Violation of Article 2 - Right to life (Article 2 - Positive obligations;Article 2-1 - Life) (Substantive aspect);Violation of Article 2 - Right to life (Article 2-1 - Effective investigation) (Procedural aspect)

Angelika Nußberger;Erik Møse;Mārtiņš Mits;Síofra O’Leary;Yonko Grozev

The applicant was born in 1937 and lives in Sumgayit.

The applicant’s son, Mahir Mustafayev (M.M.), was born in 1967 and at the time of the events was serving a life sentence in Gobustan Prison.

The applicant’s son, who suffered from epilepsy, was held with one other inmate (S.R.) in cell no. 94, designated for two inmates.

Since June 2006 M.M. had sent numerous complaints to various domestic authorities, including the Ministry of Justice, the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Ombudsman of the Republic of Azerbaijan. He complained, in particular, of his conditions of detention, of violations of inmates’ rights in Gobustan Prison and of ill-treatment by prison guards because of his complaints to various domestic authorities, alleging that his life was in danger.

On 2 December 2006 S.R. left cell no. 94 for a long-term visit to his mother and M.M. remained the sole occupant of the cell.

Early in the morning of 3 December 2006 a fire broke out in the cell. According to the applicant, the fire began at approximately 6 a.m. and prison guards did not immediately intervene to extinguish it despite warnings from other inmates. It took an hour for them to open the cell door after the outbreak of the fire.

According to the Government, the fire broke out at approximately 6.50 a.m. The prison guards took immediate action and opened the cell door at around 7 a.m. They took the applicant’s son out of the cell and gave him first aid. M.M. was sent to hospital by car at 11.45 a.m., arrived at 2.45 p.m. and died at 3.30 p.m.

The applicant was informed by telegram at 3.21 p.m. on 6 December 2006 of the death of his son.

It appears from M.M.’s death certificate, dated 13 March 2007, that the cause of death was first and second degree burns over the whole body and smoke inhalation (bütün bədənin texniki yanığı, I-II dərəcəli yanıq, intoksikasiya).

On 4 December 2006 the Garadagh District Prosecutor’s Office launched a criminal inquiry into M.M.’s death.

On 7 December 2006 the investigator in charge of the case refused to institute criminal proceedings. The investigator found that M.M. had suffered from epilepsy and that the fire had begun after his cigarette had fallen onto the bed during a seizure. The investigator relied on a statement written by M.M. after the incident, which stated that the fire had broken out because he had had an epileptic seizure while smoking. The investigator found that the prison guards had acted immediately in order to extinguish the fire. The investigator also referred to a statement from S.R. that he had seen M.M. after the incident, at approximately 10 a.m. on 3 December 2006, and that M.M. had told him that he had had a seizure and that he had not known how the incident had happened. The investigator’s decision also referred to post-mortem forensic report no. 147 dated 5 December 2006, which confirmed the existence of extensive burns on M.M.’s body. The forensic report also established that the time of the injuries corresponded to 3 December 2006 and that they were the kind of injuries which caused serious harm and could be life-threatening.

Despite the Court’s explicit request to the Government to submit copies of all the documents relating to the criminal investigation concerning M.M.’s death, the Government failed to provide the Court with a copy of M.M. and S.R.’s written statements of 3 December 2006 and forensic report no. 147 of 5 December 2006, submitting that the case file had been destroyed.

The applicant was provided with a copy of the investigator’s decision of 7 December 2006 only one month later. He immediately lodged a complaint against that decision with a superior prosecutor.

On 16 February 2007 the Baku City Prosecutor overturned the investigator’s decision and remitted the case to the Garadagh District Prosecutor’s Office for a new examination. The prosecutor held that the investigator had not duly examined the scene of the incident. He also asked the investigator, inter alia, to order forensic fire, chemical and handwriting examinations, to check if M.M.’s cell had been equipped with an adequate fire detection system, to question other inmates, prison guards, and the medical staff who had given first aid to M.M. and to establish why M.M. had not been taken to hospital immediately after the incident. The prosecutor also asked the investigator to order a new forensic examination in order to establish, inter alia, whether M.M. had been able to speak and move freely immediately after the incident given the nature of his injuries.

On 26 April 2007 the investigator again refused to institute criminal proceedings, concluding that there had been no crime involved in M.M.’s death. He relied mainly on the statements submitted by the prison guards, who said the fire had broken out at approximately 7 a.m. because of M.M.’s epileptic seizure and that they had intervened immediately after the incident. The investigator also noted that handwriting report no. 2692 dated 6 April 2007 had indicated that the statement written on 3 December 2006 had been signed by M.M. However, he also noted in the decision that forensic expert report no. 32 dated 25 April 2007 had stated that M.M. had not been able to move, speak or write immediately after the incident as he had been in a state of shock as a result of his burns. The decision also recorded that chemical analysis report no. 2375 of 19 March 2007 had concluded that there had been no trace of oil products in samples taken from the cell walls or of carbonised particles. The investigator also pointed out that it was not possible to carry out a forensic fire examination because the scene of the incident had not been preserved and repairs had been carried out in the cell in question. As regards the statements by some inmates that the fire had broken out at approximately 6 a.m., that it had taken an hour for the prison guards to open the door of the cell and that M.M. had died as a result of their negligence, the investigator noted that the cells of the inmates in question were situated far from M.M.’s cell and that therefore their statements could not be considered as reliable. The investigator also questioned Gobustan Prison’s paramedic (feldşer) (N.B.) who had given first aid to M.M. after the fire. N.B. stated that he had been informed by telephone at home about the incident at around 7 a.m. on 3 December 2006. He had taken a taxi to the prison and had arrived fifteen minutes later. He had given first aid to M.M. but his condition had worsened at around 8 a.m. and he had requested his transfer to a hospital. N.B. stated that he had accompanied M.M. in the car that had transported him to the hospital but they had not arrived until 2.45 p.m. because they had waited for an hour and fifteen minutes for the car to be repaired after it had broken down. In that connection, the investigator referred to letter no. 17/1/15-954 of 27 February 2007 from the Prisons Service of the Ministry of Justice, confirming that the car transporting M.M. to the hospital had arrived at 2.45 p.m. and that the delay in his transfer had been due to the fact that the car had broken down on its way to the hospital. The letter also contained information about M.M.’s medical history, pointing out that he had previously been admitted five times to that medical establishment, had been diagnosed four times with epilepsy and had received the appropriate treatment.

Despite the Court’s explicit request to the Government to submit copies of all the documents relating to the criminal investigation concerning M.M.’s death, the Government failed to provide the Court with a copy of chemical analysis report no. 2375 dated 19 March 2007, handwriting report no. 2692 dated 6 April 2007, forensic expert report no. 32 dated 25 April 2007, letter no. 17/1/15-954 of 27 February 2007 from the Prisons Service of the Ministry of Justice and the statements made by the prison guards, medical staff and inmates detained in Gobustan Prison, submitting that the case file had been destroyed.

The applicant lodged a complaint against the investigator’s decision with the Garadagh District Court, complaining that he had failed to carry out an effective investigation.

On 4 July 2007 the Garadagh District Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint.

On an unspecified date the applicant lodged an appeal against that decision. He complained, in particular, of the inconsistency between the conclusions of the handwriting report dated 6 April 2007 and the forensic expert opinion dated 25 April 2007. He also argued that the investigator and the first-instance court had failed to examine photographs of M.M. taken immediately after the incident on 3 December 2006. He submitted that the photographs showed that M.M.’s body had signs of ill-treatment.

On 27 July 2007 the Baku Court of Appeal granted the appeal and remitted the case to the prosecuting authorities for fresh examination. The appellate court held that the prosecuting authorities had failed to examine the photographs of M.M. for signs of ill-treatment on his body or to establish why the scene of the incident had not been preserved.

On 15 October 2007 a prosecutor at the Garadagh District Prosecutor’s Office again refused to institute criminal proceedings on the grounds of a lack of a criminal element in the death. In particular, the prosecutor held that there was no evidence that M.M. had been ill-treated, as alleged by the applicant. He relied in that connection on the conclusions of forensic report no. 147, which had only confirmed the existence of numerous burns on M.M.’s body.

On an unspecified date the applicant appealed against that decision.

On 6 December 2007 the Garadagh District Court overruled the prosecutor’s decision and remitted the case to the prosecuting authorities for a new examination. The court pointed out the inconsistencies as to when the fire had begun. It further held that the investigation had failed to clarify why M.M. had been taken to hospital almost eight hours after the fire had broken out. The court held that the fact that the car transporting M.M. had broken down could not explain such a long delay. The court also found that the investigation had failed to examine whether M.M.’s conditions of detention had been appropriate for a person suffering from epilepsy.

On 7 January 2008 the investigator in charge of the case again refused to institute criminal proceedings. The wording of the decision was identical to that of 26 April 2007, except the last few paragraphs, which concerned the conditions of detention of inmates suffering from epilepsy. In that connection, relying on statements made by the head of the prison regime department of Gobustan Prison and N.B., the investigator found that domestic law did not provide for any special conditions of detention for inmates suffering from epilepsy or any restriction on the authorised items they could possess in prison.

On 14 March 2008 the Garadagh District Court overruled the investigator’s decision of 7 January 2008 and remitted the case to the prosecuting authorities. The court held that the investigator had failed to examine the reason for the delay in M.M.’s transfer to hospital. It also pointed out the inconsistencies in the inmates’ statements concerning the circumstances of the incident. The court further found that it had not been established whether M.M.’s conditions of detention had been compatible with his illness and that an inquiry should have been carried out as regards the necessary security and medical measures for a person like M.M., whose condition was likely to give rise to sudden seizures.

On 7 May 2008 a prosecutor at the Garadagh District Prosecutor’s Office again refused to institute criminal proceedings, using wording that was almost identical to the decisions of 26 April 2007 and 7 January 2008. The prosecutor found that it had been M.M.’s fault that the fire had broken out and that he had died as a result of his burns. He further held that the prison guards had taken immediate action and there had been no negligence on their part. The prosecutor noted that there was no special rule for the detention of inmates suffering from epilepsy. He also confirmed that there had been a delay in taking M.M. to hospital because the car had broken down. He further found that it had not been possible to carry out a forensic fire examination as the scene of the incident had not been preserved. Lastly, the prosecutor referred to a statement made by a forensic expert, A.M., that there had been no causal link between M.M.’s death and his delayed transfer to hospital.

Despite the Court’s explicit request to the Government to submit copies of all the documents relating to the criminal investigation concerning M.M.’s death, the Government failed to provide the Court with a copy of A.M.’s statement, submitting that the case file had been destroyed.

The applicant was provided with a copy of that decision only on 26 December 2008, following intervention by the Ombudsman.

On an unspecified date the applicant lodged a complaint against the prosecutor’s decision of 7 May 2008, arguing that the prosecuting authorities had failed to investigate the questions raised by the previous court decisions. In particular, there had been no plausible explanation for M.M. not being taken immediately to hospital after the incident. He also disputed the official version, according to which M.M. had been able to write a statement immediately after the incident and that he had caused the fire himself.

On 12 February 2009 the Garadagh District Court dismissed the applicant’s complaint. The judge held that all the facts of the case had been examined by the prosecuting authorities and that M.M. had died as a result of an accidental fire.

On 6 March 2009 the applicant appealed against that decision, arguing that there had not been an effective investigation into his son’s death in prison. He argued that the wording of the prosecutor’s decision of 7 May 2008 had been almost identical to the prosecuting authorities’ previous decisions and that it had not dealt with any of the questions raised by the previous court decisions.

On 22 May 2009 the Baku Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s appeal, finding that there was no reason to overrule the first-instance court’s decision of 12 February 2009.


George Nicolaou;Ineta Ziemele;Krzysztof Wojtyczek;Nona Tsotsoria;Päivi Hirvelä;Paul Mahoney

A list of the applicants is set out in the appendix.

The facts of the case, as submitted by the parties, may be summarised as follows.

The applicants stated that they are nationals of the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” and in application no. 28914/14 also nationals of the United Kingdom. Their names, dates of birth and places of residence are set out in the Annex. They are represented before the Court by Ms Y. Renda, a lawyer practising in Nicosia.

The facts of the cases may be summarised as follows. The applicants are relatives of Turkish-Cypriots who went missing in either December 1963 or May 1964 during incidents of mounting tension and violence in which Turkish Cypriots or Turkish-Cypriot villages were targeted.

These persons were listed as missing persons, the information being given to the Cypriot authorities, the Red Cross and the United Nations.

The remains of the missing men have been found during exhumations carried out by the United Nations Committee for Missing Persons (“CMP”) in 2010.

The Government have submitted that investigations had been commenced in both cases. The police had taken statements from relatives of the victims, taken steps to pursue investigation in the various localities and to trace police officers stationed there at the relevant time, to locate witnesses and to seek information from local inhabitants as to the transportation, murder and burial of the victims. In the first application, where investigation is linked with others already launched concerning victims of the same incident, statements have been obtained from about 65 individuals, while in the second application police are exploring material obtained from persons in the leadership of the “Akritas” organisation and tracing as far as possible persons who might have been involved or have information about such involvement.

The applicants submitted that it is not apparent that any progress had been made in the investigations and that they had not been given any copies of reports, witness statements or information gathered from various sources.


Violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6 - Criminal proceedings;Article 6-1 - Reasonable time);Violation of Article 13+6-1 - Right to an effective remedy (Article 13 - Effective remedy) (Article 6 - Right to a fair trial;Criminal proceedings;Article 6-1 - Reasonable time)

André Potocki;Mārtiņš Mits;Síofra O’Leary

The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.

The applicants complained of the excessive length of criminal proceedings and of the lack of any effective remedy in domestic law.


Violation of Article 2 - Right to life (Article 2-1 - Effective investigation) (Procedural aspect)

André Potocki;Ganna Yudkivska;Vincent A. De Gaetano

The applicant was born in 1980 and lives in Zhytomyr.

At about 9 a.m. on 7 August 2002 two men, one of them wearing a mask, entered the applicant’s house, tied the applicant and took the valuables belonging to her and other household members. Subsequently, the unmasked man put a revolver in the applicant’s ear and fired a shot. The applicant survived, having sustained a permanent disability. To this day the bullet remains in her head.

On the day of the assault, the Zhytomyr police instituted criminal proceedings into the incident, examined the crime scene, collected fingerprints and other evidence, questioned the applicant’s household members and neighbors and ordered several expert assessments.

On 9 August 2002 the applicant was admitted in the proceedings as an injured party.

On several occasions the applicant identified the photos of various persons presented by the police as those of the unmasked offender. Among them, on 24 September 2002 she identified a certain V.P.

On an unspecified date I. K., V.P.’s partner, acknowledged to the police that she had seen a revolver in his possession. She also noted that at about 8 a.m. on 7 August 2002 V.P. had left their home for an appointment with his friend S.K. On that date he had returned home at about 1 p.m., wearing a new suit and carrying some money, which, according to him, had been entrusted to him by S.K. for safekeeping.

On 25 September 2002 A.V., V.P.’s neighbor, identified S.K. on a photograph, as V.P.’s friend.

On 8 October 2002 I.K. also identified S.K. on a photograph as V.P.’s friend.

On several occasions in October 2002 the authorities questioned S.K. as a witness.

On 18 October 2002 the investigation was suspended on the ground that all possible measures to locate the perpetrators had been exhausted.

On 5 November 2002 the Zhytomyr City Prosecutor’s Office revoked this decision, having found that additional measures were warranted.

Two further decisions to suspend the proceedings taken on 26 November and 16 December 2002, respectively, were, in turn, revoked by the prosecutor’s office on 4 December 2002 and 8 January 2003.

According to the applicant, in January 2003 she informed the investigator in charge of her case that she suspected that O.M., her cousin, had been the masked offender. Having assured her that he would conduct the necessary inquiries, the investigator left this information without any follow-up.

On 31 March 2003 the proceedings were suspended on the ground that all possible measures to locate the perpetrators had been exhausted. According to the applicant, she was not informed of this decision and kept soliciting the authorities to investigate her suspicions in respect of O.M.

On 24 June 2003 the applicant and several other members of her family complained to the Zhytomyr Regional Prosecutor’s Office of the length of the proceedings and the failure of the investigator to react to the applicant’s suspicions with respect to O.M.

On 25 July 2003 the prosecutor’s office informed the complainants that the proceedings had been suspended since 31 March 2003. On the same date it revoked the suspension decision, noting that the measures taken to identify the perpetrators had not been comprehensive, and transferred the case to the Korolyovskiy District Prosecutor’s Office in Zhytomyr for supervising further investigative activities.

On 4 September 2003 O.M. was arrested and remanded in custody. On the same date he confessed to his participation in the crime and identified S.T. as his accomplice.

On 5 September 2003 S.T. was arrested. He denied his involvement in the crime and presented various pieces of evidence that he had been in Moscow, Russia, on the date of the incident.

On 6 September 2003 the applicant identified S.T. as the second offender during an identification parade.

On 12 September 2003 O.M. retracted his confession alleging that it had been given under duress. Since that time he pleaded innocent and presented various pieces of evidence that he had been at his job as a vendor of ice-cream at the time of the incident.

On 3 February 2004 the criminal proceedings in respect of O.M. and S.T. were discontinued for want of evidence of their involvement in the incriminated offence. The applicant appealed, insisting that O.M. and S.T. had been the perpetrators.

On 28 April 2004 the prosecutor’s office revoked the decision to discontinue the proceedings and ordered further investigative measures to verify the applicant’s allegations as well as O.M.’s and S.T.’s alibis.

On five further occasions between 2004 and 2006 (in particular, on 1 and 23 June 2004, 23 February, 30 May and 10 November 2005) the proceedings against O.M. and S.T. were discontinued, these decisions having been subsequently quashed with reference to insufficiency of the measures taken to verify the relevant facts. Eventually, on 25 April 2006 the proceedings against S.T. and O.M. were again closed for want of evidence that they had committed the incriminated offence. The decision referred, in particular, to testimonies by several witnesses and various sources of corporeal and forensic evidence in support of the defendants’ alibis and cited various reasons, why they considered the applicant’s submissions to be inconsistent and improbable.

On 6 July 2005 the General Prosecutor’s Office informed the applicant that following her complaints of inactivity on the part of the investigative authorities, the case had been transferred to the Vinnytsya Regional Prosecutor’s Office for further investigation.

On numerous occasions throughout the course of the investigation (in particular, on 14 July 2004, 15 August 2005, 25 April and 26 July 2006, 25 July 2008, 5 March 2009, 21 January and 20 August 2010, 11 March and 22 June 2011) the investigator in charge of the case requested the police to locate and question S.K. and V.P. as witnesses in connection with the proceedings at issue. A request to this end was also submitted to the Interpol and to the Polish police authorities. The parties did not inform the Court concerning any follow-up on these requests.

On eleven occasions between August 2005 and April 2012 (in particular, on 30 May, 19 August, 17 September 2005, 9 January, 8 February, 7 March, 27 April 2006, 31 March 2008, 20 July 2009, 11 October 2010 and 13 December 2011) the criminal proceedings in the applicant’s case were suspended on the ground that the measures available to the investigation had been exhausted without the perpetrators having been identified. These decisions were revoked by various branches of the prosecutor’s office, which found that the measures taken had not been exhaustive.

On 27 August 2007 the General Prosecutor’s Office acknowledged, in response to the applicant’s complaint, that the case had been protracted.

On 22 October 2007 the Vinnytsya Prosecutor’s Office reprimanded the Vinnytsya Police for inactivity in the investigation and ordered the officers responsible to speed it up.

On 1 July 2012 the K. family from Zhytomyr was robbed, several of its members having been shot.

On 7 July 2012 S.K. was arrested in Zhytomyr on suspicion of having committed the crime in respect of the K. family and remanded in custody.

By August 2012 S.K. confessed of having been involved in the above crime, as well as in a series of other robberies, assaults and murders, including the one in respect of the applicant. He further divulged that some of these crimes, including the one in the applicant’s respect, had been committed by him together with V.P.

The proceedings concerning V.P. were closed with reference to his death.

On 7 November 2012 the Deputy Zhytomyr Regional Prosecutor signed the bill of indictment accusing S.K. of numerous episodes of criminal activity. The evidence cited in respect of his assault on the applicant consisted, primarily, of S.K.’s own confessions and the sources collected in 2002 (see paragraphs 8-11 above).

On 9 November 2012 S.K. was committed to stand trial before the Korolyovskiy District Court in Zhytomyr.

As of June 2014 the case was pending before the first-instance court.


No violation of Article 3 - Prohibition of torture (Article 3 - Degrading treatment) (Substantive aspect);Violation of Article 34 - Individual applications (Article 34 - Hinder the exercise of the right of application)

Carlo Ranzoni;Ganna Yudkivska;Marko Bošnjak;Paulo Pinto De Albuquerque;Vincent A. De Gaetano

The applicant was born in 1977 and at the time that he lodged the application with the Court was serving a sentence of eight years’ imprisonment in the Corradino Correctional Facility, Malta. He had been detained since 19 February 2010.

The sentence was imposed on him by the Criminal Court on 14 March 2012 for drug related offences. The Criminal Court also ordered him to pay a fine of 23,500 euros (EUR) as well as EUR 1,462.94 in fees payable to the experts, which were to be converted into a further term of imprisonment if not paid. On 13 April 2012 the aforementioned sums were converted into 490 days’ imprisonment. Following an amnesty and payment of the fee for the experts, the applicant was released on 14 April 2016 and flown back to Costa Rica after being given the requisite vaccinations.

On 12 July 2013, between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., the applicant was assaulted by another inmate, causing the former to allegedly lose consciousness and sustaining fractures to his facial and leg bones. The Government admitted that the applicant had sustained injuries to his leg and face but argued that there was no evidence that he had lost consciousness at any time.

According to the applicant, disciplinary measures were taken by the prison Chief Security officer, who ordered that he be placed in solitary confinement. Thus, despite his condition, the applicant had had to pack his belongings and walk to the solitary confinement unit. At an unspecified time the prison officer brought the applicant a pair of crutches to assist him walking. According to the Government, disciplinary measures were taken against another inmate involved in the incident but not against the applicant, who had been transferred (from Division 2) to Division 6, a more secure division, immediately after the incident. They also submitted that the applicant had not been placed in solitary confinement.

The applicant alleged that he did not receive any medical treatment for one or two hours after the incident had taken place. Thereafter he had been kept in solitary confinement without assistance from the prison medical staff. The applicant explained that he had subsequently been seen by a doctor, who had referred him to the hospital, where he underwent surgery. He stated that a plaster cast had been put around his leg and that he had been informed that he might need to undergo surgery if his eyesight was damaged as a result of the injury of his facial bone. Regarding the period of solitary confinement, the applicant claimed that he had been held on the second floor of the building and had not been allowed to see anyone or to use the communal areas.

According to the applicant, the cell did not have adequate ventilation, the heat was unbearable and there was no cold water to drink since he did not have access to the ground floor. Consequently he had to drink warm water and an occasional bottle of cold water (when his friend managed to obtain one). The applicant claimed that he had specifically needed to drink water since he was taking antibiotics.

The heat and lack of ventilation caused the applicant, who is an asthma sufferer, to struggle with his breathing. He also complained that he had had to go to the clinic for treatment of his injuries himself since the nurses refused to visit his cell because of the unbearable heat. He had therefore had to use the staircase whilst still walking with crutches.

The applicant stated that he had been kept in the isolation unit for twenty-two days, and after five days had become suicidal. Subsequently he had been transferred to a unit that had fewer restrictions. The applicant complained that he had been placed in the same unit as his aggressor, putting his physical integrity at risk since he could have been attacked again.

The applicant submitted that upon his release from solitary confinement, he had spent most of his time in his cell. On an unspecified date he had asked to see a psychologist urgently, but was not able to speak to one for twenty-seven days. The psychologist referred the applicant to a psychiatrist, who eventually prescribed medication. However, the applicant had refused to take the medication and claimed that the psychiatrist had refused to help him. Later, he had refused to consult the prison psychiatrist because he no longer trusted the prison staff and did not want to be sent to a psychiatric hospital since the facilities there were allegedly worse than those in the prison.

According to the Government the applicant was admitted to the medical infirmary of the prison at 4.15 p.m. on 12 July 2013 and a referral to the emergency department of the state hospital was made at 5 p.m. The referral note issued by the doctor indicated that the applicant had swelling in the face, a bruise on one loin, and severe swelling with limited movement in his right ankle. At an unspecified time on the same day he was provided with a pair of crutches by the prison medical infirmary. On the same day he was also admitted to hospital and returned to cell 8 in Division 6 on 14 July 2013. The case summary drawn up on 14 July – before his discharge and submitted to the Court showed that all the medical investigations had been concluded and the results received prior to his discharge from hospital. According to the case summary the ankle xray revealed a fracture and there was subluxation of the right foot; there was a head injury, specifically a fracture of the orbit and of the maxillary sinus; there were no signs of injury or fluid collection in the internal organs; an ophthalmic review had been carried out and the patient had been discharged from that department as well as from the orthopaedic ward where he had undergone tests and treatment for his bone injuries. The summary also showed that the applicant had to use crutches and to avoid bearing weight for the two weeks leading up to his outpatient appointment, after which he still would not be able to bear weight fully. It ordered a change of dressing to be undertaken within three days and prescribed appropriate medicines. Records also showed that a nurse had visited Division 6 to attend to the applicant on 15 July – the note in the register reads as follows: “Nurse C. and S. came to Division 6 at about 11.35 am to visit Fernando Soto in his cell”. Other notes show that a nurse went to Division 6 on subsequent days to give inmates medication, without indicating their names. Another note also showed that a certain Ms M. (whose role is unidentified) visited the applicant on 16 July.

The Government submitted that the applicant had been held in Division 6 for his own safety. The Chief Security officer had ordered that the applicant should not meet the other inmate involved in the argument and that the applicant’s cell be opened for seven hours a day until further instructions. The applicant was initially placed in cell 8 (on the upper floor of Division 6), which was about six metres away from the guard room, thus making it possible to observe the applicant’s cell, which was to be left open. The Government submitted that, by order of a manager, on 21 July 2013 the applicant had been allowed to mingle with all other inmates without restriction. The applicant had then been transferred to cell 13 on a lower floor as soon as it was deemed safe for him, specifically on 26 July 2013. On 7 August 2013 he had been transferred to Division 5, which was also a secure division although it had fewer restrictions. The applicant was finally transferred to Division 3 on 22 October 2013. According to the Government, the applicant had never been kept in solitary confinement, nor had the inmate involved in the argument with the applicant been accommodated in any of the above-mentioned Divisions while the applicant was there, except for a short stay in Division 6.

According to the Government the first request for psychological services made by the applicant had been in April 2014. According to the documents submitted, thereafter he was seen monthly by the psychologist until April 2015 and later three or four times per month until his release in 2016 (from November 2015 onwards he had been seen by a counselling trainee). Moreover, in April 2015 the applicant had been referred for psychiatric services by the psychologist. The Government submitted that although the applicant had a past history of being suicidal, there was no record that he had attempted suicide during the period he was detained in Division 6. The report prepared by the senior psychologist in prison (dated 27 April 2015) noted that the applicant attended his sessions regularly and was making progress. It noted that he felt guilty for not having made amends with his mother before her death (a few months earlier) and that he had deliberately provoked a fight. The report described the applicant as being “edgy and hyper-vigilant but not psychotic”, his sleep was not problematic, his appetite was normal and he was cooperative. He had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, but no other affective disorder was evident. He was put on medication for depression and further followups with the psychologist. He was seen again in a follow-up session with the psychiatrist on 4 May 2015, but on 1 June 2015 he refused a psychiatric review.

In a letter dated 10 July 2014, the applicant alleged that he had not received rehabilitative treatment for his fractures since the prison officials had unilaterally decided to cancel the treatment. According to the Government, on 14 July 2013, prior to being discharged from hospital, the applicant had been seen by a physiotherapist and found fit for discharge. The applicant had also been given three appointments (between July and August 2013) with the ENT department of the hospital in connection with his facial injuries. On 20 July 2013, the applicant had been referred by the prison medical officer to the emergency department of the hospital because of a recurrent swelling of his right ankle. The applicant had at the time already been taking antibiotics and his stitches were intact. On 21 July, 31 July, 28 August, and 30 October 2013, x-rays were taken of the applicant’s right ankle by the orthopaedic department of the hospital. The applicant was also referred to the ophthalmology department on 5 August 2013. Further referrals to hospital were made by the prison medical doctor, but the Government claimed they were unrelated to the injuries suffered as a result of the incident on 12 July 2013. One such referral was made on 13 June 2014. An outpatient service appointment record given to the applicant listed appointments scheduled for 18 November 2014 and 6 February 2014 at the medical outpatients’ clinic, which the applicant also attended. It is recorded that the applicant refused to attend an appointment scheduled for 12 June 2015.

In a subsequent letter dated 11 May 2015 (at a time when he was held in Division 3) the applicant explained that his cell window was positioned at a height of two metres and was therefore very difficult to open. It was also small and had three different bands of metal shutters, which hampered the entry of natural light. He claimed that his cell had lacked good ventilation – although there were two vents, one of them had been blocked. He alleged that the parts of the ceiling were falling apart and that white and yellow dust caused him to experience breathing problems, since he was an asthma sufferer. The applicant also alleged that the water was not drinkable and that he had therefore had to buy water with the little money that he earned. He claimed that foreign inmates were treated differently from the Maltese inmates since the former had to wait longer to have their petitions decided.

The Government submitted that at the time when this letter was written, the applicant was accommodated in cell 154 in Division 3.

The Government submitted that inmates were responsible for the upkeep of their cells. For this purpose, the materials needed to carry out basic repair work in the cells were provided free of charge. If an inmate required assistance for more specialised work, the Trade Section personnel would carry out the work necessary to keep the cell in good condition. The Government submitted pictures dated 2016 showing that the ceiling in cell 154 was in good condition and that the current resident was carrying out some works and removing paint from the ceiling, exposing the stone underneath.

The Government submitted that all the cells were equipped with running water which was fit for human consumption. According to certification dated 2015 that has been submitted to the Court, water in the prison (no specific location was indicated in the reports) had been certified by the Public Health Laboratory as being fit for consumption, although the mains supply and the other Divisions (including no. 3) had been recorded as having a chloride content which exceeded the recommended parameter value indicated in the relevant law. The Government submitted that the water was tested and certified approximately every six months. In addition to the availability of running potable tap water, the inmates were allowed to purchase bottled water from the residents’ tuck-shop.

In 2013, the applicant received EUR 27.95 every four weeks in socalled “Gratuity” money and EUR 46.90 every four weeks for work carried out assembling dolls. Between January 2013 and April 2016 the applicant received EUR 3,526.95 in total. A six-pack of water at the tuckshop cost EUR 2.24 or an individual bottle EUR 0.38. Government submitted that all inmates received equal treatment irrespective of the State of their origin.

In a letter dated 5 August 2015, the applicant alleged that the prison authorities had refused to forward his letters to the Court in order to dissuade him from pursuing his case before it. He was therefore corresponding with the Court through another address.

From the records of the correspondence sent by the applicant held at the prison authorities and submitted by the Government, it is apparent that the applicant sent registered letters to the Court on 12 February, 1 April and 3 June 2014 and an unregistered letter on 6 May 2015. No further requests were made by the applicant to send any communication to the Court, although letters were sent by the applicant to other addresses on 3 September, 22 September and 7 October 2015, and on 4 February and 6 March 2016.


CASE OF POCASOVSCHI AND MIHAILA v. THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA AND RUSSIA

Inadmissible (Art. 35) Admissibility criteria;(Art. 35-1) Six-month period (Russia);Preliminary objection joined to merits and dismissed (Art. 34) Individual applications;(Art. 34) Victim (the Republic of Moldova);Remainder inadmissible (Art. 35) Admissibility criteria;(Art. 35-3-a) Manifestly ill-founded (the Republic of Moldova);Violation of Article 3 - Prohibition of torture (Article 3 - Inhuman treatment) (Substantive aspect) (the Republic of Moldova);Violation of Article 13+3 - Right to an effective remedy (Article 13 - Effective remedy) (Article 3 - Degrading treatment;Inhuman treatment;Prohibition of torture) (the Republic of Moldova);No violation of Article 13+3 - Right to an effective remedy (Article 13 - Effective remedy) (Article 3 - Degrading treatment;Inhuman treatment;Prohibition of torture) (the Republic of Moldova);No violation of Article 13+3 - Right to an effective remedy (Article 13 - Effective remedy) (Article 3 - Prohibition of torture;Effective investigation;Positive obligations) (the Republic of Moldova);Non-pecuniary damage - award (Article 41 - Non-pecuniary damage;Just satisfaction) (the Republic of Moldova)

Dmitry Dedov;Ledi Bianku;Nebojša Vučinić;Paul Lemmens;Robert Spano

The applicants were born in 1975 and 1976 and live in Cahul and Cetireni respectively.

The facts of the case, as submitted by the parties, may be summarised as follows.

The applicants were convicted by Moldovan courts and, at the time of the events, were serving their sentences in prison no. 8 situated in the town of Tighina (Bender), in the Transdniestrian region of the Republic of Moldova. The town is situated in the security zone under the control of peacekeepers from Moldova, Russia and the self-proclaimed “Moldavian Republic of Transdniestria” (“MRT”). Prison no. 8 is under the exclusive control of the Moldovan authorities. By October 2003 some 236 people were detained there; some of them, such as the applicants, were ill with tuberculosis.

On 23 September 2002 the Bender local administration, which is subordinated to the “MRT” authorities, disconnected prison no. 8 from the electricity, water and heating supplies. As a result, the detainees were deprived of conditions of basic hygiene, and the food they received did not meet the minimum standards of quality.

The prison authorities informed the Moldovan Ministry of Justice, the President’s Office, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Red Cross and the Council of Europe, as well as local human rights organisations, with a view to obtaining assistance in resolving the problem arising from the disconnection from the town’s utilities network.

On 12 August 2003 the Bender prosecutor’s office (which forms part of the official Moldovan authorities) informed the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Moldova (“the CHDOM”), for which the applicant’s representative worked, that, as a result of pressure from the OSCE, the Bender authorities had reconnected the prison to the electricity and water supply systems on 23 February 2003. On 10 July 2003 the last of the people who were ill with tuberculosis were transferred to a newly-built hospital wing in Pruncul prison hospital, situated in Moldova. According to the head of prison no. 8, some 236 healthy detainees, including the applicants, remained in the prison after that date. However, also on 10 July 2003, the local authorities disconnected prison no. 8 from the electricity and water supply systems again, without any warning. The “MRT” authorities insisted that the prison needed to be closed down.

On 15 September 2004 Mr Pocasovschi (the first applicant) was transferred to another prison. He was released on parole on 14 April 2005. Mr Mihăilă (the second applicant) was transferred to another prison on 1 March 2004 and was released on parole on 28 March 2005.

On 21 July 2003 the applicants’ representatives asked the Moldovan Prosecutor General’s Office to initiate criminal proceedings against those responsible for disconnecting prison no. 8 from the utilities systems. On 12 August 2003 the Bender prosecutor’s office replied in general terms, describing the difficult situation with regard to prison no. 8 and the unsuccessful negotiations with the local authorities.

On 29 August 2003 the CHDOM asked the Bender District Court (which is part of the Moldovan court system) to order the prosecutor’s office to remedy the human rights violations taking place in prison no. 8.

On 7 October 2003 the head of prison no. 8 informed the court that, owing to insufficient access to water and electricity, detainees in his institution could not receive appropriate medical assistance or food of a sufficient standard, or maintain proper hygiene.

On 31 October 2003 the Bender District Court ordered the prosecutor’s office to initiate criminal proceedings against those responsible for disconnecting prison no. 8 from the utilities supply. That decision was upheld by the Bender Court of Appeal on 18 December 2003.

According to the Moldovan Government, on 18 November 2003 the Bender prosecutor’s office contacted the “MRT” authorities with a view to prosecuting those responsible for disconnecting prison no. 8 from the utilities. It also informed the Joint Control Commission (see Ilaşcu and Others v. Moldova and Russia ([GC], no. 48787/99, § 90, ECHR 2004VII) of the need to include the subject on its agenda. On 20 December 2003 the “MRT” prosecutor’s office refused to open a criminal investigation on the ground that no crime had been committed.

On 19 January 2004 the relatives of two of the detainees made another complaint to the CHDOM regarding the inhuman conditions of detention in prison no. 8. That letter was forwarded to the Moldovan Ministry of Justice, the President of the Republic of Moldova and the Prosecutor General’s Office, along with a request to take all necessary steps to immediately improve the conditions of detention.

On 1 March 2004 the CHDOM asked the Bender prosecutor’s office what action had been taken pursuant to the above-mentioned court decisions. On 12 March 2004 the Bender prosecutor’s office replied that all the material was at the Prosecutor General’s Office, which was dealing with the case.

On 15 March 2004 the Ministry of Justice informed the CHDOM that the State was making all necessary efforts to ensure acceptable conditions of detention at prison no. 8, and that, at that time, the conditions of detention at that prison did not differ from those at other prisons in the Republic of Moldova.

On 20 April 2004 the Prosecutor General’s Office informed the CHDOM that it had lodged an extraordinary appeal with the Supreme Court of Justice against the decisions of 31 October 2003 and 18 December 2003. On 3 August 2004 the Supreme Court of Justice upheld those decisions.

On 1 June 2009 the CHDOM asked the Prosecutor General’s Office what actions had been undertaken after the judgment of the Supreme Court of Justice of 3 August 2004. On 14 July 2009 the Bender Prosecutor’s Office replied that the actions of the “MRT” authorities could not be investigated by the Moldovan authorities as long as the “MRT” authorities de facto controlled the territory of the “MRT”.

On 15 March 2004, on behalf of 141 detainees in prison no. 8, including the applicants, the CHDOM lodged a civil action against the Ministry of Justice, asking for the finding of a violation of the rights guaranteed under Article 3 of the Convention. The detainees had authorised the organisation to act on their behalf. The CHDOM also asked for an improvement in the conditions of detention and for the payment of compensation in the amount of 15,000 Moldovan lei (MDL – approximately 1,000 euros (EUR) at the time) for each detainee.

On 16 and 22 April 2004 the President of the Bender District Court asked the Supreme Court of Justice to decide whether the case should be examined by another court. On 19 May 2004 the Supreme Court of Justice rejected the request and left the case with the Bender District Court.

On 18 June 2004 the Bender District Court decided to transfer the case to the Buiucani District Court in Chişinău, in accordance with territorial competence principles. The claimants (the detainees) and their representatives were not consulted. On 22 June 2004 the CHDOM challenged that decision. On 14 July 2004 the Bender Court of Appeal set aside the decision of 18 June 2004 and ordered the urgent examination of the case by the Bender District Court.

On 28 December 2004 the Bender District Court declined to examine the claim because it did not satisfy legal requirements. On 1 February 2005 the Bender Court of Appeal set aside that decision.

After February 2005 many of the 141 detainees who were plaintiffs in the above-mentioned civil action were transferred to other prisons in various parts of the country, which made it more difficult for the CHDOM to obtain confirmation of each individual’s power of attorney, as requested by the Bender District Court. In such circumstances, the CHDOM selected nine cases (including those of the applicants in the present case) with which to continue the proceedings. Since the individuals concerned were also detained in separate prisons, the CHDOM made an application for their cases to be examined separately, an application which the Bender District Court refused on 11 November 2005.

On 26 April 2006 the Bender District Court rejected the CHDOM’s application to summon as defendants the individuals from the relevant local “MRT” authorities in Bender responsible for violating the detainees’ rights. On an unknown date in June 2006 the Bender Court of Appeal set aside that decision and ordered the summoning as defendants of A.P., A.M. and V.M., the heads of the relevant local “MRT” authorities in Bender. According to the applicants, none of these individuals was summoned by the Bender District Court.

On 15 December 2006 the judge who had been examining the case withdrew from it. On 18 May 2007 the judge who had taken over the case also withdrew from it. Subsequently, all other judges of the Bender District Court withdrew, allegedly for fear of persecution by the “MRT” authorities. As a result, the Bender Court of Appeal was asked to decide which other court could examine the case. On 13 November 2007 the Bender Court of Appeal decided that the case should be examined by the Anenii-Noi District Court.

On 26 December 2007 the Anenii-Noi District Court declined to examine the claim because it did not fulfil certain legal requirements. It found in particular that there was a lack of valid powers of attorney in favour of the CHDOM.

On 6 March 2008 the CHDOM lodged a reformulated court action in accordance with the legal requirements. It also asked for the Russian Government to be summoned as a defendant in the case, as it had de facto control over the territory of the “MRT”. It claimed EUR 10,000 and EUR 7,000 respectively for the breach of the applicants’ rights. On the same date the Anenii-Noi District Court declined to examine the claim because the powers of attorney issued by the detainees in favour of the CHDOM had expired.

On 20 May 2008 the Bender Court of Appeal set aside the decision of 6 March 2008, noting that, in the applicants’ cases, the powers of attorney had been renewed.

On 18 June 2008 the Anenii-Noi District Court adjourned the hearing because of the absence of a representative of the Ministry of Justice. The same thing occurred on 29 October 2008. The court also informed the CHDOM that, in a letter dated 2 July 2007, the Ministry of Justice had informed the court that a representative of the Russian Federation could only be summoned via the Ministry of Justice.

On 30 December 2008 the Anenii-Noi District Court adopted a judgment in which it allowed the applicants’ claims in part. It awarded each of them damages in the amount of EUR 200, to be paid by the Moldovan Ministry of Finance, and EUR 500, to be paid by the Russian Ministry of Finance.

On 30 June 2009 the Bender Court of Appeal quashed that judgment in part. It found that, following the prison’s disconnection from the utilities, the prison administration had no longer been able to offer food or medical treatment for tuberculosis which was of an adequate quality; there had been no access to showers, a very poor situation concerning personal hygiene, and only two hours of electricity per day, ensured by a low-power generator. None of the complaints made to the State authorities had resulted in an improvement in the conditions of detention until much later, as established in 2008. The court acknowledged a breach of the applicants’ right not to be held in inhuman conditions of detention, and increased the award in favour of each of them to MDL 20,000 (EUR 1,266 at the time). It also found that the Russian Federation could not be a defendant in Moldovan courts unless it expressly agreed to that, which was not the case here.

On 27 April 2010 the Supreme Court of Justice accepted the applicants’ appeal on points of law in part, and amended the judgment of the lower court. It analysed in detail the length of the civil proceedings (between 22 March 2004 and the date of adopting its own judgment on 27 April 2010), the complexity of the case, how the parties and the courts had contributed to the length of the proceedings, as well as the significant interest at stake for the applicants. The court found that, despite the applicants’ representatives’ actions contributing to the overall length of the proceedings (twenty-six out of the sixty-seven months), a breach of the right to a trial within a reasonable time had taken place, requiring additional compensation which it set at MDL 6,000 (approximately EUR 358 at the time). It did not amend the remainder of the lower court’s judgment.

The Moldovan Government submitted a long list of actions concerning their efforts to assert their sovereignty over the “MRT” territory and ensure that human rights were observed in the region. They also submitted copies of documents concerning prison no. 8 in Tighina/Bender specifically, raising in particular the issue of the prison being disconnected from utilities within the framework of the “5+2” negotiations process (between the OSCE, Russia, Ukraine, the European Union and the USA, in addition to Moldova and the “MRT”) and with various international organisations.


CASE OF GRANDE STEVENS AND OTHERS v. ITALY

Violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6 - Criminal proceedings;Article 6-1 - Public hearing);No violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6-3 - Rights of defence;Article 6-3-a - Information on nature and cause of accusation);No violation of Article 6 - Right to a fair trial (Article 6-3 - Rights of defence;Article 6-3-c - Defence in person;Defence through legal assistance);No violation of Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 - Protection of property (Article 1 para. 1 of Protocol No. 1 - Deprivation of property);Violation of Article 4 of Protocol No. 7 - Right not to be tried or punished twice-{general} (Article 4 of Protocol No. 7 - Right not to be tried or punished twice);Respondent State to take individual measures (Article 46 - Individual measures;Article 46-2 - Execution of judgment);Pecuniary damage - claim dismissed;Non-pecuniary damage - award

András Sajó;Guido Raimondi;Helen Keller;Paulo Pinto De Albuquerque;Peer Lorenzen

A list of the applicant parties is appended.

At the relevant time Mr Gianluigi Gabetti was the chairman of the two applicant companies and Mr Virgilio Marrone was the authorised representative (procuratore) of the applicant company Giovanni Agnelli & C. s.a.a.

On 26 July 2002 the public limited company FIAT (Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino) signed a financing agreement (prestito convertendo) with eight banks. That contract was due to expire on 20 September 2005 and stipulated that, should FIAT fail to reimburse the loan, the banks could offset their claim by subscribing to an increase in the company’s capital. Thus, the banks would have obtained 28% of FIAT’s share capital, while the holdings of the public limited company IFIL Investments (which subsequently, on 20 February 2009, became Exor s.p.a., the name by which it will be referred to hereafter) would have decreased from 30.06% to about 22%.

Mr Gabetti wished to obtain legal advice on the best way to ensure that Exor remained the controlling shareholder in FIAT, and to this end he contacted a lawyer specialising in company law, Mr Grande Stevens. He considered that one possibility would be to renegotiate an equity swap (that is, a contract allowing a share’s performance to be exchanged against an interest rate, without having to advance money), dated 26 April 2005 and based on approximately 90 million FIAT shares, concluded by Exor with an English merchant bank, Merrill Lynch International Ltd, which was due to expire on 26 December 2006. In Mr Grande Stevens’s opinion, this would be one way to prevent the launch of a takeover bid with regard to the FIAT shares.

Without mentioning Merrill Lynch International Ltd for fear of breaching his duty of confidentiality, on 12 August 2005 Mr Grande Stevens asked the National Companies and Stock Exchange Commission (Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa – “the CONSOB”, which in the Italian legal system, has the task, inter alia, of protecting investors and ensuring the transparency and development of the stock markets) whether, in the scenario he envisaged, a takeover bid could be avoided. At the same time Mr Grande Stevens began making enquires with Merrill Lynch International Ltd about the possibility of amending the equity swap contract.

On 23 August 2005 the CONSOB asked Exor and Giovanni Agnelli to issue a press release providing information on any initiative taken in the light of the forthcoming expiry of the financing agreement with the banks, any new fact concerning FIAT and anything that might explain the market fluctuations in FIAT shares.

Mr Marrone alleges that he was on leave on that date. He had informed Mr Grande Stevens of the CONSOB’s request and had sent him a copy of it. Mr Marrone submits that he was not involved in drafting the press releases described in paragraphs 13 and 14 below.

Mr Gabetti submits that on 23 August 2005 he was in hospital in the United States. He had received a draft press release and had contacted Mr Grande Stevens by telephone; the lawyer had confirmed to him that, given the significant number of elements that remained uncertain, renegotiation of the equity swap contract could not be considered as a relevant and currently available option. In those circumstances, Mr Gabetti approved the draft press release.

The press release issued in response [to the CONSOB’s query], approved by Mr Grande Stevens, merely indicated that Exor had “neither instituted nor examined initiatives with regard to the expiry of the financing contract” and that it wished “to remain FIAT’s reference shareholder”. No mention was made of the possible renegotiation of the equity swap contract with Merrill Lynch International Ltd, which, in the absence of a clear factual and legal basis, the applicants considered merely as one possible future scenario.

The Giovanni Agnelli Company confirmed Exor’s press release.

From 30 August to 15 September 2005 Mr Grande Stevens continued his negotiations with Merrill Lynch International Ltd, exploring the options for amending the equity swap contract.

On 14 September 2005, in the course of an Agnelli family meeting, it was decided that the draft text being studied by Mr Grande Stevens ought to be submitted for approval by the Exor board of management. On the same day, the CONSOB received a copy of the equity swap contract and was informed of the negotiations under way with a view to using that contract to enable Exor to acquire FIAT shares.

On 15 September 2005, in execution of the decisions taken by their respective boards of management, Exor and Merrill Lynch International Ltd concluded the agreement on amending the equity swap contract.

On 17 September 2005, in response to the question posed to it by Mr Grande Stevens on 12 August 2005 (see paragraph 9 above), the CONSOB indicated that, in the scenario envisaged, there was no obligation to launch a takeover bid.

On 20 September 2005 FIAT increased its share capital; the new shares were acquired by the eight banks in compensation for the sums owed to them. On the same date the agreement amending the equity swap contract took effect. In consequence, Exor continued to hold a 30% stake in FIAT.

On 20 February 2006 the CONSOB’s Markets and Economic Opinions Division – Insider Trading Office (Divisione mercati e consulenza economica – ufficio Insider Trading – hereafter the “IT Office”) accused the applicants of breaching Article 187 ter § 1 of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 24 February 1998. That article, entitled “Market Manipulation”, provides:

“Without prejudice to criminal penalties where the conduct amounts to an offence, any person who, through means of information, including Internet or any other means, disseminates false or misleading information, news or rumours of a kind to provide false or misleading indications concerning financial instruments shall be liable to an administrative penalty ranging from 20,000 to 5,000,000 euros (EUR).”

According to the IT Office, the agreement to amend the equity swap had been concluded or was in the process of being concluded before the press releases of 24 August 2005 were issued, and accordingly it was abnormal that they had contained no mention of it. The applicants were invited to submit their defence.

The IT Office then transmitted the file to the CONSOB’s Administrative Sanctions Directorate (ufficio sanzioni amministrative – hereafter, “the Directorate”), accompanied by a report (relazione istruttoria) dated 13 September 2006, which set out the evidence against the accused and their arguments in reply. According to that report, the arguments submitted in their defence by the applicants were not such as to enable the file to be closed.

The Directorate communicated this report to the applicants and invited them to submit in writing, within a thirty-day period that would expire on 23 October 2006, those arguments that they considered necessary for their defence. In the meantime, the IT Office continued to examine the applicants’ case, by obtaining oral statements and analysing the documents received on 7 July 2006 from Merrill Lynch International Ltd. On 19 October 2006 it transmitted a “supplementary note” to the Directorate in which it stated that the new documents examined by it were not such as to alter its conclusions. On 26 October 2006 the applicants received a copy of the supplementary note of 19 October 2006 and its appendices; they were given a further thirty-day deadline within which to submit any comments.

Without communicating it to the applicants, the Directorate presented its report (dated 19 January 2007 and containing its conclusions) to the Commission – the CONSOB proper –, that is, to the body responsible for deciding on possible penalties. At the relevant time the Commission was made up of a chairman and four members, appointed by the President of the Republic on a proposal (su proposta) from the President of the Council of Ministers. Their term of office was for five years and could be renewed only once.

By resolution no. 15760 of 9 February 2007, the CONSOB imposed the following administrative fines on the applicants:

EUR 5,000,000 in respect of Mr Gabetti,

EUR 3,000,000 in respect of Mr Grande Stevens,

EUR 500,000 in respect of Mr Marrone,

EUR 4,500,000 in respect of the company Exor,

EUR 3,000,000 in respect of the company Giovanni Agnelli.

Mr Gabetti, Mr Grande Stevens and Mr Marrone were banned from administering, managing or supervising listed companies for periods of six, four and two months respectively.

The CONSOB held, in particular, that the file showed that on 24 August 2005, date of the impugned press releases, the plans to maintain a 30% stake in FIAT’s capital on the basis of renegotiation of the equity swap contract with Merrill Lynch International Ltd had already been studied and were being put in place. It followed that the press releases falsely represented (rappresentazione falsa) the situation at the time. The CONSOB also emphasised the positions held by the persons concerned, the “objective gravity” of the offence and the existence of malicious intent.

The applicants applied to the Turin Court of Appeal seeking to have these penalties set aside. They alleged, inter alia, that the CONSOB’s rules were illegal, since, contrary to the requirements of Article 187 septies of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 (see paragraph 57 below), they did not comply with the principle of an adversarial examination of the case.

Mr Grande Stevens further noted that the CONSOB had accused and punished him for being involved in publication of the press release of 24 August 2005 as the executive director of Exor. Before the CONSOB, he had argued unsuccessfully that he did not have that role and that he was merely a lawyer and consultant for the Agnelli group. Before the appeal court, Mr Grande Stevens maintained that, since he was not an executive director, he could not have taken part in the decision to publish the impugned press release. In pleadings of 25 September 2007, Mr Grande Stevens requested that, should the appeal court consider the documents placed in the case file to be insufficient or unusable, it summon witnesses for questioning “on the facts set out in the above-mentioned documents”. He did not indicate clearly in those pleadings either the names of those witnesses or the circumstances in respect of which they were to give evidence. In pleadings of the same date, Mr Marrone named two witnesses whose statements would prove that he had not taken part in drafting the press releases, and stated that the appeal court could, if necessary (ove occorresse), question them.

In judgments deposited with the registry on 23 January 2008, the Turin Court of Appeal reduced the administrative fines imposed by the CONSOB in respect of certain of the applicants, as follows:

- EUR 600,000 in respect of Giovanni Agnelli s.a.a.;

- EUR 1,000,000 in respect of Exor s.p.a.;

- EUR 1,200,000 in respect of Mr Gabetti.

The heading of the judgments delivered in respect of Mr Gabetti, Mr Marrone and Exor S.p.a. indicated that the court of appeal had met in private (riunita in camera di consiglio). The “procedure” part of the judgments issued in respect of Mr Grande Stevens and Giovanni Agnelli & C. S.a.s. mentioned that the parties had been summoned to the deliberations (disposta la comparizione delle parti in camera di consiglio).

The length of the ban on assuming responsibility for the administration, management or supervision of companies listed on the stock exchange was reduced from six to four months in respect of Mr Gabetti.

The court of appeal dismissed the applicants’ other complaints in their entirety. It noted, inter alia, that even after the file had been transmitted to the Directorate, the IT Office had been entitled to continue its investigative activities, as the 210-day deadline provided for the CONSOB’s deliberations had not been binding. Furthermore, the adversarial principle was complied with if, as in the present case, those charged had been informed of the new evidence obtained by the IT Office and had had an opportunity to submit their replies.

The court of appeal also noted that it was true that the CONSOB had both imposed the penalties provided for by Article 187 ter of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 and reported the case to the prosecuting authorities, alleging that the criminal offence described in Article 185 § 1 of the same decree had been committed. Under the terms of this provision,

“Anyone who disseminates false information, carries out simulated transactions or uses other ploys (artifizi) which are objectively capable of triggering a significant change in the value of financial instruments shall be punishable by between one and six years’ imprisonment and a fine of 20,000 to 5,000,000 euros.”

According to the court of appeal, those two provisions had as their subject-matter the same conduct (the “dissemination of false information”) and pursued the same aim (to prevent market manipulation), but differed with regard to the situation of risk alleged to have been generated by this conduct: in respect of Article 187 ter, it was sufficient in itself to have given false or misleading indications concerning financial instruments, while Article 185 further required that that information had been such as to trigger a significant change in the price of the instruments in question. As the Constitutional Court had indicated in its order no. 409 of 12 November 1991, it was open to the legislature to punish illegal conduct both by a pecuniary administrative sanction and by criminal penalties. In addition, Article 14 of Directive 2003/6/EC (see paragraph 60 below), which invited the member States of the European Union to apply administrative sanctions against persons responsible for manipulating the market, contained in turn the phrase “without prejudice to the right of Member States to impose criminal sanctions”.

On the merits, the court of appeal observed that it was clear from the case file that the renegotiation of the equity swap had been examined in minute detail at the relevant date and that the conclusion reached by the CONSOB (namely, that this plan already existed one month prior to 24 August 2005) had been reasonable in the light of the established facts and the conduct of the persons concerned.

As to Mr Grande Stevens, it was true that he was not an executive director of Exor s.p.a. Nonetheless, the administrative offence punishable under Article 187 ter of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 could be committed by “anyone”, and therefore by a person in any capacity whatsoever; Mr Grande Stevens had indeed participated in the decision-making process which had led to publication of the press release in his capacity as a lawyer consulted by the applicant companies.

The applicants appealed on points of law. In the third and fourth grounds of their points of appeal, they alleged, inter alia, that there had been a breach of the principles of a fair hearing, enshrined in Article 111 of the Constitution, because, in particular: the investigative phase of the CONSOB proceedings had not been adversarial in nature; there had been a failure to transmit the Directorate’s report to the accused; in the applicants’ view, it had been impossible to file pleadings with or be heard in person by the Commission; the IT Office had continued its investigation and transmitted a supplementary note after expiry of the time-limit set for that purpose.

By judgments of 23 June 2009, the text of which was deposited with the registry on 30 September 2009, the Court of Cassation dismissed their appeals on points of law. It considered, in particular, that the principle of an adversarial examination of the case had been complied with in the proceedings before the CONSOB, noting that the latter had indicated to the applicants the acts with which they were charged and taken account of their respective defence submissions. The fact that the applicants had not been questioned and that they had not received the Directorate’s conclusions had not been in breach of that principle, since the constitutional provisions regarding a fair hearing and the right of defence were applicable only to judicial proceedings, and not to proceedings to impose administrative sanctions.

Under Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998, the applicants’ impugned conduct could be the subject-matter not only of an administrative sanction, imposed by the CONSOB, but also of the criminal penalties provided for in Article 185 § 1, cited in paragraph 33 above.

On 7 November 2008 the applicants were committed for trial before the Turin District Court. They were accused of having stated, in the press releases of 24 August 2005, that Exor wished to remain FIAT’s reference shareholder and that it had neither initiated nor examined initiatives with regard to the expiry of the financing contract, although the agreement amending the equity swap had already been examined and concluded, information that had been withheld in order to avoid a probable fall in the FIAT share price.

CONSOB applied to be joined to the proceedings as a civil party, a possibility open to it under Article 187 undecies of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998.

After 30 September 2009, the date on which the judgment dismissing the applicants’ appeal on points of law against the penalties imposed by the CONSOB was deposited with the registry (see paragraph 38 above), the applicants requested that the criminal proceedings against them be discontinued, by virtue of the non bis in idem rule. In particular, at the hearing of 7 January 2010, they argued that the relevant provisions of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 and Article 649 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (“the CCP” - see paragraph 59 below) were unconstitutional, on account of their alleged incompatibility with Article 4 of Protocol No. 7.

The representative of the prosecuting authorities opposed this objection, alleging that “double proceedings” (administrative and criminal) were imposed by Article 14 of Directive 2003/6/EC of 28 January 2003 (see paragraph 60 below), which the Italian legislature had transposed by enacting Articles 185 and 187ter of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998.

The Turin District Court did not immediately rule on the ancillary question of constitutionality raised by the defence. It ordered an expert report describing the fluctuations in FIAT shares between December 2004 and April 2005 and evaluating the effects of the press releases of 24 August 2005 and the information made public on 15 September 2005.

By a judgment of 21 December 2010, the text of which was deposited with the registry on 18 March 2011, the Turin District Court acquitted Mr Marrone on the ground that he had not been involved in the publication of the press releases, and also acquitted the other applicants on the ground that it had not been proven that their conduct had been such as to trigger a significant change in the financial markets. It noted that the fact that the press releases contained false information had already been punished by the administrative body. In the court’s view, the applicants’ impugned conduct had, probably, been aimed at concealing the renegotiation of the equity swap contract from the CONSOB, and not at increasing FIAT’s share price.

The court held that the ancillary question of constitutionality raised by the applicants was manifestly ill-founded. It noted that Italian law (section 9 of Law no. 689 of 1981) prohibited “double proceedings” (doppio giudizio), criminal and administrative, in respect of the “same act”. However, Articles 185 and 187 ter of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 did not punish the same act: only the criminal provision (Article 185) required that the conduct be such as to cause a significant change in the value of financial instruments (it referred to judgment no. 15199 of the Court of Cassation (Sixth Section), of 16 March 2006). In addition, application of the criminal provision required the existence of malicious intent, while the administrative provision was applicable as soon as culpable conduct was established. Moreover, the criminal proceedings which had followed the imposition of the financial penalty provided for by Article 187 ter of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998 were authorised by Article 14 of Directive 2003/6/EC.

As to the case-law of the Court cited by the applicants (Gradinger v. Austria (23 October 1995, Series A no. 328-C), Sergey Zolotukhin v. Russia [GC], no. 14939/03, ECHR 2009), Maresti v. Croatia (no. 55759/07, 25 June 2009) and Ruotsalainen v. Finland (no. 13079/03, 16 June 2009)), it was not relevant to this case, since it concerned cases where a single act had been punished by criminal and administrative penalties and where the latter had a punitive element and could include a custodial sentence or (as in the Ruotsalainen case) were for a sum higher than the criminal fine.

The public prosecutor’s office appealed on points of law, alleging that the offence with which the applicants had been charged was one “of danger” (reato di pericolo) and not “of damage” (reato di danno). It could therefore be committed even in the absence of damage having been sustained by the shareholders.

On 20 June 2012 the Court of Cassation allowed in part the prosecuting authorities’ appeal on points of law and quashed the acquittal of the companies Giovanni Agnelli and Exor, and those of Mr Grande Stevens and Mr Gabetti. However, it upheld the acquittal of Mr Marrone, given that he had not taken part in the impugned conduct.

By a judgment of 28 February 2013, the Turin Court of Appeal convicted Mr Gabetti and Mr Grande Stevens of the offence set out in Article 185 § 1 of Legislative Decree no. 58 of 1998, considering it highly probable that, had the false information included in the press release of 24 August 2005 not been issued, the value of FIAT’s shares would have fallen much more sharply. However, it acquitted the companies Exor and Giovanni Agnelli, holding that no criminal acts could be imputed to them.

The court of appeal held that there was no appearance of a violation of the ne bis in idem principle, thus endorsing the main thrust of the Turin District Court’s reasoning.

According to the information provided by the Government on 7 June 2013, Mr Gabetti and Mr Grande Stevens appealed on points of law against that judgment, and the proceedings were still pending at that date. In their appeals, these two applicants relied on a violation of the ne bis in idem principle and asked that an ancillary question of constitutionality be raised in respect of Article 649 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.


No violation of Article 3 - Prohibition of torture (Article 3 - Degrading treatment) (Substantive aspect);Violation of Article 13 - Right to an effective remedy (Article 13 - Effective remedy)

Branko Lubarda;Dmitry Dedov;George Nicolaou;Helen Keller;Helena Jäderblom;Johannes Silvis;Luis López Guerra

The applicant was born in 1964 and, until his arrest, lived in St Petersburg.

On 26 June 2010 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of aggravated kidnapping and extortion committed within an organised criminal group and with the use of firearms. He remained in detention throughout the investigation and trial.

On 22 June 2012 the Leningrad Regional Court found the applicant guilty as charged and sentenced him to nine years’ imprisonment in a high-security correctional colony.

The Supreme Court of Russia upheld the sentence on appeal on 8 November 2012.

The parties provided the Court with extensive medical evidence, including the applicant’s clinical records, medical certificates, expert reports, and opinions by various medical specialists.

The evidence shows that the applicant had a long history of heart and kidney diseases. In 2007 he suffered a stroke, closed craniocerebral injury and cerebral contusion. The following year he suffered a myocardial infarction and was admitted to a hospital for in-patient treatment. A medical examination carried out by the hospital revealed a deterioration in the functioning of his kidney. He was prescribed a basic drug regimen, which was supervised by a cardiologist and a nephrologist. Upon discharge from the hospital, his state of health was considered satisfactory.

After the applicant’s arrest he was taken to a temporary detention centre in the town of Vsevolzhk, and six days later, on 2 July 2010, to temporary detention facility no. IZ-47/1 in St Petersburg (“facility no. IZ47/1”). On admission to the detention facility, the applicant underwent a general medical check-up performed by the prison doctor, who concluded that he was “somatically healthy”. Eleven days later he underwent an electrocardiogram, which revealed hypertrophy of the left ventricle of his heart and myocardium insufficiency. The prison doctor recommended in-patient care.

On 16 July 2010 the applicant was transferred from the detention facility to hospital no. 2 of medical ward no. 78 of the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences (“prison hospital no. 2”). An electrocardiogram and blood and urine tests were performed in the hospital, leading to diagnosis of third-stage hypertension, third-stage arterial hypertension, coronary disease, firstdegree angina pectoris, sclerotic kidney, fourth-stage chronic kidney disease, and chronic renal insufficiency of the second degree. He was prescribed drug therapy comprising enalapril, aspirin, spironolactone and other medication.

On the day following his admission to the hospital, the applicant made a written refusal to receive injections of hypotensive medication, arguing that they could lead to a sharp drop in his blood pressure.

The applicant’s clinical records show that he received drug treatment for hypertension in the hospital. His blood pressure and body temperature were regularly monitored.

On 13 August 2010 the applicant was discharged from the hospital and transferred to facility no. IZ-47/1. The discharge certificate indicated that his treatment had not produced the expected results, with the applicant’s arterial blood pressure remaining at a high level. It recommended a consultation with a cardiologist and a nephrologist in order to adjust his treatment.

Two months later, on 13 October 2010, the applicant was taken to hospital no. 1 of medical ward no. 78 of the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences (“prison hospital no. 1”), where he was examined by several doctors, including a cardiologist and a nephrologist. He underwent several medical examinations, which revealed that his angina pectoris had progressed to the third stage. He was also diagnosed with firstdegree encephalopathy of mixed genesis. His antihypertensive drugs regimen was adjusted accordingly. The doctors recommended regular monitoring of his blood pressure, creatinine and urea levels. The applicant was certified as having a third-degree disability on 2 December 2010.

In December 2010, the applicant’s wife, anticipating his discharge from the hospital, complained to the head of the Regional Department of the Federal Service for Execution of Sentences in St Petersburg and Leningrad Region and to the Investigative Committee of the Leningrad Region that the applicant’s medical treatment had been inadequate and about his impending transfer from the hospital to a temporary detention facility. On 18 January 2011 the Investigative Committee dismissed the complaint. The complaint to the Regional Department of the Federal Service for Execution of Sentences was also unsuccessful.

On 3 December 2010 the applicant was sent back to facility no. IZ47/1. He was seen by a therapist. His treatment continued as prescribed in the hospital.

On 14 December 2010 an independent cardiologist, Dr F., chosen by the applicant’s wife, issued a report assessing the quality of the applicant’s treatment in detention. He observed that the applicant’s health, and in particular his heart condition, had deteriorated while in detention. He noted that after the arrest the applicant had not been given medication or appropriate dietary nutrition. Serious emotional conditions aggravated by the incarceration had also contributed to the deterioration of his health and increased the risk of a stroke, fatal heart attack or kidney failure. Dr F. recommended dietary nutrition, basic treatment and regular monitoring of the applicant with a view to adjusting his drug therapy if necessary. These and the subsequent recommendations of Dr F. were submitted to the authorities by the applicant’s lawyer or wife and appear to have been included in his medical file.

On 14 January 2011 a prison doctor ordered the applicant’s medical examination. A week later the applicant underwent a biochemical blood test and a urine test. His diagnosis was re-confirmed and the doctor recommended continuing his treatment with hypotensive drugs.

On 21 February 2011 Dr F. prepared a new report pertaining to the quality of the applicant’s treatment. He suggested that the applicant’s hypertension may have become drug-resistant and that a kidney tomography examination with a contrast agent was necessary in order to choose the correct treatment regimen.

A week later the applicant was taken back to prison hospital no. 2. A number of medical examinations and tests revealed that he was also suffering from renal hypoplasia and chronic latent pyelonephritis.

The applicant subsequently acquired an acute respiratory infection and was prescribed treatment for it. This led to a change in his hypertension therapy, primarily by decreasing the dosage and excluding certain drugs. His angina pectoris attacks became worse, and he was transferred to hospital no. 1 where his condition was brought under control. He was given, among other drugs, high dosages of anticoagulants. He was discharged from the hospital on 22 March 2011 on condition that he remained on the prescribed drug regimen and that his blood pressure and creatinine and urea levels were regularly monitored.

From 22 March to 14 April 2011 the applicant was held in facility no. IZ-47/1. The records submitted to the Court do not indicate what drugs or other treatment the applicant received during this period.

In the meantime, in March 2011 Dr F. studied the applicant’s clinical records and recommended that he undergo a coronary angiography examination, as well as haemodialysis to define the correct treatment and to prevent possible progress of his kidney disease.

On 14 April 2011 the applicant was taken back to hospital no. 2 with a view to adjusting his treatment.

Four days later Dr F., an independent nephrologist, Dr G., and the head of the prison hospital examined the applicant in the hospital. They recorded a further deterioration of his heart and kidney functions and suggested that his treatment with anticoagulants might be incorrect given the high risk of heart failure or internal hemorrhage. The doctors recommended that he undergo a coronary angiography examination and a renal tomography or Doppler ultrasound examination.

Another examination of the applicant by Dr F. and an independent cardiologist, Dr M., on 22 April 2011 led to the following opinion: the applicant had received adequate hypotensive therapy, which had nevertheless resulted in the aggravation of his hypercreatinemia. They observed that the coronary disease had started prevailing over the remaining diseases and suggested that the applicant’s therapy should be based on regular treatment with anti-aggregants, nitrates and statins. The doctors stressed that there was a high risk of the applicant’s condition deteriorating and leading to his death as a result of heart failure, a stroke or myocardial infarction, should prison medical personnel fail to perform a coronary angiography examination or surgery.

On 18 May 2011 the applicant was discharged from the hospital and transferred to temporary detention facility no. IZ-47/4 in St Petersburg (“facility no. IZ-47/4”).

On the following day the investigative authorities ordered the applicant’s expert examination. A medical commission was to answer several questions, including whether the applicant’s diseases posed a threat to his life and whether his further detention was compatible with his condition. According to expert report no. 200/K of 27 May 2011, the applicant was suffering from third-degree hypertension, third-stage arterial hypertension, chronic heart insufficiency of the second degree, first-degree chronic venous insufficiency, chronic coronary disease, second-degree angina pectoris, sclerotic kidney, second-stage chronic renal insufficiency, the initial stage of cerebral atherosclerosis, and dyscirculatory encephalopathy of the first degree. The commission stated that those illnesses required constant monitoring and adequate drug therapy. Any breach of his treatment regimen could induce life-threatening complications. The commission nevertheless concluded that the applicant’s condition did not warrant his release from detention.

At the end of May 2011 the applicant wrote a note refusing two injections and intravenous therapy and stating that he had lost trust in the attending medical personnel. On one occasion in June 2011 he refused to take a certain medicine, having noted that he had already taken similar drugs earlier that day.

On 1 July 2011 the applicant was examined by Dr F., who observed that the authorities had failed to give him necessary drugs and that the applicant’s relatives had had to step in and supply the prescribed medication. He nevertheless noted positive changes in his state of health. Dr F. again strongly insisted that the applicant needed to undergo a coronary angiography examination.

The applicant’s wife complained to the Representative of the Russian President in the North-West Federal Circuit of the applicant’s poor treatment in detention. The complaint was to no avail. She also complained to the St Petersburg Ombudsman. On 26 July 2011 the Ombudsman recommended that the applicant’s wife complain before the courts, apply for the applicant’s early release on medical grounds, or complain to the administration of the detention facility.

On 11 and 25 August 2011 Dr F. and a doctor from facility no. IZ47/4 examined the applicant. In their joint report they noted that for a considerable amount of time the applicant had not received even basic vital medication because none had been available in the detention facility. In particular, the applicant did not receive spironolactone, aliskiren, clopidogrel and isosorbide mononitrate. Only the latter drug was substituted with analogous medication. The applicant’s hypertension and coronary disease had deteriorated. The two doctors therefore recommended his admission to hospital.

On 19 September 2011 the applicant was examined by Dr G., who found that his kidney disease had progressed to stage three. The doctor stressed that an angiography examination at that stage of the development of the applicant’s illness posed a risk of irreparable damage to the applicant’s kidneys. However, the risk of heart failure was even higher, and therefore an angiogram was vital.

On 8 October 2011 the applicant was transferred to the Mariinskiy Hospital of St Petersburg for a coronary angiography examination. He underwent a number of tests in the hospital. A coronary angiography examination performed on 8 December 2011 revealed up to 75% arterial stenosis. The discharge certificate of 13 December 2011 prescribed the installation of a coronary stent. The surgery was to be performed in due course.

On 19 December 2011 the applicant was admitted to prison hospital no. 2, where he underwent various medical tests and examinations.

In a report prepared after the applicant’s examination on 20 January 2012, Dr F. and the head of the prison hospital stated that he had not received any statins. The absence of this drug had caused an increase in the applicant’s cholesterol level and deterioration in the lipid metabolism indices. In addition, the doctors observed that the applicant’s renal protective therapy had been insufficient and his blood pressure had not been monitored regularly. As a result, his kidney disease had progressed.

On 26 April 2012 in the course of the criminal proceedings against the applicant, the trial court ordered his expert examination with a view to updating the information about his state of health, particularly in the light of the results of his coronary angiography examination. In a report issued on 29 May 2012 experts confirmed that there was a high risk of heart complications, including lethal ones. They noted that the applicant’s state of health called for vascular surgery, drug treatment and the limitation of stress.

On 16 June 2012 the applicant was discharged from the hospital for a “breach of regimen”, namely his refusal to be examined by two doctors. He continued his treatment as an outpatient.

On 14 December 2012 the applicant was readmitted to prison hospital no. 1.

In January 2013 Dr G. and Dr F. again assessed the quality of the medical treatment provided to the applicant. They concluded that he had received adequate treatment, that he was in need of endovascular surgery and that his impending transfer to a correctional colony would be incompatible with his state of health.

The applicant spent another month in hospital no. 2.

On 18 March 2013 the applicant was sent to a correctional colony in the Mordoviya Republic to serve his sentence.

Meanwhile, on 1 April 2013 the applicant’s wife complained to the Prosecutor General, the Federal Service for the Execution of Sentences, medical ward no. 78 and other authorities of the continuous failure to properly diagnose and treat her husband. She received no response.

On 12 April 2013, after several weeks on the road, the applicant reached correctional colony no. IK-385/5 (“colony no. 385/5”). On admission he was seen by a doctor who confirmed his diagnoses and prescribed clinical blood and urine tests, an electrocardiogram, and examinations by a therapist, a cardiologist and a psychiatrist. Five days later, the applicant was prescribed basic drugs for coronary heart disease and hypertension. On 23 April 2013 he was examined by a psychiatrist, who did not find any acute pathology.

The applicant was admitted to prison hospital no. 21, where he spent the first two weeks of June 2013. He was seen by a doctor and again underwent various medical examinations, including blood and urine tests, electrocardiography and ultrasound tests. His diagnoses were confirmed and dietary nutrition and a specific drug regimen were prescribed.

From 13 August to 27 September 2013 the applicant was admitted to medical ward no. 13 of the correctional colony. A doctor monitored his health and adjusted his treatment regimen.

The applicant spent the entire month of October 2013 in transit between several detention facilities. At that time he contracted acute pharyngitis, which was successfully treated.

On 30 October 2013 the applicant’s health significantly deteriorated and he was admitted to the therapeutic department of medical ward no. 13. Tests revealed that he had kidney stones and a benign liver tumour. The applicant’s drug regimen was amended. His condition was considered to have been stabilised.

The discharge report issued to the applicant upon his discharge from the medical ward on 22 November 2013 indicated that he was to consult a heart surgeon and a nephrologist.

According to the applicant, following his discharge from the ward he was immediately sent to Saransk for the recommended examinations. The journey took over two weeks.

On 6 December 2013 a nephrologist and a heart surgeon examined the applicant and diagnosed him with second-degree chronic renal insufficiency, coronary disease, third-degree angina pectoris and atherosclerosis of the arterial vessels. Symptomatic treatment was prescribed for his kidney disease. A coronary angiography examination was also to be performed. In addition, the neurologist noted that the applicant’s state of health did not require haemodialysis.

On 24 January 2014 the applicant underwent a coronary angiography examination in Saransk Town hospital. It revealed up to 75% arterial stenosis with an unstable atherosclerosis plaque. Doctors authorised and immediately performed an urgent coronary angioplasty and a coronary stent was installed. The surgery was successful.