CEDH · CASELAW;JUDGMENTS;CHAMBER;ENG — 2 juin 2015

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TURKEY   (Application no. 13320/02)   JUDGMENT         STRASBOURG         2 June 2015     FINAL   02/09/2015   This judgment has become final under Article 44 § 2 of the Convention. It may be subject to editorial revision.   In the case of Kyriacou Tsiakkourmas and Others v. Turkey, The European Court of Human Rights (Second Section), sitting as a Chamber composed of:   András Sajó, President,   Işıl Karakaş,   Nebojša Vučinić,   Paul Lemmens,   Egidijus Kūris,   Robert Spano,   Jon Fridrik Kjølbro, judges, and Stanley Naismith, Section Registrar, Having deliberated in private on 14 April 2015, Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date: PROCEDURE 1.     The case originated in an application (no. 13320/02) against the Republic of Turkey lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by thirteen Cypriot nationals, Mr Panayiotis Kyriacou Tsiakkourmas, Ms Niki Kyriacou Tsiakkourma, Ms Eleni P.K. Tsiakkourma, Ms Maria P.K. Tsiakkourma, Mr Kyriacos P.K. Tsiakkourmas, Mr Georghios Kyriacou Tsiakkourmas, Ms Giovanna Andreou Theodosiou (née Kyriacou Tsiakkourma), Mr Ioannis (or Yiannis) Kyriacou Argyrou Tsiakkourmas, Ms Myrofora Kyriacou Nicolaou Spetsioti (née Kyriacou Tsiakkourma), Mr Nicolas Kyriacou Argyrou Tsiakkourmas, Mr   Andreas Kyriacou Argyrou Tsiakkourmas, Mr Soteris Kyriacou Nicolaou Tsiakkourmas and Ms   Evanthia Kyriacou Tsiakkourma (“the applicants”), on 11   June 2001. 2.     The applicants were represented by Dr K. Chrysostomides and Company LLC and Georgiades and Pelides LLC, law firms operating in Nicosia. The Turkish Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent. 3.     On 20 May 2008 the Court declared the application partly inadmissible; in particular, the complaints lodged by Ms Eleni Kyriacou Argyrou Tsiakkourma, the first applicant’s mother, were declared incompatible ratione personae with the provisions of the Convention within the meaning of Article 35 § 3, as she had died prior to the lodging of the present application. On the same date, the Court also decided to communicate to the Government the first applicant’s complaints concerning the alleged violation of his rights under Articles 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10 and 14 of the Convention, as well as the complaints raised by the remaining applicants under Articles 8 and 10 of the Convention. 4.     On 27 October 2008 the respondent Government presented their observations on the admissibility and merits of the case. The applicants, however, did not submit any observations in reply or any just satisfaction claims within the required time-limit. In addition, on 12 March 2009 third ‑ party comments were received from the Government of Cyprus, who exercised their right to intervene in the procedure (Article 36 § 1 of the Convention and Rule 44 § 1 (b)). The parties replied to those comments (Rule 44 § 5). 5.     On 3 June 2014 additional questions were put to the parties in relation to the first applicant’s complaints under Article 3 of the Convention regarding his alleged ill-treatment at the time of his arrest. Supplementary observations were received from the respondent Government on 6 August 2014 on the questions raised by the Court. The applicants and the third ‑ party Government also submitted written comments on 30   October 2014. THE FACTS I.     THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE 6.     The applicants were born in 1962, 1967, 1989, 1996, 1998, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1955, 1957 and 1960 respectively, and live in Larnaca, Nicosia and Famagusta. The first and second applicants are husband and wife. The third, fourth and fifth applicants are their children. The sixth to thirteenth applicants are the five brothers and three sisters of the first applicant. A.     Background to the case 7.     On 1 December 2000 a Turkish Cypriot named Ömer Gazi Tekoğul was arrested by the police of the Republic of Cyprus in possession of two kilograms of heroin. His arrest brought protests from the authorities of the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” (“TRNC”), who alleged that he had been unlawfully arrested in the buffer zone controlled by the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (“the UNFICYP”), where neither the Greek Cypriot nor the Turkish Cypriot side was allowed to exercise authority. There were reports that Mr Tekoğul’s vehicle had allegedly been found abandoned by the Turkish Cypriot authorities inside the United Nations (“UN”) buffer zone, with its engine running and headlights on. The Republic of Cyprus authorities maintained that the arrest had been effected within their jurisdiction just outside the buffer zone. 8.     On 8 December 2000 Mr Tekoğul was charged with drug possession and smuggling, and was remanded in custody by the Larnaca District Court in the Republic of Cyprus. 9.     According to a report of the UN Secretary General dated 30   May   2001 on the UN operation in Cyprus, UNFICYP’s own investigation into the incident had not yielded sufficient evidence to confirm or refute either version of the events regarding the arrest of Mr   Tekoğul [1] . 10.     In the meantime, on 20 March 2001 Mr Tekoğul was sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment by the Larnaca Assize Court on various drug ‑ related charges, but was subsequently pardoned by President Clerides and released on 28 September 2001. B.     Circumstances surrounding the first applicant’s detention on 13   December 2000 11.     The first applicant is a building contractor. At the time of the events giving rise to this application, he owned a construction company, Panicos   Tsiakkourmas and Company Ltd., which employed workers from both sides of the island. 12.     Like many other Greek Cypriot contractors employing Turkish Cypriot workers, the first applicant picked up his Turkish Cypriot workers each morning from a café (“Rabiye’s café”) located in the Sovereign Base Area (“SBA”) of Dhekelia [2] in the vicinity of the Pergamos checkpoint, where people crossed from the “TRNC” to the SBA. The first applicant would collect his Turkish Cypriot workers from the café every weekday morning at approximately 5.45 to 6   a.m. and would drive them to work. At the end of the working day, he would drop them off at the same location. 13.     The events that took place on the morning of 13 December 2000, which resulted in the first applicant’s detention by the “TRNC” authorities, are disputed between the parties. They will therefore be presented separately. 1.     The first applicant’s version of the events 14.     At approximately 5.30 a.m. on 13 December 2000 the first applicant left his house in the village of Livadhia in Larnaca to collect his Turkish Cypriot workers from Rabiye’s café in his red Chevrolet double-cabin pickup, as he did every workday. Since it had rained heavily the night before, parts of the road were flooded, which forced him to drive slowly. The heavy rain had stopped by the morning, but it was still drizzling when he left the house. 15.     On the main road from Pyla to Pergamos leading to Rabiye’s café, the first applicant noticed five to six metres ahead of him a white Isuzu pickup with the registration number UJ   100, which he recognised as belonging to a fellow Greek Cypriot contractor (V.Z.). As he was driving slowly behind that vehicle in the left-hand lane [3] , the first applicant noticed further down the road another car, a red Renault, which had pulled up on the left side of the road just before the ex ‑ Pergamos camp [4] junction, approximately 500 metres before Rabiye’s café. The bonnet of the red car was open and two men in civilian clothes were checking the engine. 16.     The white pickup driving in front of the first applicant slowed down as it approached the red Renault and the driver rolled down his window to talk to the two men. While one of the men continued to check the car’s engine, the other one waved the driver of the white pickup to move along. 17.     As the first applicant approached the stationary red Renault, another car, a white Renault which he had not previously noticed, emerged from the junction on the left-hand side and started heading towards him at full speed. The first applicant swerved his car to the right to prevent a collision and then applied the brakes. The white Renault also stopped right in front of his car and four men in civilian clothes leapt out. The first applicant then noticed that the white Isuzu pickup travelling ahead of him had also stopped, probably to check what was happening behind. In a matter of seconds, one of the men who had leapt out of the white Renault opened his driver’s door, shouted some words in Turkish and put a gun to his forehead, while another tried to pull him out of the car. When the first applicant resisted, holding tight to his unfastened seat belt, the man holding the gun hit him on the head above the left ear with the handle of his gun, which caused him to fall down on the road into a puddle of rainwater measuring 20 to 25 cm, in a semi-conscious state as a result of the force of the blow. The men kicked and punched him on the ground, and twisted and bit his hands to force him to let go of the seat belt, while the first applicant called for help. After receiving some forceful kicks below the pelvis and to the ribs, which were so strong that he thought his ribs were broken, he let go of the belt and rolled on the ground. The four men then picked him up by the arms and legs and dragged him to the white Renault, which was a left-hand drive car. The first applicant estimated that the whole ordeal, which had started at approximately 5.45 a.m., had lasted less than three minutes, and it had been witnessed by the driver of the white Isuzu pickup travelling ahead of him. 18.     Once inside the car, with both his arms twisted behind his back, the first applicant received another strong kick from the man who was holding him by the right arm. The man holding the pistol sat in the front passenger seat and continued to point the pistol at him. They then started driving towards the Pergamos checkpoint. When the first applicant noticed that the right passenger door of the car was not fully closed, he started pushing the man to his right with his shoulder so that they would fall out of the car. As they were passing Rabiye’s café, the first applicant saw a group of people standing outside and called out for help from the slightly open door, but he could not manage to attract their attention. 19.     When the car reached the Pergamos checkpoint, the first applicant noticed that the barrier, which was normally down, had been lifted so that they were able to drive straight through to the “TRNC” without slowing down. After driving in the occupied area for a while, the man sitting to the first applicant’s left placed a rope around his neck and tied his hands behind his back with the ends of the same rope, which prevented him from moving. When the applicant asked whether they were going to kill him, the same man answered yes and then the man sitting in the front passenger seat punched him in the face, which damaged his teeth and caused his mouth to bleed. 20.     The first applicant could not understand the conversation in the car, which was in Turkish, except for the word “police”, which was uttered frequently. Since he had lived in the occupied area until he was twelve years old, he recognised that he was being driven towards Famagusta. Once they reached the Famagusta industrial area, the car stopped, and the man sitting in the front passenger seat took off his sock and taped it around the first applicant’s eyes, and then taped his mouth. A couple of minutes later, the first applicant heard another car drive up to them. He was quickly transferred to the other car, with his hands still tied behind his back with the rope that ran around his neck. After driving for another five to seven minutes the second car stopped and he was taken out of the car. He was subsequently taken into a building and put in a room on his own, where he waited for quite some time with his eyes and mouth taped, and his hands tied behind his back. 21.     After a while, someone untied the rope around the first applicant’s hands and neck, but left his hands cuffed behind his back, and removed the tape from his mouth. He was then asked personal questions regarding himself and his family, including whether he had any relatives working in the police force or the army. No one explained to him where he was or why he was being held. The person who spoke to him alternated between broken Greek and English. His captors then made him sit in front of an electric heater so that he might dry, as his clothes were all wet from falling into the puddle of water outside his car during the struggle prior to his abduction. 22.     When his captors eventually removed the sock from his eyes, the first applicant noticed that he was in an office, and the time was 11.55 a.m. Three men in civilian clothes, whom he had not seen before but later discovered to be Sub ‑ inspector Ü.Ö. and police sergeants R.Ö. and H.M., were standing in front of him. When he asked them in Greek why he had been seized, one of them replied in broken Greek that he had been arrested for drug possession. They then gave him a fresh set of clothes and shoes and asked him to change out of his wet clothes. The first applicant suspected that he was in a police station, but his captors continued to conceal his whereabouts and the identity of the three persons interrogating him. 23.     After changing into new clothes, the first applicant was led out of the building by the three men. In the reception area of the building, he saw police officers in uniform, which reinforced his assumption that he had been taken to a police station. He was subsequently taken to a hospital in Nicosia by two of his interrogators. 24.     The first applicant was first examined by a doctor at the hospital in the presence of the two men who had taken him there. As the doctor did not speak English or Greek, they relied on the officers’ interpretation to communicate. The first applicant explained to the doctor that he was diabetic and asked the doctor to check his blood sugar levels. Tests showed that his blood sugar level had increased considerably, so the doctor prescribed him an anti ‑ diabetic drug. The first applicant also tried to tell the doctor that he was suffering from pain in his pelvis and ribs, and in particular that the pain in the ribs was making it difficult to breathe, but the doctor paid no attention to his grievances and merely registered the swelling in his head and some redness on his chest and back, without examining the injuries in his mouth or lower body. 25.     The first applicant was subsequently referred to a radiologist, who X ‑ rayed his chest and head. He was also examined by a specialist in pulmonary diseases. He was then taken for a drug test. When the first applicant refused to take the drug test and requested to see UN doctors instead, one of the men escorting him punched him in the stomach. It is not clear whether a drug test was subsequently performed on the first applicant. 26.     Following the examinations at the hospital, which lasted about two hours, the first applicant was taken to another building, where he was again placed in an office. In that office, the men handling him showed him a black plastic bag with Turkish writing on it, and told him that the bag contained the drugs recovered from him. However, after some discussion among themselves, one of them went out of the room and came back with another black plastic bag, which bore no writing, and placed the drugs allegedly recovered from him in the new bag. They then placed the bag in a plastic container and sealed it before his eyes. 27.     At approximately 5.30 p.m., the first applicant was taken to yet another small office in a nearby building. There were six men in the office, including the two who had been escorting him and two interpreters. The men were speaking to each other in Turkish, without translating for him, and drinking tea; the first applicant did not understand where he had been taken. One of the interpreters then told him in broken Greek that he was before a judge, who had charged him with possession of drugs, and that he would be placed in custody for eight days. For the brief period he was in that room, the first applicant was not given the opportunity to respond, apart from stating that he had no involvement with drugs, or to ask questions; he was not informed of his rights, nor was he asked whether he wanted the assistance of a lawyer. 28.     The first applicant was subsequently taken to the Atatürk Square police station (referred to as the “Saray police station”) in Nicosia and placed in a very small cell, measuring approximately 1.80 by 1.20 metres, where he stayed for the next eight days. The cell was very cold, damp and mouldy in parts, because there was no glass in the small window. Despite the cold, he was given only one filthy blanket to keep warm. There were, moreover, no shower facilities in the police station. As for the toilets, they were very dirty; no soap or toilet paper was provided and the toilet did not flush. The first applicant had to call an officer each time he needed to use the toilet, and on many occasions he was not let out of his cell to go to the toilet, despite his need to urinate frequently on account of his diabetes. He solved the problem by urinating in a plastic bottle inside his cell. The first applicant further stated that he had not been given any food at the Saray police station and that he had had to purchase food from the canteen with his own money. 29.     The first applicant claimed that the next day, a Turkish Cypriot detainee at the Saray police station approached him and told him in Greek that the police had asked him to confess to being the person who would pick up the drugs that the first applicant had intended to hide in the “TRNC”, but that he had refused to collaborate with the police. 30.     At 3 p.m. on 14 December 2000 the first applicant was visited by a UN inspector and a doctor. The inspector issued an incident report following the visit, the relevant parts of which read as follows: “During the visit the prisoner, who is a diabetic, stated that he had no complaints in relation to how he had been treated by the TCPE [Turkish Cypriot Police Element] but that he had been assaulted i.e. punched and kicked by six civilians and had been threatened with a gun by them a short time before his arrest by the TCPE. He stated that his arrest had occurred in the Dekelia [sic.] area. Since his arrest he had been taken to the Hospital by the TCPE where he was administered some drugs for his diabetes. He requested the UN to secure his own clothes for him, to deliver his Diabetes Monitoring Kit to him and also to arrange a visit for his wife. He further stated that he did not do anything and that he was kidnapped at Dekelia. He was in a distressed state. He consented to a medical examination by the UN doctor who found a number of tender areas with no bruising.” 31.     On 15 December 2000 the first applicant was visited at the Saray police   station by a Turkish Cypriot lawyer, Mr M. Aziz, who was appointed by his family to represent him. The meeting was monitored by a number of police officers. On 16 December 2000 another Turkish Cypriot lawyer, Mr   G. Menteş, visited him and they met, once again, in the presence of police officers. The first applicant claimed that all his subsequent meetings with his lawyers at the Saray police station had been held in the presence of police officers or other prison authorities. 2.     The Government’s version of the events 32.     The Government’s version of the events is based on the incident reports prepared by Sub-inspector Ü.Ö., who allegedly led the operation for the first applicant’s arrest. 33.     According to Sub-inspector Ü.Ö.’s report, on 12 December 2000 he received a tip-off call from a police informant, informing him that a Greek Cypriot named “Panayotis” would enter the “TRNC” through the SBA of Dhekelia the next morning with narcotics, which he would hide in a pre ‑ designated spot just outside the Turkish cemetery to the west of the Pergamos checkpoint, to be picked up by a contact from the “TRNC”. 34.     At approximately 4.45 a.m. on 13 December 2000 Sub-inspector Ü.Ö., accompanied by police sergeants R.Ö. and H.M., took their positions in the vicinity of the drop-off point to wait in ambush. At around 6.05 a.m., before daybreak, they saw someone approaching on foot from the direction of the SBA, approximately seventy metres to the west of the Pergamos checkpoint. It was believed that this person, who was later identified as the first applicant, had crossed the ditch which ran along the boundary between the “TRNC” and the SBA and which was filled with rainwater at the relevant time, and then jumped over the wire fence between boundary stones nos. 96 and 97, where parts of the fence had shrunk. As the first applicant was walking towards an olive tree in the designated area, Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. came out of his hiding place and ordered him to stop, in Turkish. Upon hearing that order, the first applicant started to run back towards the SBA; however, the two police sergeants caught up with him and seized him after a struggle, during which the applicant fell to the ground. The sub-inspector then grabbed the package that the first applicant was holding in his hands, which was wrapped in a black plastic bag. In the meantime, Sergeant H.M. informed the first applicant in Greek that they were police officers and told him that he had entered “TRNC” territory without permission. He also asked the first applicant to identify himself and to explain what he was carrying in the plastic bag. The first applicant gave his name and stated that he was innocent. The police officers then handcuffed him and placed him in the police car. Once inside the car, the police officers opened the plastic bag and found two plates of cannabis resin wrapped in a white cloth and a Greek newspaper. Sergeant H.M. informed the applicant once again, in Greek, that he had entered “TRNC” territory without permission and that he had in his possession prohibited drugs. 35.     At approximately 6.50 a.m. the first applicant was taken to the Famagusta (Gazimağusa) police headquarters for an identity check, where he was also questioned about where he had obtained the drugs and to whom he was taking them in the “TRNC”. The first applicant remained silent in response to those questions. 36.     At approximately 8.30 a.m. Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. and Sergeant H.M. went to the narcotics bureau of the Nicosia (Lefkoşa) police headquarters to inform their superiors of the first applicant’s arrest, while the first applicant stayed at the Famagusta police headquarters under the supervision of Sergeant R.Ö.. After going to the narcotics bureau, Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. and Sergeant H.M. went back to the scene of the incident, where Sub ‑ inspector Ü.Ö. sketched a map of the area and another sergeant took photographs. Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. also took a soil sample from the area for forensic analysis. 37.     At approximately 11.30 a.m. Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. and Sergeant H.M. went back to the Famagusta police headquarters, and took the first applicant’s clothes and shoes as evidence. 38.     At approximately 12.50 p.m. the first applicant was taken to the Dr   Burhan Nalbantoğlu State Hospital (“the Nicosia State Hospital”) for a general medical examination. After the examination, he was taken to the narcotics bureau of the Nicosia police headquarters, where the material which was obtained from him earlier and which was believed to be cannabis resin was sealed in his presence, to be dispatched to the laboratory for further examination. The first applicant’s shoes, together with the soil sample collected from the area where he was believed to have crossed into the “TRNC”, were also sealed before his eyes for forensic analysis. 39.     Later the same evening, the first applicant was brought before the “TRNC” Nicosia District Court, where the presiding judge ordered his remand in custody for eight days to facilitate the police investigation. The hearing was held in the judge’s office and the applicant was assisted by two interpreters. 40.     According to the detailed incident report prepared by Sub-inspector Ü.Ö., on the night of 13 December 2000 various measures were taken in the area where the first applicant had been arrested to catch the person who was supposed to pick up the drugs, but no one showed up. C.     Results of various forensic analyses 41.     The analysis report of 18 December 2000 drawn up by the Ministry of Health and Environment of the “TRNC” confirmed that the substance allegedly seized from the first applicant was cannabis resin, in the amount of 1.1   kilograms. 42.     According to the report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of the “TRNC” dated 2 January 2001, various different kinds of soil were found under the first applicant’s shoes, while the muddy specimen found on the heel appeared to be the most recent. The amount of soil extracted from the heel was not found to be sufficient for a comprehensive analysis. Nevertheless, the limited examinations conducted revealed that the sample obtained from the shoes resembled the sample obtained from the scene of the incident, without, however, being identical. The report indicated that variations in soil properties could be due to the depth from which the soil sample had been obtained, or whether it had been obtained from a fertilised part of the land or not. D.     Charges brought against the first applicant and the bail hearings 43.     On 21 December 2000 Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. informed the first applicant of the charges against him, which were the possession of 1.1   kilograms of cannabis resin and its unlawful import into the “TRNC”. The first applicant, who was provided with an interpreter, used his right to remain silent, merely stating that his lawyer would defend him. However, he refused to sign a written statement to that effect. 44.     Later the same day, the first applicant was brought before the “TRNC” Nicosia District Court for a bail hearing, where he was represented by two lawyers, Mr M. Aziz, a local lawyer practising in “TRNC”, and Mr   P.   Brogan, who practised at the English Bar. He was also assisted by an interpreter. At the hearing, the prosecution requested the court to order the first applicant’s detention until the trial in view of the risk of his absconding, and called Sub ‑ inspector Ü.Ö. as a witness. 45.     The first applicant’s counsel pleaded in favour of his release, and also argued that he had not been arrested in “TRNC” territory as alleged, but had been abducted from SBA territory by unknown persons and then taken to the “TRNC” after being badly beaten. The assault had left injuries on   his body, as documented in various medical reports. The first applicant did not make any additional comments on his alleged ill-treatment, but merely stated that he would appear for trial if he were released on bail. 46.     Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. denied the allegation that the first applicant had been assaulted and stated that the injuries observed on his body might have been caused as a result of the resistance he had shown to his arrest. 47.     At the end of the hearing, the “TRNC” Nicosia District Court refused the first applicant’s bail request on the weight of the arguments presented by the prosecution and ordered his pre-trial detention for a period not exceeding three months. The District Court indicated in this connection that it had not found the first applicant’s statement that he would appear for trial if released on bail to be credible and reliable, but it did not comment on his counsel’s allegations of ill-treatment. The first applicant was transferred to the Nicosia Central Prison after the hearing. 48.     It appears that on 30 January 2001 the first applicant appeared before the court for another bail hearing. The Court has not been provided with the minutes of that hearing, but it appears that the hearing was adjourned until 8   February 2001 on account of the first applicant’s deteriorating health, and that he was transferred to hospital for treatment for high blood sugar levels (see paragraphs 106-109 below for further details). 49.     On 6 February 2001 the charges against the first applicant were lodged with the Famagusta District Court. E.     Preliminary Inquiry 50.     On 8 February 2001 the Famagusta District Court convened for a preliminary inquiry in the case, which lasted until 15 February 2001, during which period the District Court sat for six full days. The first applicant was present throughout the hearings and was represented by both his lawyers. He was also assisted by interpreters. 51.     During the preliminary inquiry the prosecution called five witnesses: the three police officers who had allegedly arrested the first applicant, namely Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. and police sergeants H.M. and R.Ö.; another police officer who had interpreted the formal charges against the first applicant; and the forensic chemist who had analysed the drugs allegedly seized from him. The first applicant, on the other hand, called one witness, Mr J.C., the UN Liaison Officer in Cyprus at the material time. 52.     The Famagusta District Court first heard the prosecution witnesses, who gave testimonies consistent with the incident reports and presented evidence against the first applicant, including a sketched map indicating where the applicant had crossed into the “TRNC” and where he had been captured, photographs of the relevant areas taken a few hours after the arrest, the drugs allegedly recovered from the applicant, and the clothes and shoes he had been wearing on the relevant day, which were soiled with mud on account of the struggle on the ground, as well as copies of the medical reports drawn up following his arrest. 53.     The prosecution witnesses were subsequently cross-examined by the defence counsel, who challenged the veracity and credibility of their testimonies in the light of the first applicant’s account of events, according to which he had been kidnapped from his car in SBA territory and had then been handed over to the “TRNC” police. The defence counsel accordingly asked detailed questions about the tip-off call which Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. had allegedly received the day before the first applicant’s arrest and the identity of the police informant; the planning of the ambush and the weather conditions on the relevant morning; the route that the first applicant had followed to reach the “TRNC”; the exact point from which he had allegedly crossed into “TRNC” territory; and the paperwork undertaken by the police subsequent to the first applicant’s arrest. The responses received appeared to be consistent with the earlier testimonies and did not reveal new evidence, apart from some factual details, such as the height of the border fence, which, according to the prosecution witnesses, was approximately 110   centimetres at the point of crossing but yielded when pressed, details of the conversation with the police informant, and the notes taken by the arresting officers in their police notebooks prior to and after the operation. 54.     Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. was asked why he had not submitted the package of drugs allegedly recovered from the first applicant for a fingerprint examination, to which he responded that he had seen no need for such an examination as he had taken the package directly from the applicant’s hands himself. He further maintained that no examination had been made of the footprints identified on the terrain, as the first applicant had apparently slipped and had not left very clear marks. 55.     Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. was also asked whether he had recorded the tip-off he had received from his informant. He responded that he had recorded both the tip-off call and the subsequent operation conducted on the morning of 13 December 2000 for the first applicant’s arrest in his police notebook, which had been submitted to the court as evidence. 56.     On the last day of the preliminary inquiry the defence counsel called Mr J.C. as the defence’s sole witness. Mr J.C. stated that he had been appointed by the UNFICYP as a Civil Affairs Police Liaison Officer. His duty was to liaise between the Greek and the Turkish Cypriot sides on policing and humanitarian issues. He explained that on 3 December 2000 his contact person on the Turkish side on humanitarian issues, Mr M.İ., who was the head of the Directorate on Consular Affairs and Minorities Issues of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Defence of the “TRNC”, had called him for a meeting. During the meeting, Mr M.İ. had told Mr J.C. that he wanted to protest, through the UN, about the recent arrest of Ömer Gazi Tekoğul by the Greek Cypriot police in the UN buffer zone. Mr M.İ. had allegedly told him that if Ömer Gazi Tekoğul was not released before noon on 4   December 2000, Greek Cypriots from Pyla, a mixed village located in the UN buffer zone, would start disappearing. M.İ. had added that if the Greek Cypriot police had adopted a new policy of kidnapping suspects from the buffer zone, the Turkish Cypriot police would respond in the same manner. 57.     In response to the objections of the prosecution regarding the admissibility of Mr J.C.’s testimony as evidence, the Famagusta District Court held that it would accept Mr J.C.’s testimony not as evidence as to the truth of the statement allegedly made by Mr M.İ., which would be against the rule on hearsay evidence, but only as evidence of the fact that a meeting   had taken place between Mr M.İ. and Mr J.C. 58.     On the basis of the testimonies and other evidence presented before it, on 15 February 2001 the Famagusta District Court decided that there were sufficient grounds to commit the first applicant for trial before the Famagusta Assize Court. It also prolonged the first applicant’s pre-trial detention. 59.     The first applicant claimed that during the preliminary inquiry, he had seen one of his abductors amongst the audience, but that the latter had managed to leave the court room before he had had the chance to point him out to his lawyer. F.     The trial 60.     The first applicant’s trial commenced in the Famagusta Assize Court on 23 February 2001. He attended all of the hearings together with his two lawyers. He was also provided with an interpreter. 1.     Evidence presented by the prosecution witnesses 61.     In addition to the five witnesses who had testified at the preliminary inquiry, the prosecution called as witnesses a forensic police officer, a “TRNC” military officer stationed in Pergamos, the three doctors who had examined the first applicant on 13 December 2000 and the agricultural engineer who had analysed the soil obtained from the first applicant’s shoes. The evidence provided by the prosecution witnesses, including during cross ‑ examination, was, in general, consistent with the previous testimonies and official reports. 62.     During his cross-examination Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. was asked a number of questions regarding the identity of his informant, which he refused to answer. However, he gave detailed information about the telephone conversation he had had with the informant, and also about his “exploratory visit” to the estimated drug drop-off point in the evening of 12   December 2000 together with the informant. Sub ‑ inspector Ü.Ö. also stated that he had informed his supervisor about the information he had received from his informant prior to the operation conducted on 13   December 2000, while keeping the identity of the informant secret. However, he had not alerted the local police and military officers in Pergamos in order to protect the secrecy of the operation. In response to a question as to why no one had been left at the drop-off point following the first applicant’s arrest to capture the latter’s contact person in the “TRNC”, Sub-inspector Ü.Ö. stated that he had suspected his informant to be that contact person and that, in any event, a unit had been stationed at the drop ‑ off point on the night of 13 December 2000 to catch any suspects. 63.     During his cross-examination Dr E.A., who had conducted the initial medical examination of the first applicant after his arrest, was asked to provide details of the findings of his medical report (see paragraph   24 above). Accordingly, he indicated that on the relevant morning he had observed a swelling with a diameter of 4 centimetres on the left side of the first applicant’s head, as well as redness measuring 0.5 cm by 4-5   cm behind the right ear, redness measuring 8-10 cm across the chest, and two areas of redness measuring 3-5 cm by 3-4   cm on the back, all of which appeared to have been sustained only hours before the examination. He stated that the swelling observed above the first applicant’s left ear could have been caused by blunt-force trauma or by the impact of falling on a stone or similar hard object. He also confirmed that the examination had been conducted in the presence of two persons in civilian clothes, whom he had perceived to be police officers and who had also acted as interpreters between the first applicant and himself. He added that although he had raised the question specifically, the first applicant had not expressed any complaints of bodily injury, apart from stating that he was diabetic. The police, on the other hand, had explained that there had been a scuffle during his arrest. 64.     Dr İ.A., who had examined the first applicant after Dr E.A. for any pulmonary problems, stated that the first applicant had presented symptoms of bronchitis. He had therefore prescribed medicine to him for that purpose but had not noted any other injuries or marks on his face or torso. He also indicated that the examination had been conducted in the presence of another person in civilian clothes, whom he assumed to be a police officer. 65.     Dr H.K., a general surgeon, stated before the court that he had also examined the first applicant on the relevant day in response to his complaints of abdominal pain, but had not identified any causes for such pain. In response to a question from the first applicant’s lawyer, he stated that a blow to the abdomen could cause pain in that area. He added that if the blow was strong, it would also leave a mark, but he had not noted any such marks on the first applicant’s abdomen. 2.     Evidence presented by the defence witnesses 66.     On 23 March 2001, after the close of the case for the prosecution, the first applicant was called to make his defence statement. His sworn testimony was largely in line with the account of events he subsequently submitted to the Strasbourg Court, including the detailed allegations of his abduction and ill ‑ treatment. However, he did not claim before the trial court that his abduction had been witnessed by the driver of a certain white Isuzu pickup. 67.     Following the first applicant’s statement and cross ‑ examination, the defence called seventeen witnesses to testify in support of its case, including a number of SBA police officers. The pertinent witness statements are summarised below. (a)     Statement of Mr G.H. (Greek Cypriot builder) 68.     Mr G.H. stated that he had left his house in Larnaca to go to work at approximately at 5.30 a.m. on the morning of 13 December 2000. While on his way to Pergamos to pick up his Turkish Cypriot workers, he had overtaken the first applicant’s car, which was heading in the same direction. When asked whether he had actually seen the applicant in the car, G.H. answered in the negative and indicated that he had only identified the car from its number plate. Moreover, he had been unable to tell whether there had been only one person or more in the car. G.H. claimed that as he had approached Pergamos, he had noticed a stationary white car on the left-hand side of the road, with its bonnet open and a man examining its engine. Shortly afterwards, he had noticed a red car with a number plate starting with a “Z”, parked to the right of the white car. He had driven past those cars without stopping, but while driving by, he had heard a man shouting. He had assumed that it was the driver of the white car calling for help with his car. He had arrived at Rabiye’s café where his workers were waiting for him at approximately 5.45 a.m., had a coffee and then left with his workers. As he was driving past the spot where he had seen the two Renault cars previously, he had noticed the first applicant’s car parked oddly, almost in the middle of the road and facing towards the roadside, with its driver’s door open, its engine running and its headlights on. The two other cars, on the other hand, had gone. (b)     Statement of Mr A.G. (Greek Cypriot builder) 69.     On the morning of 13 December 2000, as he was driving to Pergamos to pick up his Turkish Cypriot workers from Rabiye’s café, Mr   A.G. had noticed a red car with a red “Z” number plate parked on the left side of the road just before the junction leading to the ex-Pergamos camp. It had looked like the police cars that were used by the “TRNC” police in Pyla. The red car was facing Pergamos with its bonnet open, and there were two men standing in front of it. He had then noticed, on the opposite side of the road by the cypress trees, a white car, which had flashed its headlights at him. He had driven past both cars without stopping and arrived at Rabiye’s café at approximately 5.40 to 5.45 a.m. He had left the café at approximately 6 a.m. and while driving past the place where he had previously seen the two cars, he had noticed that those cars had gone but this time the first applicant’s car was parked on the right side of the road, facing the wrong direction, with its engine running, and its headlights and wipers on. The driver’s door was also open. (c)     Statement of Mr N.M. (Greek Cypriot builder) 70.     Mr N.M. left his house at approximately 5.30 a.m. on 13   December   2000 to pick up his Turkish Cypriot workers at their designated café by the Pergamos checkpoint. A red double-cabin pickup, which he later learned belonged to the first applicant, was driving approximately seventy metres ahead of him in the same direction. When he saw that part of the road was flooded, N.M. first turned his car around to return home, as he thought the weather would not be suitable for construction work that day, but then changed his mind and resumed his journey to Pergamos. On reaching the junction leading to the ex-Pergamos camp sometime between 5.40 and 5.50   a.m., he noticed the first applicant’s car parked in the right-hand lane of the road, facing slightly to the right. He also saw someone getting out of that car and walking towards the fields on the right. There was no one else in the car, but the engine was running. The driver’s door and both rear passenger doors were open. He also noticed three or four other people approximately twenty metres further down in the fields to the right, but did not see any other cars in the vicinity. He then heard someone yelling “Let me go!” in Greek from the direction of the fields, but was too scared to get out of the car to see what was going on, and drove back home. (d)     Statement of Mr Yiannis Tsiakkourmas (the eighth applicant, who is also the first applicant’s brother and a builder) 71.     While driving towards Pergamos to pick up his Turkish Cypriot workers at approximately 6.05 a.m. on the morning of 13 December 2000, Mr Yiannis Tsiakkourmas saw his brother’s car parked just before the junction leading to the ex-Pergamos camp. He noticed that the engine was running and the wipers were on, the driver’s door was open, but his brother was not around. His phone and bag were, however, in the car. He drove to Rabiye’s café to ask about his brother, and when he found no further information he took two of his Turkish Cypriot workers with him and drove back to the place where he had found the first applicant’s car. He then went to the SBA police to report his brother missing. Upon returning to the place of the incident, and prior to the arrival of any SBA police officers, he asked one of his Turkish Cypriot workers to move the car to avoid causing any accidents. The car was accordingly parked in a safer spot on the left side of the main road. (e)     Statement of Mr S.E. (Greek Cypriot builder) 72.     On the morning of 13 December 2000, while driving to Pergamos to pick up his Turkish Cypriot workers, Mr S.E. saw a red Chevrolet double ‑ cabin pickup, which he later learned was the first applicant’s car, parked in the right-hand lane of the road approximately 500 metres from Rabiye’s café, slightly facing the left-hand side of the road and with the driver’s door open. When he reached the café, one of the first applicant’s Turkish Cypriot workers approached him and said that his boss had still not