THIRD SECTION
\nCASE OF SERGEY IVANOV v. RUSSIA
\n(Application no. 14416\/06)<\/p>\n
JUDGMENT
\nSTRASBOURG
\n15 May 2018<\/p>\n
FINAL
\n15\/08\/2018<\/p>\n
This judgment has become final under Article 44 \u00a7 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision.<\/p>\n
In the case of Sergey Ivanov v. Russia,<\/strong><\/p>\n The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of:<\/p>\n Helena J\u00e4derblom, President, Having deliberated in private on 10 April 2018,<\/p>\n Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:<\/p>\n PROCEDURE<\/strong><\/p>\n 1.\u00a0\u00a0The case originated in an application (no. 14416\/06) 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 a Russian national, Mr Sergey Vladimirovich Ivanov (\u201cthe applicant\u201d), on 17 February 2006.<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant was represented by Mr D.V. Mosenkov, a lawyer practising in Nizhniy Novgorod. The Russian Government (\u201cthe Government\u201d) were represented initially by Mr\u00a0G.\u00a0Matyushkin, the Representative of the Russian Federation to the European Court of Human Rights, and then by his successor in that office, Mr M.\u00a0Galperin.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant alleged, in particular, that he had been subjected to ill\u2011treatmentby the police and convicted prisoners acting on theirinstructions, that no effective investigation into his complaints had been carried out,and that confession statements obtained as a result of hisill\u2011treatment had been used asevidence for his conviction.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0\u00a0On 14 March 2013 the application was communicated to the Government.<\/p>\n THE FACTS<\/strong><\/p>\n I.\u00a0\u00a0THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE<\/p>\n A.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment<\/strong><\/p>\n 5.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant was born in 1966 and lived in Nizhniy Novgorod. He is currently serving a prison sentence in the Nizhniy Novgorod region.<\/p>\n 6.\u00a0\u00a0On 24 April 2004 a robbery took place at the offices of a company in Nizhniy Novgorod. On the same day the Nizhegorodskiy district police department of Nizhniy Novgorod opened a criminal case into the robbery. The Operational-Search Division of theChief Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Federation in the Privolzhskiy Federal Circuit (\u041e\u043f\u0435\u0440\u0430\u0442\u0438\u0432\u043d\u043e-\u0440\u043e\u0437\u044b\u0441\u043a\u043d\u043e\u0435\u0431\u044e\u0440\u043e\u0413\u0423\u041c\u0412\u0414\u0420\u0424\u043f\u043e\u041f\u0440\u0438\u0432\u043e\u043b\u0436\u0441\u043a\u043e\u043c\u0443\u0444\u0435\u0434\u0435\u0440\u0430\u043b\u044c\u043d\u043e\u043c\u0443\u043e\u043a\u0440\u0443\u0433\u0443\u2013\u201cthe ORB police unit\u201d, \u201cthe police\u201d or \u201cpolice officers\u201d) carried out operational-search activities in the case, including phone tapping. The results were declassified and transferred to S., an investigator from the investigation division of the Nizhniy Novgorod regional police department (\u0421\u043b\u0435\u0434\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0430\u044f\u0447\u0430\u0441\u0442\u044c\u0413\u043b\u0430\u0432\u043d\u043e\u0433\u043e\u0441\u043b\u0435\u0434\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0435\u043d\u043d\u043e\u0433\u043e\u0443\u043f\u0440\u0430\u0432\u043b\u0435\u043d\u0438\u044f\u043f\u0440\u0438\u0413\u0423\u0412\u0414\u041d\u0438\u0436\u0435\u0433\u043e\u0440\u043e\u0434\u0441\u043a\u043e\u0439\u043e\u0431\u043b\u0430\u0441\u0442\u0438) in charge of the robbery case, on 2\u00a0June 2004. According to the police report, the robbery was committed by the applicant and five other individuals. On 4\u00a0June 2004 S. requested a court order to search the applicant\u2019s flat, on the grounds that he was suspected of committing the robbery.<\/p>\n 7.\u00a0\u00a0On 7 June 2004 Judge D. of the Nizhegorodskoy District Court of Nizhniy Novgorod granted the investigator\u2019s request and ordered that the applicant\u2019s flat be searched, referring to the applicant as a suspect.<\/p>\n 1.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 8 and 22 June 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 8.\u00a0\u00a0From 6.18 to 7.56 a.m. on 8 June 2004 police officers searched the applicant\u2019s flat in his presence.They then took him to the offices of the ORB police unit in Nizhniy Novgorod (\u201cthe police station\u201d).<\/p>\n 9.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s account of the subsequent events is as follows. His request for access to a lawyer was ignored. Thepolicedemanded that he confess to the robbery. He refused. Three of the officers who had arrested him were joined byother police officers, includingK., Pr. and S. They subjected him to various forms of violence, such as punching and kicking him, blocking his airway by covering his mouth and nose with a rag, and tying him up in a painful position. They made him sit on the floor cross\u2011legged, with his hands cuffed behind his back and a bag put over his head so that he could not see anything.His feet were tied with a rope,which was connected to his neck and the handcuffs. The police officers pulled the rope to contort the applicant into a painful position, then sat on his back and jumped on him. When the applicant lost consciousness they poured water on him. He heard the officers tell each other not to leave any marks on his body.The investigator entered the room several times and demanded that the applicant write a confession.<\/p>\n 10.\u00a0\u00a0According to the applicant, his ill-treatment lasted for several hours until he wrote a confession statement as requested.<\/p>\n 11.\u00a0\u00a0According to the police records, the applicant confessed to committing the robbery with three other individuals at 9.30 a.m. on 8 June 2004. His confession was recorded in the form of a voluntary \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d (\u044f\u0432\u043a\u0430\u0441\u043f\u043e\u0432\u0438\u043d\u043d\u043e\u0439) by operational officer P. in room no. 329.The record stated that at 9.30 a.m. on 8\u00a0June 2004 the applicant had turned himself in to the police and reported that he had committed the crime.<\/p>\n 12.\u00a0\u00a0According to a record of the applicant\u2019s arrest as a suspect in the robbery case, drawn up by S., the applicant was arrested at 9.40 a.m. on 8\u00a0June 2004, and the record was drawn up at the same time. Between 5.05 and 5.30 p.m. he was questioned as a suspect in the presence of a lawyer appointed by S. The applicant refused to give statements, relying on his constitutional right not to incriminate himself.He was then placed in the temporary detention centre of the Nizhniy Novgorod regional police department.<\/p>\n 13.\u00a0\u00a0On 9 June 2004 the applicant was brought before Judge D. of the Nizhegorodskoy District Court, who granted the investigator\u2019s request for the applicant to be remanded in custody. According to the applicant, at the hearing in the presence of a lawyer appointed by his family,he complained to the judge that he had been ill-treated by police officers and had signed a confession statement as a result, but the judge did not take any action.<\/p>\n 14.\u00a0\u00a0According to the applicant, after the court hearing he was not placed in a remand centre as was normal practice.He was instead detained in the temporary detention centre of the Privolzhskiy Federal Circuit police department for five days,before being placed in a remand centre,SIZO\u20111.\u00a0According to the Government, the applicant was held in SIZO-1 from 9\u00a0June 2004.<\/p>\n 15.\u00a0\u00a0On 15 June 2004 the applicant was charged with robbery and questioned as an accused by S. in the presence of his lawyer. The applicant pleaded his innocence and again refused to give statements.<\/p>\n 16.\u00a0\u00a0On 22 June 2004 the applicant was taken from SIZO-1 to the policestation. According to him,police officers, in particular Ch., K., P.and Pr.,again subjected him to ill-treatment to force him to give confession statements.<\/p>\n 17.\u00a0\u00a0On 24 June 2004 the applicant, through his lawyer, lodged complaintswith the head of the remand centre, the Nizhniy Novgorod regional prosecutor, the Prosecutor General\u2019s Office and the Presidential Human Rights Committee. He described suffering acts of violence at the hands of the police officers on 8 and 22 June 2004 (see paragraphs 9 and 16 above). He requestedthat action be taken and that he be placed underprotection, adding that he could identify the police officers concerned. He stated that as a result of the violence he had confessed to a crime which he had never committed in a \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d which had been dictated to him by the police officers and S.<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 28 June 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 18.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s account of events on 28 June 2004 is as follows. On 28 June 2004 the applicant was taken from SIZO-1 to the policestation, where he was again subjected to ill-treatmentand asked to give confession statements.Police officers, in particular Ch., K., P. and Pr., punched and kicked him and tied him up in painful positions. Both his legs were tied with a rope and pulled apart. As on the previous occasion on 22\u00a0June 2004, no investigative activities were carried out with the applicant.<\/p>\n 19.\u00a0\u00a0On 29 June 2004 the applicant asked a doctor at the remand centre to record the injuries allegedly inflicted on him the previous day, notably contusions to his chest which made it difficult for him to breathe and abrasions. At 11.20\u00a0a.m. the doctor,Ch.,recorded circular abrasions on the lower third of both shins with a brown \u201cwet\u201d surface 1.5 to 2 centimetres wide. The doctor concluded that the injuries had been inflicted the previous day. The injuries were reported to the head of SIZO-1.<\/p>\n 20.\u00a0\u00a0On the same day the applicant, who had receivedno response to his previous complaint, lodged anothercomplaint with the head of the remand centre stating that he had been beaten up at the policestation on 28 June 2004, as a result of which he had sustained contusions to his ribcage and abrasions. He asked for an investigation into the incident and to be given afull medical examination. He stated that despite the severe pain in his chest the medical staff of the remand centre had refused to give him aproper medical examination. He asked the head of the remand centre to stop taking him to the police and to instead conduct any investigative activities at the remand centre in his lawyer\u2019s presence.<\/p>\n 21.\u00a0\u00a0On 30 June 2004 the applicant sent a second complaint to the Nizhniy Novgorod regional prosecutor, complaining that on 28 June 2004,in a room at the policestation with the sign \u201cnos. 326-331\u201d on the door,police officers had beaten him up for several hours to force him to confess to crimes which he had not committed. Upon his return to the remand centre he had asked the medical staff to record his injuries. The applicant asked for the police officers tobe prosecuted and stated that he could identify them.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment during his detention in correctional colony IK-14 in July-November 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 22.\u00a0\u00a0On 13 July 2004 a police officer,M.,reported to the head of division no.\u00a03 of the ORB police unit, which provided\u201coperational support\u201d in the applicant\u2019s criminal case, that three of the five people detained in the case had confessed to the robbery and had been cooperating with the investigation by uncovering further evidence of criminal activity by the group. According to operational information, the applicanthad attempted to intimidate the co\u2011accused held in the same remand centre who had started cooperating with the investigating authority, thereby making them fear for their lives and health and hampering the investigation. The report recommended that the applicant be transferred tocorrectional colonyIK\u201114.<\/p>\n 23.\u00a0\u00a0On 14 July 2004 S. orderedthat the applicant be transferred to a unit functioning as a remand centre at IK-14for the same reasonsas those stated in the police report (see paragraph 22 above).<\/p>\n 24.\u00a0\u00a0It appears that the applicant was transferred there on 21 July 2004.<\/p>\n 25.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s account of the subsequent eventsis as follows. He was placed in a punishment cell for eighteen days. During this time he was beaten unconscious, to make him confess to a series of armed robberies, by several convicted prisoners acting on the police\u2019s instructions and with the connivance of the administration of IK-14. They punched and kicked him, hit him with a rubber truncheon and hung him upside down. Subsequently, for some time he was detained together with convicted prisoners. He was repeatedly visited by the police, in particular officers Ch. and P., who demanded that he confess to a series of robberies and beat him up when he refused. They also asked some of the convicts, in particular S.P. and A.V., tobeat him up. After the beatings he could hardly move on his own. One convict, Z., threatened him with sexual violence if he did not sign confession statements. The staff of the medical unit at IK-14 allegedly refused him medical treatment.<\/p>\n 26.\u00a0\u00a0According to the applicant\u2019s medical recordsfromIK-14, from 21to 29\u00a0September 2004 he received inpatient treatment for a neurological disorder.<\/p>\n 27.\u00a0\u00a0On an unspecified date during his detention in IK-14 the applicant confessed to six crimes and his confessions were recorded as \u201cstatements of surrender and confession\u201d.<\/p>\n 28.\u00a0\u00a0On 3\u00a0November 2004 at IK-14 the applicant reiterated his confession statements in the presence of S. and his lawyer. The statements were documented in a record of his questioning as an accused. According to the applicant, the confessions were the result of torture by the police and convicts,which he could not stand any longer.<\/p>\n 29.\u00a0\u00a0On 1 December 2004 S. ordered the applicant\u2019s transfer back to the remand centre on the grounds that the risk of him intimidating his co\u2011accused no longer existed since all necessary investigative measures had been carried out. On 2 December 2004 the applicant was transferred to SIZO-1.<\/p>\n 30.\u00a0\u00a0According to the Government, during his detention in IK-14 the applicant was held in a unit functioning as a remand centre. He was allowed short-termvisits from his wife on 13 August and 24 September 2004. According to a letter of 29 July 2010 signed by the Sukhobezvodnenskiy prosecutor, the applicant was detained in a unit at IK\u201114 functioning as a remand centre from 6 August to 2\u00a0December 2004.<\/p>\n 31.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant submitted several envelopes with postage stamps in which he had sent letters to his family in November 2004. His handwritten address was indicated as unit no. 14 at IK-14.<\/p>\n 32.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant submitted to the Court the following witness statements recorded by a representative of the non-governmental organisation Committee Against Torture in Nizhniy Novgorod in February 2006:<\/p>\n (i)\u00a0\u00a0According to a statement by I.K., he was servinga sentence of imprisonment in unit no. 14 atIK-14,where he was informallygiven the task of monitoring discipline. In September 2004 the applicant, who was not a convicted prisoner like the others,was transferred to the unit. I.K. learned from B., who was high in the unofficial hierarchy of convicted prisoners in the unit, that the applicant had been transferred thereso that he could be coerced into giving confession statements at the request of law\u2011enforcement officers by whatever means. The applicant had bruises under hiseyes and haematomas on his head. He could hardly move on his own and was depressed. He was visited several times by officers from the ORB police unit. After the visits he had to seek others\u2019 help to get to his cell and looked very oppressed. On one occasion, after a visit, the applicant wrote a statement in which he described beingtortured and beaten up during his interviews. I.K. handed the statement over to B. Later that day two convicts,A.V. and S.P.,went to see the applicant and took him to a storage room. Through the thin plywood walls I.K. couldclearly hear A.V. and S.P. yelling at the applicant and threatening him with physical and sexual violence if he kept complaining and refusing to write the statements which the policehad asked him to give. On several other occasions I.K. heard one convict, Z., threaten the applicant with sexual violence if he refused to give statements. After the applicant had been coerced into giving several confession statementsin a row he was no longer threatened and beaten up and soon left the colony.I.K. stated that he was ready to confirm his statements before the investigating authority and the courts, adding that he feared pressure from the police and the prosecutor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n (ii)\u00a0\u00a0According to a statement by G., he was servinga sentence of imprisonment in IK-14. In September 2004 the applicant, who was not a convicted prisoner like the others, was transferred to his unit. He had bruises under his eyes and complained of pain on both sides of his body and in hisspine. On repeated occasions he was called for interviews by officers from the ORB police unit. The interviews began in the morning and lasted until evening. After the interviews the applicant was unable to move on his own and had fresh injuries, notably abrasions and bruises on his face. He explained that he had been beaten up bypolice officers. On one occasionthree convicts, V., B. and Z., took him to a storage room. G. heard them yelling at the applicant and threatening him, demanding that he confess to some crimes and write confession statements as requested by the police officers. After that incident the applicant had several fresh bruises on his face.<\/p>\n (iii)\u00a0\u00a0According to statements by the applicant\u2019s wife, at the court hearing on 9\u00a0June 2004 the applicant looked very depressed. He had bruises on his head and abrasions on his wrists. When she visited him inIK-14 his face was bruised, he was dragging his leg behind him and had difficulty sitting down. He said that he was being detained with convicted prisoners in unit no. 14 andvisited regularly by police officers demanding that he give confession statements in relation to serious crimes. During subsequent visits, on at least three occasions, the applicant looked like he had been beaten up, with abrasions and bruises on his face and head and bruises on his wrists. Hehad difficulty speaking, made long pauses and could hardly move. Onone occasion, he said that he had signed several confession statements in a row as a result of torture. At one of the court hearings for the extension of his detention he complained ofsevere back pain.<\/p>\n (iv)\u00a0\u00a0According to the applicant\u2019s son, D.M.,at the same hearing on 9\u00a0June 2004 the applicant looked very depressed and shocked. His face was swollen, his lips were smashed and he was walking with difficulty. He did not recognise his family. When visiting his father in IK-14 D.M.learned of the violence he had suffered at the hands of the police officers and convicts.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s medical records<\/em><\/p>\n 33.\u00a0\u00a0The Government submitted extracts from the applicant\u2019s medical records relating to the period of his detention, in particular:<\/p>\n (i)\u00a0\u00a0A form entitled \u201cexamination by a doctor on duty\u201d with the following pre-printed sections: \u201cheight\u201d, \u201cweight\u201d, \u201ccomplaints\u201d, \u201cpharynx and cutaneous coverings\u201d, \u201cheart and lungs\u201d, \u201carterial pressure\u201d, \u201ctuberculosis\u201d, \u201cvenereal diseases\u201d, \u201cmental diseases\u201d, \u201cviral hepatitis\u201d. The word \u201cheadache\u201d is written in the\u201ccomplaints\u201d section, while \u201cclean\u201d appears inthe \u201cpharynx and cutaneous coverings\u201d section. The form does not give details as to which parts of the applicant\u2019s body were examined and where the examination took place. It is signed and dated 9 June 2004.<\/p>\n (ii)\u00a0\u00a0A form entitled \u201cbodily injuries upon arrival\u201d states that there were \u201cno bodily injuries\u201d on 9 April 2007 at IK-20. The form is signed and dated 9\u00a0June 2004 and contains a similar signatureto the form described above.<\/p>\n B.\u00a0\u00a0Pre-investigation inquiries into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill\u2011treatment<\/strong><\/p>\n 34.\u00a0\u00a0The investigating authorities carried out pre-investigation inquiries into the applicant\u2019s allegations of violence by the policeand convicts acting on their instructions with the connivance of the administration of IK\u201114. No criminal proceedings were opened intohis allegations.Details of the decisions taken by the investigating authorities are as follows.<\/p>\n 1.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 8 and 22 June 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 35.\u00a0\u00a0On 16 July 2004 an investigator from the Nizhegorodskoy district prosecutor\u2019s office of Nizhniy Novgorod refused to initiate criminal proceedings into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 8 and 22 June 2004,pursuant to Article 24 \u00a7 1 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure for lack of evidence that a crime had been committed. Relying on statements by S. and the police officers, who all denied the applicant\u2019s allegations, the investigator held that the applicant\u2019s allegationswere not supported by evidence.<\/p>\n 36.\u00a0\u00a0On 23 August 2004 the Nizhegorodskoy district prosecutor found that decision lawful, well-reasoned and based on a comprehensive and impartial inquiry.<\/p>\n 37.\u00a0\u00a0On 6 March 2006 the Nizhegorodskoy deputy district prosecutor revoked the decision of 16 July 2004 as unlawful and ill-founded for failure to identify all the police officers concerned.<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 28 June 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 38.\u00a0\u00a0On 2 August 2004 an investigator from the Nizhegorodskoy district prosecutor\u2019s office refused to initiate criminal proceedings into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment on 28 June 2004, pursuant to Article\u00a024\u00a0\u00a7\u00a01\u00a0(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure for lack ofthe constituent elements of a crime under Article 286 of the Criminal Code (abuse of powers) in the actions of Ya.,one of thepolice officers who had taken the applicant on 28\u00a0June 2004 from SIZO-1 to the policestation and back. The investigator relied on statements by Ya. and S. denying any ill\u2011treatment of the applicant.The investigator held that there was no evidence that the abrasions on the applicant\u2019s shins, as described in the medical record of 29 June 2004, had been caused at the policestation.<\/p>\n 39.\u00a0\u00a0On 6 March 2006 the Nizhegorodskoy district deputy prosecutor revoked that decision as unfounded for failure to identify all the police officers concerned.<\/p>\n 40.\u00a0\u00a0On 13 March 2006 an investigator from the district prosecutor\u2019s office issued a new decision refusing to opencriminal proceedings against officer Ya., identical to the previousdecision. On 31 March 2006 the Nizhegorodskoy district deputy prosecutor annulled thatdecision as unfounded.<\/p>\n 41.\u00a0\u00a0In the course of a new pre-investigation inquiry the applicant gave \u201cexplanations\u201d, describing in detail his alleged ill-treatment by policeofficers Ch., K., P. and Pr., and stating that he could identify several others. Pr. stated that after the applicant\u2019s arrest and before the arrival of the investigator in charge of the criminal case the police officers had interviewed the applicant.<\/p>\n 42.\u00a0\u00a0Relying on the police officers\u2019 statements denying any ill-treatment of the applicant, two more decisions refusing to open a criminal case against the police officers were issued on 10 April 2006 (annulled the same day) and 19\u00a0April 2006.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment during his detention in IK-14from July to November 2004<\/em><\/p>\n 43.\u00a0\u00a0On 8 April 2005 a deputy prosecutor from the Sukhobezvodnenskaya prosecutor\u2019s office, which supervised law observance in penal facilities, refused to institute criminal proceedings into the applicant\u2019s allegations of ill-treatment in IK-14, pursuant to Article\u00a024\u00a0\u00a7\u00a01 (1) of Code of Criminal Procedure for lack of evidence that a crime had been committed.<\/p>\n 44.\u00a0\u00a0The decision stated that,according to the applicant, while in IK-14 he had been held in a punishment cell in a unit functioning as a remand centre and in unit no. 14 together with convicted prisoners, who had subjected him to psychological and physical violence to force him to give \u201cstatements of surrender and confession\u201d. His allegations had included regular beatings by convicts A.A., B., M.K., S.P. and A.V., a member of the administration of IK-14,Captain V., and police officers, in particular P. and his subordinates.<\/p>\n 45.\u00a0\u00a0Relying on statements by police officers M., P. and Ya., the investigator S., convicts A.A., M.K., and A.V., and T., the head of the unit functioning as a remand centre, who all denied the applicant\u2019s allegations of ill\u2011treatment, the deputy prosecutor held that the applicant\u2019s allegations were not supported by evidence.<\/p>\n 46.\u00a0\u00a0On the same day the head of the Nizhniy Novgorod regional prosecutor\u2019s office division responsible for supervising investigations and inquiries reviewed the decision of the Sukhobezvodnenskaya prosecutor\u2019s office of 8 April 2005 and found it lawful and well-reasoned, stating that during hisdetention in IK-14 the applicant had confessed to six crimes, and \u201chis statements had been documented in records of surrender and confession (\u044f\u0432\u043a\u0438\u0441\u043f\u043e\u0432\u0438\u043d\u043d\u043e\u0439) which had been forwarded to the [Operational-Search Division of the Chief Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Federation] in the Privolzhskiy Federal Circuit (\u041e\u0420\u0411\u0413\u0423\u041c\u0412\u0414\u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u0438\u043f\u043e\u041f\u0440\u0438\u0432\u043e\u043b\u0436\u0441\u043a\u043e\u043c\u0443\u0444\u0435\u0434\u0435\u0440\u0430\u043b\u044c\u043d\u043e\u043c\u0443\u043e\u043a\u0440\u0443\u0433\u0443)\u201d.<\/p>\n 47.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant lodged appeals against the decision of 8 April 2005, which were dismissed by various levels of prosecutor\u2019s office, as stated in a letter from an assistant Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation of 20\u00a0February 2006, and letters from the Nizhniy Novgorod regional prosecutor\u2019s office dated 9 March and 10 April 2006.<\/p>\n C.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant\u2019s trial<\/strong><\/p>\n 48.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant was tried by jury before the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court. At a preliminary hearing on 19 October 2005 he requested that the records of his questioning as an accused and some other records of investigative activities conducted in his case be excluded as evidencebecause theself\u2011incriminating statements recorded therein had been obtained from him under duress by police officers and convictsofIK-14.<\/p>\n 49.\u00a0\u00a0At the applicant\u2019s request the trial court heard two witnesses. The applicant\u2019s son S.I. stated that at his custody hearing, the applicant had been in a \u201cdelirious state\u201d, had had a swollen face, had been limping a lot and had been helped by others to move around. When S.I. had visited his father in IK-14at the end of August 2004 he had had a bruise near one of the eyes, a cut lip, bluish hands and bruises and abrasions on his wrists. The applicant had written to his family in September or October 2004, asking them to lodge an official complaint regarding the beatings. However, he had then changed his mind and asked them not to do so.<\/p>\n 50.\u00a0\u00a0I.K. stated that he had served a sentence of imprisonment in IK-14. The day after his arrival the applicant had been admitted to the medical unit with complaints of pain in his back and leg. He had had bruises on his face which, according to him, had been inflicted on him by other convicts. The applicant had been taken out of the unit for visits regularly, about three times a month. I.K. had learnt from the applicant that the visitors had been the police. After the visits the applicant had been unable to walk up the stairs and had complainedof pain in his head and back.<\/p>\n 51.\u00a0\u00a0The trial court found that the witness statements did not support the applicant\u2019s allegations. It noted that the disputed records had been signed by a lawyer and contained information about the applicant\u2019s procedural rights. In the court\u2019s opinion, the applicant\u2019s medical history, notably post\u2011traumatic encephalopathy, osteochondrosis of the cervical spine and a form of dystonia,which he had been diagnosed with in 1991, explained his complaints of headaches and pain in his back and legs. The court also relied on statements byS., who denied the applicant\u2019s allegations, and on the Sukhobezvodnenskiy prosecutor\u2019s decision refusing to institute criminal proceedings into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment. It held that the applicant\u2019s allegations that his confession statements had been given under duress were not based on fact and rejected his requests to have the impugned evidence declaredinadmissible.<\/p>\n 52.\u00a0\u00a0On 8 June 2006 the applicant and his co-accused wereconvicted of theft and a series of armed robberies committed in 1998, 1999, 2002 and on 24\u00a0April 2004 by a criminal group led by two of the applicant\u2019s co\u2011accused. The applicantwassentenced to nineteen years\u2019 imprisonment. In sentencing the applicant the court applied Article 61 \u00a7 1 (i) of the Criminal Code, which provided that a \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d, active cooperation in investigating a crime and exposure of other participants in a crime were extenuating circumstances which warranted a less severe punishment.<\/p>\n 53.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant appealed. He stated that after his arrest he had been beaten up bypolice officers and had given a \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d under duress, which he had revoked at trial. His injuries had been confirmed by medical evidence. On 21 July 2004 he had been unlawfully transferred to correctional facility IK-14 under the pretext that he had intimidated his co-accused, which he had never done. He had been held in a punishment cell and then in a unit together with convicted prisoners who had subjected him to beatings as a result of which he had given self\u2011incriminating statements. This had been confirmed by witness I.K.<\/p>\n 54.\u00a0\u00a0On 22 February 2007 the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation reduced the applicant\u2019s sentence to sixteen years\u2019 imprisonment,correcting calculation errors by the trial court, and upheld the remainder of the judgment. Relying on the Sukhobezvodnenskiy prosecutor\u2019s decision refusing to institute criminal proceedings, it upheld the trial court\u2019s findings in relation to the applicant\u2019s allegations of police violence and his request for the evidence allegedly obtained under duress to be excluded.<\/p>\n 55.\u00a0\u00a0On 25 November 2013 the Varnavinskiy District Court of the Nizhniy Novgorod region reduced the applicant\u2019s sentence to fifteen and a half years\u2019 imprisonment following amendments to the Criminal Code.<\/p>\n II.\u00a0\u00a0RELEVANT DOMESTIC LAW AND PRACTICE<\/p>\n 56.\u00a0\u00a0The Operational-Search Activities Act (Law no. 144-FZ of 12\u00a0August 1995) lists a number of activities that may be carried out by law\u2011enforcement authorities for the purposes of the detection, prevention, suppression and investigation of criminal offences and the identification of persons conspiring to commit, committing, or having committed a criminal offence (section 2). In particular, the police may conduct an \u201cinterview\u201d (\u043e\u043f\u0440\u043e\u0441, section 6). Other activities provided for by section 6 include: making inquiries; collection of samples for comparative examination; test purchases; examination of objects and documents; surveillance; identity checks; inspection of premises, buildings, constructions, plots of land and vehicles; supervision of postal, telegraphic and other communications; telephone interception; collection of data from technical channels of communication; operational infiltration; controlled supply; and operational experiments. Results of operational-search activities can serve as a basis for bringing criminal proceedings and can be used as evidence in accordance with the legislation on criminal procedure (section 11).<\/p>\n THE LAW<\/strong><\/p>\n I.\u00a0\u00a0ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 OF THE CONVENTION<\/p>\n 57.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant complained that on 8, 22 and 28 June 2004 he had been subjected to violence by officers from the ORB police unit. He had then been transferred to correctional colony IK\u201114 and during his detention there from July to November 2004 had been subjected to further violence by the police and prisoners acting on their instructionswiththe connivance of the prison administration. He argued that the violence had been used to make him confess to crimes, and had amounted to torture. Furthermore, no effective investigation had been carried out into his complaints. He relied on Article 3 of the Convention, which reads as follows:<\/p>\n \u201cNo one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.\u201d<\/p>\n 58.\u00a0\u00a0The Government disagreed.\u00a0In their view,the applicant had failed to submit evidence in support of his allegations concerning the events of 8\u00a0June 2004, to comply with the standard of proof \u201cbeyond reasonable doubt\u201d. They pointed out that no injuries had been recorded at SIZO-1 when he had been placed there on 9\u00a0June 2004, or on 22 and 28 June 2004.<\/p>\n 59.\u00a0\u00a0The Government stated that IK-14 held prisoners serving post\u2011conviction sentences, but also had a unit functioning as a remand centre. They argued that as a person remanded in custody the applicant could have only been detained in that particular unit. Therefore, convicted prisoners could not possibly have inflicted injuries on him. Had the applicant sustained any bodily injuries, these would have been described in the unit medical records.<\/p>\n 60.\u00a0\u00a0As regards the injuries found on the applicant during his medical examination on 29 June 2004, the Government submitted that a pre\u2011investigation inquiry had been carried out into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment and the related material had been destroyed after the expiry of the relevant storage period. During the pre\u2011investigation inquiry into an alleged crime the investigating authorities had at their disposal certain investigative activities and also a wide range of operational-search techniques provided for by the Operational-Search Activities Act (see paragraph 56 above). Those techniques were sufficient for establishing facts to indicate that the elements of a crimehad been made out before the institution of criminal proceedings. As regards the identification of persons who had committed a crime and their prosecution, that was only possible within criminal proceedings instituted after a pre-investigation inquiry.<\/p>\n 61.\u00a0\u00a0The Government pointed out that from the time of the applicant\u2019s arrest as a suspect all investigative activities had been carried out lawfully.<\/p>\n A.\u00a0\u00a0Admissibility<\/strong><\/p>\n 62.\u00a0\u00a0The Court notes that this complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 \u00a7 3 (a) of the Convention. It further notes that it is not inadmissible on any other grounds. It must therefore be declared admissible.<\/p>\n B.\u00a0\u00a0Merits<\/strong><\/p>\n 63.\u00a0\u00a0The Court reiterates that in assessing the evidence on which to base the decision as to whether there has been a violation of Article 3, it adopts the standard of proof \u201cbeyond reasonable doubt\u201d. However, such proof may follow from the coexistence of sufficiently strong, clear and concordant inferences or of similar unrebutted presumptions of fact (see Jalloh v.\u00a0Germany [GC], no. 54810\/00, \u00a7 67, ECHR 2006\u2011IX). Where an individual is taken into police custody in good health and is found to be injured on release, it is incumbent on the State to provide a plausible explanation of how those injuries were caused, failing which a clear issue arises under Article 3 (see Ribitsch v. Austria, 4 December 1995, \u00a7\u00a034, Series\u00a0A no. 336, and Selmouni v. France [GC], no. 25803\/94, \u00a7 87, ECHR 1999\u2011V). Where the events in issue lie wholly, or in large part, within the exclusive knowledge of the authorities, as in the case of individuals within their control in custody, strong presumptions of fact will arise in respect of injuries occurring during such detention. The burden of proof is then on the Government to provide a satisfactory and convincing explanation by producing evidence establishing facts which cast doubt on the version of events given by the victim. In the absence of such an explanation, the Court can draw inferences which may be unfavourable for the Government. That is justified by the fact that those in custody are in a vulnerable position and the authorities are under a duty to protect them (Bouyid v. Belgium ([GC], no.\u00a023380\/09, \u00a7 83, ECHR 2015).<\/p>\n 1.\u00a0\u00a0Substantive aspect<\/em><\/p>\n 64.\u00a0\u00a0The thrust of the Government\u2019s submissions concernsthe lack of any injuries on the applicant according to the records from remand centre SIZO\u20111 relating to 9, 22 and 28 June 2004and those fromcorrectional colony IK-14.<\/p>\n 65.\u00a0\u00a0The Court observes that it is disputed between the parties whether the applicant was actually placed in SIZO-1 on 9 June 2004. According to the applicant, he was placed there on 14 June 2004 after being held in the temporary detention facility of the Nizhniy Novgorod regional police department from 8 to 9 June 2004, and in the temporary detention facility of the Privolzhskiy Federal Circuit police department from 9 to 14 June 2004. These facts were not clarified by the investigating authorities. The Government have not submitted any records from SIZO-1 toreliably show that the applicant\u2019s detention there commenced on 9 June 2004. Nor have they submitted records from the above-mentioned temporary detention facilities as to whether or not the applicant was detained there.<\/p>\n 66.\u00a0\u00a0As regards the applicant\u2019s medical records submitted by the Government, both extracts described in paragraph 33 above are dated 9\u00a0June 2004, even though one of them concerns a medical examination carried out several years later, on 9 April 2007. In the absence of any explanation by the Government, it cannot reliably be concluded that the applicant\u2019s medical examination in SIZO-1 took place on 9 June 2004. Even assuming that it did, the records contain no details of the examination, such as the parts of the applicant\u2019s body that were examined to allow for the conclusion that the \u201ccutaneous coverings\u201d were \u201cclean\u201d. Furthermore, the Government have submitted no medical records to show that the applicant was examined on 22\u00a0and 28 June 2004, when he was placed in SIZO-1 after being taken to the police station by officersfrom the ORB police unit. The Court notes that his request to the staff of SIZO-1 to record his injuries was noted in his complaints to the domestic authorities of 29 and 30 June 2004.<\/p>\n 67.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant, who had complained of contusions to the chest and abrasions and requested that his injuries be recorded, was examined by a doctor,Ch.,at SIZO-1 on 29 June 2004. The doctor recorded circular abrasions on the lower third of both shins with a brown \u201cwet\u201d surface, 1.5 to 2\u00a0centimetres wide, and concluded that they had been inflicted the previous day. According to the applicant, the injuries had been inflicted on him as a result of the ill-treatment by officers fromthe ORB police unit.By the time the injuries were found on the applicant he had been held in detention uninterruptedly for twenty-one days. The Court considers that the injuries could arguably have resulted from the applicant\u2019s alleged ill\u2011treatment by the police.<\/p>\n 68.\u00a0\u00a0The Court further notes that the applicant\u2019s injuries were not recorded when he was placed in SIZO-1 the previous day after being taken to the police station by officers from the ORB police unit. In the absence of any explanation from the Governmentregarding such a serious failing, this weakens theirkey argument about the lack of any injuries on the applicant according to the records from remand centre SIZO-1 relating to 9, 22 and 28\u00a0June 2004.<\/p>\n 69.\u00a0\u00a0Turning to the other evidence produced by the applicant, the Court observes that his allegations of ill\u2011treatment at the police station on 8\u00a0June 2004 are supported by the coherent statements of his wife and sons who had seen him at the court hearing on 9 June 2004 (see paragraphs 32 (iii) to (iv) and 49 above).<\/p>\n 70.\u00a0\u00a0The Court observes that at the time of the alleged ill\u2011treatment on 8\u00a0June 2004, that is between the search of the applicant\u2019s flat (ordered as a result of his suspected involvement in the robbery) and his official arrest by the investigator, the applicant was being held in police custody, was interviewed by officers in the absence of a lawyer and confessed to the robbery. His confession was recorded by the police in the form of a \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d, allegedly given voluntarily after he had reported himself to the police station, whereas in reality he had been taken there by police officers after the search. The Court has previously found that obtaining a voluntary \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d from a de facto suspect without a lawyer needing to be present is a violation of the suspect\u2019s right to legal assistance, and the use of such a statement as evidence renders a trial unfair (see Turbylev v. Russia, no. 4722\/09, \u00a7\u00a7\u00a094\u201195, 6 October 2015). As in Turbylev, at the time of his confession the applicant was being held in police custody for the sole reason that he was suspected of committing the robbery (see paragraphs 6 and 7 above). Therefore, he should have been provided with access to a lawyer along with the other rights of a suspect.<\/p>\n 71.\u00a0\u00a0The Court further observes that at the time of the alleged ill\u2011treatment on 22 and 28\u00a0June 2004 the applicant, an accused at that stage, was being held in police custody and was taken from his detention facility to the police station by officers from that unit. There is no indication that any investigative activities were carried out with him on those days and the purpose of those transfers remains unknown.<\/p>\n 72.\u00a0\u00a0It can therefore be concluded that the applicant\u2019s alleged ill\u2011treatment took place in the context of arbitrary actions on the part of the police. This not only tends to favour the applicant\u2019s account of the events of 8,\u00a022 and 28\u00a0June 2004, but also taints the police officers\u2019 subsequent involvement in the case, given that no criminal or disciplinary proceedings were opened to investigate the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment and that the same police unit and even the same police officers were involved in the case until the end of the preliminary investigation.<\/p>\n 73.\u00a0\u00a0As for the allegations of further ill-treatment of the applicantin IK\u201114, the Court is mindful of the fact that his transfer therewas initiated by officers from the ORB police unit and ordered by S., and that the alleged intimidation of his co-accused, which served as grounds for the transfer, was not subject to any proceedings in which he could challenge it.<\/p>\n 74.\u00a0\u00a0The Government\u2019s conclusion that the applicant\u2019s allegations were unfounded was based on the lack of any injuries in the medical records from IK-14. The Court notes that the ill\u2011treatment allegedly took place with the connivance and participation of the administration of IK-14 (see paragraph\u00a044 above). The lack of any medical records of injuries at IK-14 cannot therefore serve as grounds for dismissing the applicant\u2019s allegations, and other evidence should be thoroughly examined.<\/p>\n 75.\u00a0\u00a0The Court observes that the applicant\u2019s allegations of being regularly beaten upand threatened by police officers and the convicts of IK-14 to make him confess to crimes are supported by the coherent statements of his wife, son, I.K. and G., which, inter alia, describe the applicant\u2019s condition and injuries, in particular abrasions and bruises on the visible parts of his body (his face, head and wrists), the difficulties he faced in moving on his own and his depressed state (see paragraphs 32 and 49 above).Noting that I.K. did not repeat all the initial statements he had given in February 2006 before the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court (as summarised in the judgment of 8 June 2006), the Court pays attention to the fears initially expressed by I.K. in relation to an eventual testimony in court. His latter testimony, however, corroborated the applicant\u2019s allegations.<\/p>\n 76.\u00a0\u00a0The Government have not produced records from IK-14 concerning units or cells the applicant was held in and the details ofall visits he received. The applicant\u2019s allegations that he was held together with convicted prisoners and received visits from officers of the ORB police unit are supported by the statements of his wife, G. and I.K. The Court also notes thatthe stamped envelopes of the letters sent by him to his family from IK-14 have written on them \u201cunit no. 14\u201d, in which convicted prisoners were allegedly held, as the place of his detention (see paragraph\u00a031 above).<\/p>\n 77.\u00a0\u00a0Furthermore, during his detention in IK-14 the applicant, an accused at that stage, gave statements of surrender and confession in relation to six crimes (see paragraph 46 above). The records of those statements have not been submitted to the Court and it remains unclear whether they were collected during an interview by officers from the ORB police unit, as on 8\u00a0June 2004 (see paragraph 70 above). However, given the nature of those statements under domestic law, that is to say a voluntary confession to a crime collected by a law-enforcement official without a lawyer needing to be present (ibid.), the fact that, after pleading his innocence when officially questioned as a suspect and accused in the presence of his lawyer, the applicant made such confession statements at IK-14 in the absence of his lawyer and outside of an official interview with the investigator adds credibility to his account of events.<\/p>\n 78.\u00a0\u00a0In the light of the foregoing, the Court has sufficient grounds to consider that the applicant\u2019s allegations of ill-treatment by the police and prisoners acting on their instructions were credible.<\/p>\n 79.\u00a0\u00a0The Court finds that the repeated acts of violence during the applicant\u2019s detention between 8 June 2004 and 3 November 2004, to which he was subjected by the police and prisoners acting on their instructions, given their severity and the aim of obtaining confessions, amounted to torture (see Selmouni, cited above, \u00a7\u00a7 96-105, and G\u00e4fgen v. Germany [GC], no. 22978\/05, \u00a7 90, ECHR 2010).<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0Procedural aspect<\/em><\/p>\n 80.\u00a0\u00a0The Court observes further that the applicant\u2019s allegations of ill\u2011treatment by the police and prisoners acting on their instructions were dismissed by the domestic investigating authorities, which relied largely on the statements of the police officers and prisoners in question denying any wrongdoing and never ordered the applicant\u2019s forensic medical expert examination. The investigators based their findings on the results of the pre\u2011investigation inquiry, which is the initial stage in dealing with a criminal complaint under Russian law and should normally be followed by the opening of a criminal case and the carrying out of an investigation if the information gathered has disclosed elements of a criminal offence (see Lyapin v. Russia, no.\u00a046956\/09, \u00a7 129, 24 July 2014).<\/p>\n 81.\u00a0\u00a0The Court reiterates its finding that the mere carrying out of a pre\u2011investigation inquiry under Article 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation is insufficient if the authorities are to comply with the standards established under Article 3 of the Convention for an effective investigation into credible allegations of ill\u2011treatment in police custody. It is incumbent on the authorities to institute criminal proceedings and conduct a proper criminal investigation in which a full range of investigative measures are carried out (ibid., \u00a7\u00a7 129 and 132-36).<\/p>\n 82.\u00a0\u00a0The Court considers that the Government, which relied on the superficial domestic pre\u2011investigation inquiries, have failed to discharge their burden of proof and produce evidence capable of casting doubt on the applicant\u2019s account of events (see Olisov and Others v. Russia, nos.\u00a010825\/09 and 2 others, \u00a7 85, 2 May 2017).<\/p>\n 83.\u00a0\u00a0The Court finds that the authorities failed to carry out effective investigations into the applicants\u2019credible allegations of ill\u2011treatment, as required by Article 3 of the Convention.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0Conclusion<\/em><\/p>\n 84.\u00a0\u00a0There has accordingly been a violation of Article 3 of the Convention under its substantive limb in that the applicant was subjected to torture, and under its procedural limb on account of the lack of an effective investigation into his allegations.<\/p>\n II.\u00a0\u00a0ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 6\u00a7 1 OF THE CONVENTION<\/p>\n 85.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant complained that his conviction had been based on confession statements obtained from himas a result of torture. He relied on Article 6\u00a0\u00a7\u00a01 of the Convention, which reads in the relevant part as follows:<\/p>\n \u201cIn the determination of … any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair … hearing … by [a] … tribunal …\u201d<\/p>\n 86.\u00a0\u00a0The Government contested that argument, referring to the findings of the domestic investigating and judicial authorities. In particular, they doubted that the impugned statements had \u201cconstituted the basis\u201d for the judgment, noting that the applicant had been tried by jury and therefore the impugned statements, which had been presented to the jury along with the other evidence, had not been referred to in the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court\u2019s judgment.<\/p>\n A.\u00a0\u00a0Admissibility<\/strong><\/p>\n 87.\u00a0\u00a0The Court notes that this complaint is not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 \u00a7 3 (a) of the Convention. It further notes that it is not inadmissible on any other grounds. It must therefore be declared admissible.<\/p>\n B.\u00a0\u00a0Merits<\/strong><\/p>\n 88.\u00a0\u00a0The Court reiterates that the admission of confession statements obtained in violation of Article 3 renders the criminal proceedings as a whole automatically unfair, irrespective of the probative value of those statements and irrespective of whether their use was decisive in securing the defendant\u2019s conviction (see G\u00e4fgen, cited above, \u00a7\u00a7\u00a0166 and 173, and, among recent authorities, Turbylev, cited above, \u00a7\u00a090).<\/p>\n 89.\u00a0\u00a0The Court has found above that the applicant was subjected to tortureby police officers and prisoners acting on their instructions to force him to make confession statements. It observes that on 8 June 2004and on an unspecified date during his detention in IK-14 the applicant made statements of \u201csurrender and confession\u201d, which he reiterated on 3\u00a0November 2004 during his questioning as an accused. Those statements formed part of the evidence adduced against him, which follows from the Nizhniy Novgorod Regional Court\u2019s decision of 19 October 2005 rejecting the applicant\u2019s request for the records of his questioning as an accused to be declared inadmissible evidence, and the judgment of 8 June 2006 sentencing the applicant to a less severe punishment on the grounds of his having given a \u201cstatement of surrender and confession\u201d (see paragraphs 48\u201152 above).<\/p>\n 90.\u00a0\u00a0In rejectingthe applicant\u2019s request forhis confession statementsto be declared inadmissible on the grounds that they had been obtained under duress the Regional Court failed to carry out a proper independent assessment of the relevant medical, witnessand other evidence with a view to ascertaining whether there were reasons to exclude those statements, allegedly \u201ctainted\u201d by the applicant\u2019s ill-treatment, so as to ensure the fairness of the trial. Instead, it relied on the investigating authority\u2019s decision refusing to institute criminal proceedings into the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment, which the Court has found to have been based on a pre-investigation inquiry which did not meet Article 3 requirements. The Regional Court\u2019s conclusion that the applicant\u2019s condition as a result of his alleged ill\u2011treatment, notably headaches and pain in his back and legs, was explained by his medical history was not based on any medical expert opinion. This lack of a careful assessment of the quality of the impugned evidence and the circumstances in which it was obtained was not remedied by the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation.<\/p>\n 91.\u00a0\u00a0In such circumstances, the Court concludes that, regardless of the impact the statements obtainedunder duress had on the outcome of the criminal proceedings against the applicant, their use as evidence rendered the applicant\u2019s trial unfair.<\/p>\n 92.\u00a0\u00a0There has,accordingly,been a violation of Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention.<\/p>\n III.\u00a0\u00a0OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS OF THE CONVENTION<\/p>\n 93.\u00a0\u00a0As regards the applicant\u2019s remaining complaintsunder the Convention,having regard to all the material in its possession and in so far as they fall within the Court\u2019s competence, it finds that they do not disclose any appearance of a violation of the rights and freedoms set out in the Convention or its Protocols. It follows that this part of the application must be rejected as manifestly ill-founded, pursuant to Article 35 \u00a7\u00a7 3 (a) and 4 of the Convention.<\/p>\n IV.\u00a0\u00a0APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION<\/p>\n 94.\u00a0\u00a0Article 41 of the Convention provides:<\/p>\n \u201cIf the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.\u201d<\/p>\n A.\u00a0\u00a0Damage<\/strong><\/p>\n 95.\u00a0\u00a0The applicant claimed 100,000 euros (EUR) in respect of non\u2011pecuniary damage suffered as a result of repeated acts of torture by the police and convicts, which had diminished his human dignity and caused him acute physical pain and moral suffering.<\/p>\n 96.\u00a0\u00a0The Government considered the claims excessive and unsubstantiated.<\/p>\n 97.\u00a0\u00a0The Court awards the applicant EUR 50,000, plus any tax that may be chargeable, in respect of non\u2011pecuniary damage.<\/p>\n 98.\u00a0\u00a0Furthermore, the Court refers to its settled case-law to the effect that when an applicant has suffered an infringement of his rights 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 the reopening of the proceedings, if requested (see, mutatis mutandis, \u00d6calan v. Turkey [GC], no. 46221\/99, \u00a7 210 in fine, ECHR 2005-IV, and Popov v. Russia, no. 26853\/04, \u00a7 264, 13 July 2006). The Court notes, in this connection, that Article 413 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation provides a basis for the reopening of the proceedings if the Court finds a violation of the Convention.<\/p>\n B.\u00a0\u00a0Default interest<\/strong><\/p>\n 99.\u00a0\u00a0The 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.\u00a0\u00a0Declares the complaints concerning the applicant\u2019s alleged ill-treatment, the ineffectiveness of the ensuing investigation and the use at the trial of confession statements allegedly obtained under duress admissible and the remainder of the application inadmissible;<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0Holds that there has been a violation of Article 3 of the Convention under its substantive limb in that the applicant was subjected to torture, and under its procedural limb on account of the lack of an effective investigation into his allegations;<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0Holds that there has been a violation of Article 6 \u00a7 1 of the Convention on account of the use as evidence of the confession statements obtained as a result of torture;<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0\u00a0Holds<\/p>\n (a)\u00a0\u00a0that the respondent State is to pay the applicant, within three months from the date on which the judgment becomes final in accordance with Article\u00a044\u00a0\u00a7\u00a02 of the Convention, EUR 50,000 (fifty thousand euros), plus any tax that may be chargeable, in respect of non-pecuniary damage,to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;<\/p>\n (b)\u00a0\u00a0that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amount at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points;<\/p>\n 5.\u00a0\u00a0Dismisses the remainder of the applicant\u2019s claim for just satisfaction.<\/p>\n Done in English, and notified in writing on 15 May 2018, pursuant to Rule\u00a077\u00a0\u00a7\u00a7\u00a02 and 3 of the Rules of Court.<\/p>\n Fato\u015f Arac\u0131\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Helena J\u00e4derblom THIRD SECTION CASE OF SERGEY IVANOV v. RUSSIA (Application no. 14416\/06) JUDGMENT STRASBOURG 15 May 2018 FINAL 15\/08\/2018 This judgment has become final under Article 44 \u00a7 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision. In the…<\/p>\n
\nBranko Lubarda,
\nHelen Keller,
\nDmitry Dedov,
\nPere Pastor Vilanova,
\nAlena Pol\u00e1\u010dkov\u00e1,
\nMar\u00eda El\u00f3segui, judges,
\nand Fato\u015f Arac\u0131, Deputy Section Registrar,<\/p>\n
\nDeputy Registrar\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 President<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"