Communicated on 6 April 2020 Published on 25 May 2020

FIFTH SECTION

Application no. 73944/14 Yuriy Yakovlevich STESHENKO against Ukraine lodged on 19 November 2014

SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE

The application mainly concerns the applicant ’ s alleged ill-treatment by State officials and the domestic investigation into the matter.

On 28 March 2011 the Novomoskovskyy District Court found the applicant guilty of robbery and sentenced him to four years ’ imprisonment. The trial court also replaced the earlier applied undertaking not to abscond by the applicant ’ s detention as a preventive measure pending the entry of the judgment into force. The applicant was placed in the Dnipropetrovsk pre-trial detention centre (SIZO). He was detained there until 24 June 2011, when the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Court of Appeal quashed the above-mentioned judgment, remitted the case to the first-instance court for fresh examination and ordered the applicant ’ s release subject to an undertaking not to abscond.

According to the applicant, during the last four days of his detention (between 21 and 24 June 2011) the SIZO staff subjected him to serious ill-treatment with a view to extorting money from him. More specifically, the applicant alleged that during that entire period he had been made lie with his face down on the floor, with his hands shackled to a table and his legs spread and attached to some pieces of furniture. He had not been provided with any food or water and had had no access to toilet.

On the following day after his release, that is on 25 June 2011, the applicant applied to the Novomoskovskyy District Hospital, where he underwent inpatient medical treatment until 4 July 2011 in respect of multiple wounds on his chest, forearms, wrists and knees, which had become infected. The hospital staff called the local police officer on duty who ordered the applicant ’ s forensic medical expert examination. Such an examination took place on 2 July 2011. The expert documented numerous injuries of the applicant and stated that they might have been inflicted on him at the time and in the circumstances as alleged (see above).

The applicant sent to the Court nine colour photographs of himself showing the injuries in question.

He complained of his ill-treatment both in the framework of his trial (completed by his acquittal on 26 December 2013, which was further upheld on appeal on 13 March 2014) and directly to the prosecution authorities. On 22 May 2014 the Dnipropetrovsk regional prosecutor ’ s office informed the applicant, in reply to his enquiry, that the investigation was ongoing, after the earlier refusals to launch it had been quashed as premature.

There is no information in the case file as it currently stands on any further developments or outcome of the domestic investigation.

QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES

1. Was the applicant subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, in breach of Article 3 of the Convention, during his detention in the Dnipropetrovsk SIZO between 21 and 24 June 2011?

2. Having regard to the procedural protection from torture, inhuman or degrading treatment (see paragraph 131 of Labita v. Italy [GC], no. 26772/95, ECHR 2000-IV), was the investigation in the present case by the domestic authorities in breach of Article 3 of the Convention?

The Government are requested to submit copies of all the documents regarding the applicant ’ s ill-treatment allegation and its domestic investigation.