5.  The applicant was born in 1977 and is currently serving a prison sentence in Kaluga. 6.  On 4 November 2000 the town prosecutor authorised the applicant’s placement in custody on the ground that he was suspected of having committed aggravated murder and was liable to abscond and pervert the course of justice. 7.  On 8 November 2000 the applicant was arrested and remanded in custody. Shortly afterwards, on 13 November 2000, charges of aggravated murder were brought against him. 8.  In the period from 1 February to 5 October 2001 the regional prosecutor extended the applicant’s detention on six occasions pending investigation, referring to the necessity to undertake various investigation activities and having regard to the gravity of the charges. The applicant’s appeals against the above decisions yielded no result. 9.  On 13 July 2001 the additional charge of firearms trafficking was brought against the applicant. 10.  On 2 November 2001 the regional prosecutor’s office approved the bill of indictment and the case was sent to Kaluga Regional Court for trial. 11.  On 3 December 2001 Kaluga Regional Court remitted the case for an additional investigation, due to various procedural irregularities of the initial investigation. The court held that the applicant should remain in custody. The court did not indicate either reasons for, or the time-limit of, the extension ordered. 12.  During the additional investigation the applicant’s detention was extended by the regional prosecutor on 14 March 2002 until 13 April 2002, and on 29 March 2002 until 1 July 2002, both times with reference to the gravity of the charges against the applicant, his character and the risk of his absconding and interfering with the investigation. The applicant did not appeal against either of the above decisions. 13.  On 28 June 2002 the regional prosecutor’s office returned the case to Kaluga Regional Court for examination on the merits. 14.  On 27 December 2002 Kaluga Regional Court extended the applicant’s detention pending trial until 28 March 2003. The decision reads as follows:
“...
On 28 December 2002 the six-month time-limit of the [applicant’s] detention during the trial, established by Article 255 § 2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, expires. However the trial cannot be completed by this date.
In connection with the above, in the absence of information allowing the conclusion that the need for the preventive measure applied to [the applicant] has disappeared or that the grounds for the [applicant’s] detention have changed; regard being had to the fact that [the applicant] is charged with crimes carrying a sentence of over two years’ imprisonment, including especially serious crime connected with encroachment on human life and therefore representing an increased danger to society, and the fact that the nature of the charges gives sufficient grounds to believe that [the applicant] can abscond or otherwise obstruct justice, the court considers it necessary to extend the [applicant’s] detention until the termination of the trial but not exceeding three months.
...” 15.  On 18 March 2003 the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the extension order on appeal, finding that it had been lawful and justified. 16.  On 25 March 2003 Kaluga Regional Court extended the applicant’s and his four co-defendants’ detention until 28 June 2003, repeating the decision of 27 December 2002 verbatim. 17.  The applicant appealed, claiming that the Regional Court had no grounds to conclude that he presented a persistent flight risk. Besides, the court did not give any consideration to the fact that the applicant was detained under a prison regime, that he had a permanent residence and employment in Kaluga, that he had participated in prevention of armed conflicts in Chechnya and Georgia, and that his mother was seriously ill. On 22 July 2003 the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the decision of 25 March 2003 on appeal, relying on the arguments mentioned by the Regional Court. 18.  On 26 June 2003 Kaluga Regional Court extended the applicant’s and his four co-defendants’ detention until 28 September 2003. The court reproduced the same reasoning as in the extension orders of 27 December 2002 and 25 March 2003. 19.  On 4 September 2003 the Supreme Court of Russia confirmed the lawfulness of the decision of 26 June 2003 on appeal. 20.  On 27 August 2003 Kaluga Regional Court extended the applicant’s and his four co-defendants’ detention until 28 December 2003. Besides the reasons indicated in previous extension orders the court referred to the great complexity of the case, in particular to the significant number of witnesses to be called and to the substantial amount of evidence to be examined. 21.  On 30 October 2003 the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the decision of 27 August 2003 on appeal, having briefly reproduced the reasoning of the Regional Court. 22.  On 4 December 2003 Kaluga Regional Court convicted the applicant of firearms trafficking and aggravated murder and sentenced him to twenty years’ imprisonment. 23.  On 16 June 2004 the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the judgment on appeal.