investigative committee/Between 2016 and 2019 several refusals to open a criminal case/on 29/04/2019 a criminal case opened against officers I. and S. on account of the ill-treatment/ on 21/04/2021 the case was terminated for the lack of corpus delicti: the use of force against the applicant had been justified as the latter had threatened to stab the officers and refused to follow their orders.
On 16/06/2021 the appeal against the termination was rejected by the Sovetskiy District Court in Makhachkala/on 22/07/2021 upheld by the Supreme Court of the Dagestan Republic.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
12650/22*
04/02/2022
Oleg Vladimirovich POLYUSHKIN
1979
Diana Irikovna Galiullina
Ufa
On the night of 05/04/2016 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of selling drugs and he was escorted to police department no. 1 in Murmansk.The applicant stated that police officers had banged his head against the wall and kicked him. At 9:01 a.m. on 05/04/2016, while he was at the police station, an ambulance was called for the applicant.
Emergency medical call sheet No. 38689 of 05/04/2016 (an unspecified injury)
A witness, Ms M. saw the applicant at the police station covered in blood.
On 15/02/2018 the applicant lodged the first complaint with the Investigative Committee in the Murmansk Region / Refusals to open a criminal case: 17/03/2018, 24/04/2018, 3/09/2018, 18/10/2018, 20/04/2020, 7/09/2020, 30/10/2020, 14/12/2020, 18/01/2021, and the last -18/02/2021.
On 30/04/2021 the Oktyabrskiy District Court in Murmansk dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the last refusal to open a criminal case/On 05/08/2021 the Murmansk Regional Court upheld that decision.
On 3/11/2016 the applicant was convicted of selling drugs.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
17906/22*
16/03/2022
Maksim Mikhaylovich SALNYY
1984
Aleksandr Vladimirovich Kiryanov
Taganrog
On 01/06/2021 the applicant was arrested, handcuffed and kicked several times in the shin by the FSB officers from the Border Control Service (Пограничное Управление ФСБ РФ по Ростовской области) in Rostov Region.
Expert report no.15 of the State Forensic Centre no.111 of 10/06/2021 (an abrasion on the right shin - the injury was caused by a hard blunt object 1-3 days prior to the examination carried out on 03/06/2021).
On 02/06/2021 a complaint to investigative unit no. 314 of the Military Investigative Committee/11/06/2021 refusal to open a criminal case as the use of the physical force was justified.
On 29/11/2021 the Rostov-on-Don Garrison Court rejected the appeal against the refusal as unsubstantiated/upheld on 11/02/2022 by the Southern Military Circuit Court.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
18272/22
16/03/2022
Nikolay Aleksandrovich KIRICHENKO
1983
On 01/06/2021 the applicant was arrested, handcuffed and subjected to kicks in the torso and other forms of beating by the FSB officers from the Border Control Service in Rostov Region.
Expert report no.16 of the State Forensic Centre no.111 of 10/06/2021 (four hematomas on the right shoulder, one hematoma on the right forearm, one abrasion on the lower right sheen; the injuries were caused by a hard blunt object 1-3 days prior to the examination carried out on 03/06/2021).
On 02/06/2021 complaint to the investigative unit no. 314 of the Military Investigative Committee/11/06/2021 refusal to open a criminal case as the use of the physical force was justified.
On 29/11/2021 the Rostov-on-Don Garrison Court rejected the appeal as unsubstantiated/upheld on 11/02/2022 by the Southern Military Circuit Court.
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment -
19044/22
19/08/2022
Vasiliy Andreyevich SUROV
1999
Mariya Aleksandrovna Zadorozhnaya
Nizhniy Novgorod
On 23/01/2021 the applicant participated in a manifestation in support of A. Navalnyy. During his apprehension he got hit his face against a van.
medical certificates 23/01/2021, expert report 16/06/2021 eyelid wound, eyebrow abrasion
28/01/2021
17/06/2021 Presnenskiy District Court of Moscow
22/11/2021 Presnenskiy District Court of Moscow
25/04/2022 Moscow City Court
Moscow City Court 29/09/2021, fine of RUB 10,000; article 20.2 § 5 of CAO
Art. 11 (2) - disproportionate measures against organisers and participants of public assemblies – on 23/01/2021 in Moscow
Manifestation in support of A. Navalnyy;
fine of RUB 10,000; article 20.2 § 5 of CAO;
Moscow City Court 29/09/2021,
Art. 6 (1) - lack of impartiality of the tribunal in view of the absence of a prosecuting party in administrative-offence proceedings,
Art. 6 (1) - and Art. 6 (3) (d) - unfair trial in view of restrictions on the right to examine witnesses - police officers on whose written statements the applicant’s conviction were based were not summoned,
Art. 5 (1) - unlawful deprivation of liberty, including unrecorded detention and detention without a judicial order and any other legal basis - applicant taken to the police station on 23/01/2021 as an administrative suspect: no evidence/assessment that it was impracticable, on the spot, to compile the offence record (Art. 27.2 § 1 CAO) and achieve the objectives set out in Art. 27.1 CAO, e.g. to establish the suspect’s identity (see Korneyeva v. Russia, no. 72051/17, § 34, 8 October 2019; Ryabinina and Others v. Russia [Committee], nos. 50271/06 and 8 other applications, § 35, 2 July 2019),
Art. 13 - lack of any effective remedy in domestic law in respect of the complaints of ill-treatment.
33692/22
20/06/2022
Aleksandr Ivanovich SILAYEV
1958
Dmitriy Georgiyevich Gerasimov
St Petersburg
On 05/05/2018 the applicant was in the city centre of St Petersburg and accidentally ended up near a peaceful assembly organised in protest against the third term of Vladimir Putin’s presidency. At some point a police officer ran into the applicant, pressed him against a metal fence, forced him on the ground and placed his knee on his chest. Suffering from a pre-existing heart condition, the applicant begged the officer to take the foot off and to call an ambulance but to no avail. The case file contains photos showing the applicant on the ground visibly suffering surrounded by riot police officers in combat gear. The applicant was then taken to a police station where he was examined by an ambulance medical team and taken to the hospital from which he was discharged on the same day. In the ensuing domestic proceedings the police officer in question claimed that the applicant who had been taking an active part in the "unauthorised" assembly had refused to follow the police officer’s order to stop the protest activity.
An extract from the medical record by the Elizavetinskaya Hospital of St Petersburg of 05/05/2018 (diagnosis: ischemic heart disease, angina pectoris, cardiosclerosis and hypertension).
08/05/2018 to St Petersburg Investigative Committee / 07/12/2018 to police unit no. 28 of the Central District of St Petersburg, refusal to open criminal proceedings (the applicant was not notified) /overruled by the prosecutor’s office on 17/05/2019. Subsequent refusals were overruled by the investigators’ superiors on 19/06/2019, and 04/10/2020.
On 28/09/2021 the Kuybyshevskiy District Court in St Petersburg refused to examine the complaint as the refusal of 04/10/2020 had been overruled on 17/08/2021/on 21/12/2021 upheld by the St Petersburg City Court.
On 06/05/2018 administrative-offence convictions under Articles 19.3(1) and 20.2(5) of the CAO by the Primorskiy District Court of St Petersburg.