5.  The applicant was born in 1969 and lives in the town of Severodvinsk in the Arkhangelsk Region. 6.  On 23 August 2001 police officers forced entry to the applicant's flat. They arrested the applicant on suspicion of manslaughter, handcuffed and allegedly boxed and kicked him. The applicant and his wife were taken to the Severodvinsk Town Police Department where the police officers allegedly coerced the wife and compelled her to incriminate the applicant as having committed murder. However, she refused to testify and was released on the same day. 7.  A prosecutor authorised the applicant's placement in custody. Between 23 August and 1 September 2001 an investigator interrogated the applicant a number of times. Each interrogation was allegedly accompanied by beatings. 8.  The applicant informed the investigator that his daughter could confirm his alibi and motioned to have her questioned. The motion was dismissed. The investigator notified the applicant that he had to pay for the services of a legal aid lawyer. Afraid of being unable to afford the costs, the applicant refused legal aid. As it appears from the file, he subsequently retained counsel. 9.  The applicant was transferred to detention facility no. 29/4 in Arkhangelsk.  On 16, 17 and 18 January 2002 the investigator ordered the applicant's transfer to the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward for participation in certain investigative actions. According to the applicant, warders refused to provide him with food on those days. 10.  The applicant asked to institute criminal proceedings against the policemen who had assaulted him after the arrest. On 29 October 2001 a senior investigator of the Severodvinsk Town Prosecutor's office dismissed the request on the ground that the allegations of ill-treatment were in fact false. The senior investigator noted that a prison doctor had examined the applicant after the arrest and had found no injuries. 11.  According to the applicant, he was not afforded sufficient time to study the case file before the case was set down for trial. 12.  On 19 March 2002 the Arkhangelsk Regional Court found the applicant guilty of aggravated robbery and manslaughter and sentenced him to seventeen years' imprisonment. 13.  The applicant and his lawyer appealed. They argued that the Regional Court had unlawfully admitted certain items in evidence and incorrectly assessed evidence, including expert opinions, statements by the applicant's daughter and wife given in open court and testimony by certain witnesses. 14.  On 17 October 2002 the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation upheld the applicant's conviction of aggravated robbery, sentenced him to four years' imprisonment, quashed the remainder of the conviction and remitted the matter for fresh examination. 15.  After receiving the file from the Supreme Court, the Arkhangelsk Regional Court ordered that the case be returned to the Arkhangelsk Regional Prosecutor for an additional investigation. That decision was upheld on appeal by the Supreme Court. On 16 May 2003 the Prosecutor discontinued criminal proceedings against the applicant on the manslaughter charge. 16.  In 2001 criminal proceedings were instituted against the applicant on suspicion of criminal slander. On 17 December 2002 the Severodvinsk Town Court found the applicant guilty as charged and sentenced him to two years' imprisonment. 17.  On 2 January 2003 a local newspaper published an article in which a journalist described the criminal proceedings and reported on the conviction. 18.  On 14 February 2003 the Arkhangelsk Regional Court quashed the judgment of 17 December 2002 and ordered a re-examination. 19.  The Severodvinsk Town Court listed a hearing for 26 March 2003. On that day the applicant was brought to the courthouse, but the hearing was adjourned. The applicant remained handcuffed in the courthouse for two hours. The warders allegedly intimidated and threatened him. 20.  On 28 August 2003 the Severodvinsk Town Court found the applicant guilty as charged and sentenced him to two years' imprisonment. That judgment became final on 14 October 2003 when it was upheld by the Arkhangelsk Regional Court. 21.  On 3 November 2004 the Solombalskiy District Court of Arkhangelsk ordered the applicant's release on parole. 22.  From 1 to 20 March 2002 the applicant was detained in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward. 23.  According to the Government, the applicant was kept in cells nos. 6, 7 and 9 during the reference period. Cell no. 6 measured 12 square metres and had a plank bed fit to accommodate 3 persons. Cells nos. 7 and 9 each measured 18.7 square metres and had a plank bed for 4 persons. The Government did not provide information on the number of inmates in the cells. However, they noted that the sanitary norm of personal space had been complied with and that the applicant had had his own “sleeping place”. 24.  The applicant did not dispute the cell measurements. However, he alleged that he had usually shared the cells with 12 detainees. Given the lack of beds, inmates slept in shifts. 25.  The Government, relying on the information provided by the Ministry of Interior Affairs of the Russian Federation, submitted that all cells were equipped with a lavatory pan, a tap, a canister for drinking water, a waste bucket and a shelf for toiletries. The cells were lit and ventilated naturally through the windows, which measured 40 centimetres in width and 60 centimetres in height. Each cell also had a ventilation shaft and was equipped with a lamp. The Government asserted that the applicant was provided with food “in compliance with requirements set by the Russian Federation legislation”. 26.  The applicant disagreed with the Government's description and submitted that the sanitary conditions had been unsatisfactory. Inmates had to sleep together on a plank bed, simply long concrete flooring covered with planks. The lavatory pan was not separated from the rest of the cell and was opposite the plank bed. The cells were dimly lit. Windows were covered with thick metal bars that blocked access to natural light and fresh air. The food was of poor quality and in short supply. It was provided once a day. 27.   The parties submitted that the applicant had not been provided with bedding because a disinfection device was broken and the temporary detention facility could not afford to repair it. The applicant was not able to shower during the entire period of his detention because a shower room was under construction. He did not have daily outdoor walks. 28.  According to the applicant, he complained to various domestic authorities about the inadequate conditions of his detention in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward. 29.  The Government submitted a copy of a report of the acting prosecutor of the Arkhangelsk Region issued on 18 February 2003 and addressed to the head of the Department of Interior Affairs of the Arkhangelsk Region. The report was issued upon the complaint of another detainee, Mr N., and in its relevant part read as follows:
“When the conditions of detention of suspected and accused persons in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward were examined, it was established that the requirements of the Federal Law 'On detention of suspected and accused persons...' of 15 July 1995,... were not entirely satisfied.
Thus, by virtue of section 16 of that Federal Law... the procedure for outdoor daily walks of accused persons is established, and by virtue of section 17 of the same Law accused persons are entitled to at least a one-hour walk daily. The administration of the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward, in violation of the above-mentioned Federal Law, did not provide persons detained in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward with daily outdoor walks.
Section 23 of that Federal Law... provides that persons suspected and accused of criminal offences should be detained in conditions which satisfy sanitary and hygienic requirements. However, there were no water taps, sinks or wall outlets in certain cells.
Bedding and linen are not provided... in the ward (section 23 of the Federal Law and paragraph 3.1 of the Order of the Ministry of Interior Affairs of 26 January 1996).
Cells in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward do not have certain equipment, i.e. benches and tables.
By virtue of section 22 of the Federal Law... persons suspected and accused of criminal offences are to be provided with food sufficient to maintain them in good health according to standards established by the Government of the Russian Federation. In the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward detainees are provided with food once a day, which is not sufficient for maintaining them in good health.
Taking into account the foregoing, and in accordance with sections 24 and 33 of the Federal Law... [I] hereby require: 1. That immediate measures be taken for the elimination of the identified violations of the Law, their causes and the conditions which contribute to them. 2. That an immediate solution be found to the problem of promoting satisfactory conditions of detention... in the Severodvinsk Town temporary detention ward, in accordance with the Federal Law ...” 30.  The applicant claimed that he was not aware of that report as it was never served on him. However, on 25 September 2003 he received a letter from the Severodvinsk Town Prosecutor. The prosecutor dismissed the applicant's complaints as follows:
 “From 1 to 20 March 2002 you were detained in the detention ward of the police department of Severodvinsk... Bathing was not arranged because shower cabins in the ward were under construction during that period. Outdoor walks for inmates were not organised in the ward owing to the absence of financial means to equip special premises...”