The applicants in the present seven cases complained that they had been convicted of bribe-related offences which they had committed only because they had been incited to do so by agent provocateurs. Some applicants also complained that they had been subjected to covert surveillance and that the domestic courts had accepted as evidence the material thus obtained.<\/p>\n
THIRD SECTION This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.<\/p>\n In the case of Ivanov and Others v. Russia,<\/strong><\/p>\n The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:<\/p>\n Darian Pavli, President, Having regard to:<\/p>\n the applications against the Russian Federation lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (\u201cthe Convention\u201d) by the Russian nationals listed in the appended table (\u201cthe applicants\u201d), on the various dates indicated therein;<\/p>\n the decision to give notice to the Russian Government (\u201cthe Government\u201d) initially represented by Mr M. Galperin, former Representative of the Russian Federation to the European Court of Human Rights and lately by his successor in that office, Mr\u00a0M.\u00a0Vinogradov, of the complaints concerning the police entrapment, covert surveillance and the admitting as evidence of recordings obtained in the course of undercover operation and to declare inadmissible the remainder of the applications;<\/p>\n the parties\u2019 observations;<\/p>\n Having deliberated in private on 15 March 2022,<\/p>\n Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:<\/p>\n SUBJECT-MATTER OF THE CASE<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. The applicants in the present seven cases complained that they had been convicted of bribe-related offences which they had committed only because they had been incited to do so by agent provocateurs. Some applicants also complained that they had been subjected to covert surveillance and that the domestic courts had accepted as evidence the material thus obtained.<\/p>\n THE COURT\u2019S ASSESSMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n I. JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS<\/strong><\/p>\n 2. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.<\/p>\n II. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 6 \u00a7 1 OF THE CONVENTION<\/strong><\/p>\n 3. The applicants complained that they had been convicted of bribe\u2011related offences (soliciting, receiving or offering a bribe) which they had committed only because they had been incited to do so by agent provocateurs during an undercover operation.<\/p>\n 4. The Government submitted that the applications brought by the first, second and third applicants should be examined in accordance with the well\u2011established case law of the Court on the matter. In respect of other applications, they submitted observations in which they contended that no violation of the applicants\u2019 rights had taken place.<\/p>\n 5. The Court notes that this complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 \u00a7 3 (a) of the Convention or inadmissible on any other grounds. It must therefore be declared admissible.<\/p>\n 6. The Court has recently reiterated that that the Russian legal system does not provide for adequate and effective legal safeguards for authorising and supervising undercover operations, a structural problem which exposed applicants to arbitrary action by the police and prevented the domestic courts from conducting an effective judicial review of their entrapment pleas (see Kuzmina and Others v. Russia, nos. 66152\/14 and 8 others, 20 April 2021, with further references). The present case is identical to other Russian cases on entrapment, in which the Court found in the past violations on account of deficiencies in procedure for authorising undercover operations in the context of investigating offences concerning bribes or illegal distribution of drugs (see Nosko and Nefedov v. Russia, nos. 5753\/09 and 11789\/10, 30\u00a0October\u00a02014; Lagutin and Others v. Russia, nos. 6228\/09 and 4 others, 24 April 2014; and Veselov and Others v. Russia, nos. 23200\/10, 24009\/07 and 556\/10, 2 October 2012).<\/p>\n 7. In particular, having examined the material of the applicants\u2019 case files, the Court considers that the preliminary investigation in their cases was superficial and tainted with the deficiencies in the procedure for authorising the undercover operations which were pointed out by the Court in its cases concerning entrapment cited above and which also left the applicants in the present cases unprotected against arbitrary police action. The undercover operations were ordered by simple administrative decisions of the bodies which later carried out the operations; those decisions contained very little information as to the reasons for and purposes of the planned undercover operations, and the operations were not subjected to judicial review or any other independent supervision. There was no need to justify the decision with relevant details and virtually no formalities to follow (see Kuzmina and Others, cited above, \u00a7 101). It also follows from the judgments of the domestic courts, that the issue of incitement was not adequately addressed by the courts and that the judicial review of the applicants\u2019 cases fell short of the standards developed in the Court\u2019s case-law in the light of Article 6 of the Convention. The domestic courts, in particular, either failed to verify the sources of incriminating information or review the reasons for carrying out undercover operations and the circumstances surrounding it; neither did they duly assess the conduct of the police officers and their informers vis-\u00e0-vis the applicants for any signs of psychological pressure or possible links between the informers and the police (see Kuzmina and Others, cited above, \u00a7 104; and contrast Manelyuk and Others v. Russia [Committee] nos. 40442\/07 and 3 others, \u00a7\u00a7 34, 38-39 and 40-42, 8 October 2019). The appeal courts, for their part, merely reiterated the reasoning of the first-instance courts and held that the applicants\u2019 pleas were unsubstantiated.<\/p>\n 8. Accordingly, the Court finds no reason to depart from its earlier findings on the matter in similar cases and holds that the criminal proceedings against all seven applicants in the present case were incompatible with the notion of a fair trial. Having regard to its well-established case-law on the subject, the Court considers that there has been a violation of Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention in respect of each of the seven applicants.<\/p>\n III. OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS UNDER WELL-ESTABLISHED CASE-LAW<\/strong><\/p>\n 9. The applicant in application no. 34980\/18 also complained under Article 8 about the use of covert audio and video devices during the undercover operation. This complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 \u00a7 3 (a) of the Convention, nor is it inadmissible on any other grounds. Accordingly, it must be declared admissible. Having examined all the material before it and having regard to its case law on the matter, the Court concludes that it discloses a violation of Article 8 of the Convention (see Zubkov and Others v. Russia, nos. 29431\/05 and 2 others, \u00a7\u00a7 120-33, 7\u00a0November 2017).<\/p>\n IV. OTHER COMPLAINTS<\/strong><\/p>\n 10. The applicant in application no. 31415\/17 also complained under Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention that the domestic courts had accepted as evidence the recordings made as part of covert surveillance during an undercover operation. Having regard to the facts of the case, the submissions of the parties, and its findings above (see paragraphs 6 and 8 above), the Court considers that it has examined the main legal question raised in the present application. It thus considers that this complaint is admissible but that there is no need to give a separate ruling on its merits (see Centre for Legal Resources on behalf of Valentin C\u00e2mpeanu v. Romania [GC], no.47848\/08, \u00a7 156, ECHR 2014).<\/p>\n V. REMAINING COMPLAINTS<\/strong><\/p>\n 11. Lastly, the applicant in application no. 31415\/17 raised a complaint under Article 8 of the Convention about the use of covert audio and video devices during the undercover operation. The Court has examined that part of her application and considers that, in the light of all the material in its possession and in so far as the matters complained of are within its competence, this complaint does not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Article 35 of the Convention. It follows that this part of the application must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 \u00a7 4 of the Convention.<\/p>\n JUST SATISFACTION<\/strong><\/p>\n 12. The applicants claimed the amounts indicated in the appended table in respect of pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and in respect of costs and expenses incurred before the domestic courts and before the Court.<\/p>\n 13. The Government submitted that the claims were either excessive or unsubstantiated.<\/p>\n 14. The Court notes that that the fine imposed on Mr Ivanov (no.\u00a062082\/10) was a penalty incurred by him in connection with the criminal proceedings that the Court has found to have been unfair. The Court therefore awards the amount indicated in the appended table in respect of pecuniary damage to Mr Ivanov. It rejects the claim for pecuniary damages brought by other applicants, having regard to the documents in its possession.<\/p>\n 15. Furthermore, the Court reiterates that when an applicant has been convicted despite an infringement of his rights as guaranteed by Article 6 of the Convention, he should, as far as possible, be put in the position in which he would have been had the requirements of that provision not been disregarded, and that the most appropriate form of redress would, in principle, be a retrial or the reopening of the proceedings, if requested (see \u00d6calan v.\u00a0Turkey [GC], no. 46221\/99, \u00a7 210 in fine, ECHR 2005-IV). Given the Court\u2019s findings in Kumitskiy and Others v. Russia, nos. 66215\/12 and 4\u00a0others, \u00a7 17, 10 July 2018, the finding of a violation constitutes in itself sufficient just satisfaction for any non\u2011pecuniary damage sustained by the applicants in the present cases (see also Zadumov v. Russia, no. 2257\/12, \u00a7\u00a7\u00a080-81, 12 December 2017).<\/p>\n 16. At the same time the Court observes that Mr\u00a0Romanov (no. 34980\/18) sustained non\u2011pecuniary damage as a result of the violation of his rights under Article 8 of the Convention which cannot be compensated for solely by the finding of violation, and that compensation therefore has to be awarded. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its case\u2011law (see, in particular, Zubkov and Others, cited above), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sum indicated in the appended table to Mr Romanov, in respect of non\u2011pecuniary damage.<\/p>\n 17. The Court reiterates that an applicant is entitled to the reimbursement of costs and expenses only in so far as it has been shown that these were actually and necessarily incurred and are reasonable as to quantum (see Merabishvili v. Georgia [GC], no. 72508\/13, \u00a7\u00a7 370-71, 28 November 2017). Accordingly, having regard to the documents in its possession, it awards the sums indicated in the appended table to Mr Ivanov (no. 62082\/10) and Ms\u00a0Stepanova (no. 31415\/16) in respect of costs and expenses. The other applicants in the present case did not submit any documents, such as legal services agreements, clearly showing that they had paid or were under a legal obligation to pay the fees charged by their representatives. In the absence of such documents, the Court finds no basis on which to accept that the costs and expenses claimed have actually been incurred by those applicants and rejects their claim for costs and expenses (see, among others, Udaltsov v.\u00a0Russia, no. 76695\/11, \u00a7 201, 6 October 2020, and Mazepa and Others v.\u00a0Russia, no. 15086\/07, \u00a7\u00a7 89-90, 17 July 2018).<\/p>\n 18. The Court considers it appropriate that the default interest rate should be based on the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank, to which should be added three percentage points.<\/p>\n FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. Decides to join the applications;<\/p>\n 2. Declares admissible the complaints concerning (i) the applicants\u2019 conviction for criminal offences that were incited by the police, (ii) covert surveillance (application nos. 31415\/17 and 34980\/18), and (iii) accepting as evidence of materials obtained through covert surveillance (application no. 31415\/17); and inadmissible the remainder of the application no.\u00a031415\/17;<\/p>\n 3. Holds that there has been a violation of Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention in respect of all applicants on account of police entrapment;<\/p>\n 4. Holds that there is no need to examine the merits of the remaining complaint under Article\u00a06 \u00a7 1 of the Convention brought by Ms Stepanova (application no. 31415\/17);<\/p>\n 5. Holds that there has been a violation of Article 8 of the Convention as regards the complaint raised by Mr Romanov (application no. 34980\/18);<\/p>\n 6. Holds that the finding of a violation constitutes in itself sufficient just satisfaction for the non-pecuniary damage sustained by the applicants in respect of their complaint under Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention about the police entrapment;<\/p>\n 7. Holds<\/p>\n (a) that the respondent State is to pay to the applicants concerned the amounts indicated in the appended table, plus any tax that may be chargeable, within three months, in respect of pecuniary and non\u2011pecuniary damage and in respect of costs and expenses, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;<\/p>\n (b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points;<\/p>\n 8. Dismisses the remainder of the applicants\u2019 claim for just satisfaction.<\/p>\n Done in English, and notified in writing on 19 July 2022, pursuant to Rule\u00a077\u00a0\u00a7\u00a7\u00a02 and 3 of the Rules of Court.<\/p>\n Olga Chernishova \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Darian Pavli ___________<\/p>\n APPENDIX<\/strong><\/p>\n List of cases<\/p>\n
\nCASE OF IVANOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA<\/strong>
\n(Applications nos. 62082\/10 and 6 others \u2013 see list appended)<\/em>
\nJUDGMENT
\nSTRASBOURG
\n19 July 2022<\/p>\n
\nPeeter Roosma,
\nMikhail Lobov, judges,
\nand Olga Chernishova, Deputy Section Registrar,<\/p>\n
\nDeputy Registrar \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 President<\/p>\n\n\n
\n No.<\/strong><\/td>\n Application no.<\/strong>
\nLodged on<\/strong>
\nApplicant<\/strong>
\nYear of birth
\nPlace of Residence<\/strong>
\nRepresented by<\/strong><\/td>\nDate(s) of operational experiment and offence<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>
\nOther complaints under well-established case law<\/strong><\/td>\nDomestic Proceedings<\/strong><\/td>\n Claims made by the applicants for:<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>
\npecuniary damage<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>
\nnon-pecuniary damage<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>
\ncosts and expenses<\/strong><\/td>\nClaims granted by the Court<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n\n \n 1.<\/td>\n 62082\/10
\n01\/10\/2010
\nAleksandr Aleksandrovich IVANOV<\/strong>
\n1975
\nKolomna
\nViktor Nikolayevich GAVRILIN<\/td>\n5 and 9 February 2010
\nAccepting a bribe in return for issuing a false sick-leave certificate<\/td>\nThe Zheleznodorozhniy District Court of Oryel, 29 July 2010;
\nThe Oryel Regional Court, 14\u00a0September\u00a02010.<\/td>\nRUB 10,000 (fine) (about EUR 100)
\nEUR 50,000
\nRUB 76,000 (about EUR 800)<\/td>\nEUR 100 in respect of pecuniary damage, to be paid to the applicant and
\nEUR 800 in respect of costs and expenses for the domestic proceedings and the proceedings before the Court, to be paid directly to the applicant\u2019s representative\u2019s account<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n 2.<\/td>\n 43918\/11
\n07\/06\/2011
\nNikolay Alekseyevich ISAYEV<\/strong>
\n1969
\nSt Petersburg
\nVyacheslav Vasilyevich KORYAKOVTSEV<\/td>\n6 March 2010
\nAccepting a bribe in return for fabricating an academic record<\/td>\nThe Zavodskoy District Court of Oryel, 18\u00a0March 2011;
\nThe Oryel Regional Court, 3 May 2011.<\/td>\nEUR 1,295
\nEUR 50,000
\nEUR 17,000<\/td>\nnone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 3.<\/td>\n 33790\/16
\n24\/05\/2016
\nIrina Aleksandrovna NETIKOVA<\/strong>
\n1981
\nStroitel
\nYerlan Bulatovich NAZAROV<\/td>\n27 May 2015
\nBribing a police officer in return for terminating criminal proceedings<\/td>\nThe Yakovlevskiy District Court 4\u00a0September 2015;
\nThe Belgorod Regional Court, 9\u00a0December\u00a02015.<\/td>\nnone<\/td>\n none<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 4.<\/td>\n 31415\/17
\n19\/04\/2017
\nYelena Nikolayevna STEPANOVA<\/strong>
\n1976
\nKizilyurt
\nKonstantin Ilyich TEREKHOV<\/td>\n5 December 2014
\nExtortion of money for fraudulent customs clearance of goods
\nUse as evidence of recordings obtained during covert surveillance<\/td>\nThe Sovetskiy District Court of Makhachkala, 5 December 2016;
\nThe Supreme Court of the Republic of Dagestan, 21 February 2017.<\/td>\nNo claim for pecuniary damage submitted
\nEUR 20,000
\nEUR 7,000<\/td>\nEUR 1,000 in respect of costs and expenses for the domestic proceedings and the proceedings before the Court, to be paid directly to the applicant\u2019s representative account<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 5.<\/td>\n 41104\/17
\n05\/06\/2017
\nAndrey Sergeyevich AGIYEVICH<\/strong>
\n1979
\nBirobidhzan
\nAndrey Leonidovich ZYKOV<\/td>\n29 May, 30 July 2014 and 3 June 2014
\nBribing a customs officer in return for customs clearance of goods<\/td>\nThe Birobidzhan District Court of the Yevreyskaya Autonomous Region, 15\u00a0August\u00a02016;
\nThe Court of Yevreyskaya Autonomous Region, 6 December 2016.<\/td>\nNo claim in respect of pecuniary damage and costs and expenses submitted
\nThe amount of non-pecuniary damage left to the Court\u2019s discretion<\/td>\nnone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 6.<\/td>\n 34980\/18
\n19\/07\/2018
\nMikhail Yuryevich ROMANOV<\/strong>
\n1976
\nPrudy
\nYevgeniy Guryevich RYUMIN<\/td>\nBetween 1 December 2015 and 31 January 2016; 11\u00a0October 2016; 9 and 15\u00a0December 2016
\nAccepting a bribe in return for aiding and abetting illegal commercial deforestation activities
\nUse of covert audio and video devices during the undercover operation<\/td>\nThe Sokolskiy District court of the Vologda Region, 6\u00a0December 2017;
\nThe Vologda Regional Court, 26 March 2018.<\/td>\nEUR 111,866.60
\nEUR 226,160
\nEUR 49,934.08<\/td>\nEUR 7,500 in respect of non-pecuniary damage, to be paid to the applicant<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 7.<\/td>\n 47308\/18
\n18\/09\/2018
\nYevgeniy Vladimirovich NEDVIZHAYEV<\/strong>
\n1984
\nPyatigorsk<\/td>\n5 September 2015
\nAccepting a bribe in return for dropping administrative charges<\/td>\nThe Pyatigorsk City Court of the Stavropol Region, 23\u00a0November 2017;
\nThe Stavropol Regional Court, 20 April 2018.<\/td>\nNo claim submitted in respect of either pecuniary or non-pecuniary damage
\nRUB 1,520,000 claimed in respect of costs and expenses<\/td>\nnone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n