4.  The applicant was born in 1978. She is the wife of Mr Sirazhudin (also spelt as Sirazhutdin) Shafiyev, who was born in 1971. At the material time the applicant, her husband and their three children lived at no. 15 Mira Street, Derbent, the Republic of Dagestan. 5.  Sirazhudin Shafiyev was a follower of Islam. The law-enforcement authorities suspected him of participating in illegal activities as in 2006, during his Hajj to Saudi Arabia, he had had his photograph taken with the spiritual leader of illegal armed groups, a Mr Said Buraytskiy, who was subsequently killed in March 2010. 6.  According to the applicant, in August or September 2009 a number of followers of Islam were abducted in broad daylight by men in camouflage uniforms. The abductions took place in Derbent and the nearby area.
(b)  Abduction of the applicant’s husband 7.  At about 8 a.m. on 8 September 2009 Sirazhudin Shafiyev took his children to their kindergarten and was driving back home in his VAZ-Priora car with registration number E417- ОУ when his vehicle was blocked by a red-coloured VAZ-2107 and a silver-coloured VAZ-21014, both of which did not have official registration numbers. A group of masked men in camouflage uniforms got out of the vehicles, dragged Sirazhudin Shafiyev from his car, hit him on the head with a bludgeon, threw him in the back of his own car and took him away in it. 8.  The abductors drove away in the direction of Makhachkala, Dagestan, passing by the Road Police station (пост ГИБДД), which was located about six hundred metres from the place of the abduction. According to the applicant, the police officers who worked at the station personally knew her husband and his car, but, nonetheless, they did not stop the abductors when they drove by in Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s car and the latter was not the one driving. In addition, the police did not stop the abductors’ vehicles, in spite of the absence of official registration numbers on them. 9.  The abduction was witnessed by a number of local residents, one of whom took a photograph of the incident with his mobile phone.
(c)  Subsequent events 10.  At about 4 p.m. on the same day, 8 September 2009, a group of about one hundred and fifty local residents attempted to block the road in one of Derbent’s districts, protesting against Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s abduction. The rally was violently dispersed by the OMON (the special police task force unit). 11.  According to Mr R.Sh. (from the documents submitted it follows that he was also referred to as Imam Rasul), on 9 September 2009 he was ordered to come to the police station in the town of Izberbash in Dagestan. At the police station an officer who introduced himself as Magomed asked him about the passports which Mr R.Sh. had received from Sirazhudin Shafiyev. According to Mr R.Sh., he explained to the officer that on 7 September 2009 he had received four passports and 240,000 Russian roubles (RUB) from Sirazhudin Shafiyev for the processing of documents for a visa application to go abroad for Hajj. 12.  In or about the middle of September 2009 the President of Dagestan stated on public television that Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s abduction had been staged and that he had actually ‘gone to the forest’. The applicant did not include a copy of this statement with her application to the Court. 13.  In support of her statements, the applicant submitted two statements by Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s brother, Mr Ta.Sh., one dated 9 September 2009 and another 26 March 2010; a statement by Mr R.Sh. dated 11 September 2009; an information statement by Memorial Human Rights Centre concerning abductions perpetrated in Dagestan in September 2009; and copies of documents received from the authorities. 14.  The Government did not challenge the matter as presented by the applicant. At the same time they submitted that she had not witnessed the events and that her submissions to the Court had been based on information from third persons. They also added that the body of Sirazhudin Shafiyev had not been found, that the involvement of State representatives in his abduction had not been established and that the disappearance had, most probably, been staged to ‘...destabilise the religious situation in the Republic of Dagestan, to assist Sirazhudin Shafiyev in fleeing from possible prosecution and to allow his relatives to avoid public humiliation...’ 15.  On 8 September 2009 Mr T. Sh. complained to the authorities about the alleged abduction of his brother Sirazhudin Shafiyev by armed men in camouflage uniforms who had taken him away in his own car - registration number 417. The complaint also stated that the abduction had taken place in the presence of numerous passersby and taxi drivers. 16.  On 8 September 2009 investigators from the investigative department of the Derbent Prosecutor’s Office (the Investigative Department) questioned Mr S.Sh., Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s cousin, who stated that he had spoken with the applicant, who had informed him that Sirazhudin had left the house in the morning and had subsequently disappeared. 17.  On 8 September 2009 the investigators examined the crime scene at the place of the abduction. No evidence was collected. 18.  On 8 September 2009 the investigators requested that the Town Department of the Interior (the OVD) in the town of Dagestanskiye Ogni, the Derbent OVD and the Derbent Department of the Federal Security Service (the Derbent FSB) inform them whether any special operations had been conducted against Sirazhudin Shafiyev by their agencies. On an unspecified date a reply in the negative was received from the Dagestanskiye Ogni OVD. No reply was received either from the Derbent OVD or the Derbent FSB. 19.  On 8 September 2009 the investigators requested the Derbent morgue to inform them whether Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s body had been kept on their premises. On 11 September 2009 the morgue replied in the negative and stated that between 8 and 11 September 2009 they had not received any unidentified corpses. 20.  On the same date, 8 September 2009, the investigators requested that remand prison no. 2 in Derbent (СИЗО-2) inform them whether Sirazhudin Shafiyev had been detained on their premises. On 29 September 2009 a negative reply was received. 21.  Between 8 and 10 September 2009 five operational search officers from the Derbent OVD informed their supervisors that in spite of the steps taken, they had been unable to identify the eye-witnesses of Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s abduction. 22.  On 9 September 2009 the investigators questioned Mr Ta.Sh., the brother of Sirazhudin Shafiyev. He had not witnessed the abduction, but described its circumstances and stated that he had a video recording of it which had been taken by someone with a mobile phone’s camera. He further added that, in his opinion, his brother Sirazhudin had been abducted by representatives of special services who had suspected him of religious extremism and illegal activities, as his brother’s house had been under the surveillance of the FSB and the anti-terrorism committee. Lastly, Mr Ta.Sh. stated that abduction by State agents was the only plausible theory as Sirazhudin Shafiyev had not been involved in any dangerous business, had no enemies and had not participated in any activities which could imply hostile relationships with other people. 23.  On the same date, 9 September 2009, the investigators questioned Mr Te.Sh., another brother of Sirazhudin Shafiyev, who had not witnessed the abduction, but stated that he and Mr Ta.Sh. had a video recording of it taken with someone’s mobile phone. He further stated that Sirazhudin Shafiyev had been under the authorities’ surveillance and that a number of people, including taxi drivers, had witnessed the abduction, but that they had been afraid to give their statements to the police out of fear for their personal safety. Mr Te.Sh. further stated that from the video recording it was clearly visible that the abduction had been perpetrated by armed men who had arrived in a white VAZ-2105 (Лада) car with registration number Л558ХТ 05 RUS. 24.  On 10 September 2009 the Investigative Department instituted a criminal investigation into the disappearance of Sirazhudin Shafiyev under Article 126 § 2 of the Criminal Code (aggravated kidnapping). The case file was given the number 904323. 25.  On 11 September 2009 Mr R.Sh. (also known as Imam Rasul) stated to the investigators that on 9 September 2009 a certain Mr Magomed, an officer of the 6th Department (the Department on the Fight against Organised Crime) had asked him to come to the Izberbash (also spelt as Izberbasha) OVD, Dagestan. At the police station Mr Magomed had asked him about four passports and RUB 240,000 received from Sirazhudin Shafiyev on 7 September 2009. Mr R.Sh. had explained to the officer that he had received the four passports and the money for the processing of visas to go abroad for Hajj. 26.  On 12 September 2009 the investigators again questioned Mr Ta.Sh., who reiterated his statement of 9 September 2009 and stressed that even though he had not witnessed the abduction of Sirazhudin Shafiyev, who had been under the authorities’ surveillance, he and his brother had a video recording of the incident. 27.  On 14 September 2009 the applicant was granted victim status in the criminal case and questioned. She stated that at about 8 a.m. on 8 September 2009 her husband Sirazhudin Shafiyev had taken their children to kindergarten in their car. Later in the morning her husband’s brother, Mr S.Sh., had arrived at her house and told her that Sirazhudin had been abducted by armed masked men in camouflage uniforms who had driven around in two cars. The applicant and her relatives had immediately complained about the abduction to the law-enforcement authorities. 28.  On 14 September 2009 the investigators again questioned Mr Ta.Sh., who reiterated his previously given statements of 9 and 12 September 2009. He added that Sirazhudin Shafiyev had promised to assist several people in obtaining visas for Hajj in Saudi Arabia, and that on 7 September 2009 Sirazhudin had gone to Imam Rasul in Izberbash and had given him the documents and the money for the processing of the documents for Hajj. On 9 September 2009 officers from the 6th Department had questioned the imam (see paragraph 25 above) about the documents, as one set of them belonged to a man suspected of terrorism. Mr Ta.Sh. further asserted that his brother Sirazhudin Shafiyev had been abducted by representatives of special forces who had suspected him of terrorist activities; that the visit of the officer from the 6th Department to Imam Rasul was indirect proof that on 8 September 2009 the authorities had arrested Sirazhudin Shafiyev and had learnt from him about the transfer of the documents on 7 September 2009. 29.  On 14 September 2009 the investigators questioned Mr K.M., who stated that on 7 September 2009 he had given Sirazhudin Shafiyev his passport and 60,000 RUB for the visa application for Hajj. On 8 September 2009 Mr K.M. had discovered that Sirazhudin Shafiyev had been abducted and on 10 September 2009 he had been informed by an unidentified person that his passport and money had been passed on to Imam Rasul in Izberbash. Mr K.M. and three other men (Mr A.D., Mr S.M. and a certain Mr Artur) who had given passports and money to Sirazhudin Shafiyev for visas had gone to Imam Rasul. The latter had told them about the visit of the officer from the 6th Department, according to whom one of the four men had been on the wanted list. 30.  On 15 September 2009 the investigators questioned Mr A.D., who stated that on 7 September 2009 he had given Sirazhudin Shafiyev his passport and 60,000 RUB for the visa application for Hajj. His statement was similar to the one given by Mr K.M. on 14 September 2009. 31.  On 16 September 2009 the investigators questioned S.M., who stated that on 7 September 2009 he had given Sirazhudin Shafiyev his passport and 60,000 RUB for the visa application for Hajj. His statement was similar to the ones given by Mr K.M. on 14 September 2009 and Mr A.D. on 15 September 2009. 32.  On 18 September 2009 the investigators questioned Mr R.A., who had witnessed Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s abduction on his way to work. Mr R.A. stated that Sirazhudin Shafiyev had been abducted by masked men who had driven one silver-coloured VAZ-21014 and one red-coloured VAZ-2107 car without registration numbers. The abductors were tall, well‑built and were wearing black T-shirts. The abduction had taken place in the presence of many witnesses; a number of them had video recorded it on their mobile phones. A number of taxi drivers had seen the abduction as it had taken place next to the taxi stand. 33.  On 18 September 2009 the investigators questioned Mr Z.G., who had witnessed Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s abduction and whose statement was similar to the one given by Mr R.A. on the same date. 34.  On 18 September 2009 the Derbent medical emergency unit informed the investigators that between 7 and 15 September 2009 Sirazhudin Shafiyev had not applied for medical help. 35.  On 14 October 2009 the investigators again questioned Mr R.Sh. (Imam Rasul) who reiterated his previously given statement of 11 September 2009 and added that in the evening of 7 September 2009 Sirazhudin Shafiyev had given him the money and the passports and left. On 9 September 2009 the officer Magomed had told him that one of the four persons applying for visas for Hajj had been on the authorities’ wanted list. According to Mr R.Sh., the officer had also told him that the FSB had bugged Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s mobile phone, and that was how they had learnt about the transfer of the money and the documents on 7 September 2009. 36.  On 16 October 2009 the investigators again questioned the applicant, who stated that Mr T.M., whom she had pointed out to the investigators as a witness to the abduction, had not actually witnessed the abduction himself but had learnt about it and its circumstances from others. 37.  On 10 December 2009 the investigation into the abduction was suspended for failure to identify the perpetrators. The applicant was not informed about this decision. 38.  On 19 March 2010 the supervising prosecutor from the Investigations Department at the Dagestan Prosecutor’s Office overruled the decision to suspend the investigation as unlawful and unsubstantiated, and ordered that the proceedings be resumed. The decision criticised the investigators’ failure to take basic steps and pointed out the following:
“...from the witness statements... it follows that the abduction took place in the presence of numerous witnesses, next to the taxi stand. However, the investigators failed to identify and question all eye-witnesses to the abduction;
- from the case file it transpires that the abduction was recorded on a mobile phone. However, the investigators failed to take any steps to obtain this evidence and analyse it. They also failed to establish either Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s mobile phone number or the information from the phone service provider concerning the calls he had made.
- the investigators failed to take steps to identify the officer from the 6th Department who had visited Mr R.Sh. after the abduction ...”. 39.  On 29 March 2010 the investigation was resumed. 40.  On 30 March 2010 the investigators requested the Dagestan Centre on Terrorism Counteraction to provide them with a list of their servicemen who could have participated in the abduction. 41.  On 2 April 2010 the investigators again questioned Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s brother, Mr Ta.Sh., who stated that he had already given the investigators his statement concerning the circumstances of the abduction, and added that his brother Sirazhudin Shafiyev had had two mobile numbers and provided those numbers to the investigators. At the same time he stated that neither he, nor his relatives had video footage of the abduction taken by a mobile phone. 42.  On 5 April 2010 the investigators questioned the applicant’s relative, Ms Kh.R., who stated that she worked next to the place of the abduction and had witnessed the events. Her statement concerning the details was similar to the one given by Mr R.A. on 18 September 2009 (see paragraph 32 above). 43.  On 6 April 2010 the applicant requested the investigators to allow her to review the investigation file and to make copies of its contents. On 7 April 2010 the investigators granted her request. 44.  On 8 April 2010 the investigators forwarded requests for assistance to fifteen various district departments of the interior (the ROVD) in Dagestan, asking for information as to whether Sirazhudin Shafiyev had applied for medical help, complained of a crime committed against him or had been arrested on the suspicion of having committed one. They also requested to be informed whether Sirazhudin Shafiyev had purchased plane or train tickets and whether his body had been brought to a local morgue. Replies in the negative were received. 45.  On 14 April 2010 the investigators again questioned Sirazhudin Shafiyev’s brother, Mr Ta.Sh., who had provided them with a photo of the abduction taken by a mobile phone. As appeared in the photo, the red abductors’ vehicle did not have a registration number, whereas the white one, VAZ-2102, had the registration number A558KT. 46.  On the same date, 14 April 2010, the investigators requested that the Derbent OVD assist them with the identification of the white vehicle with registration number A558KT. The outcome of this request is unknown. 47.  On various dates in April 2010 the investigators questioned the applicant’s relatives and neighbours, including Ms Kh.R., Ms N.M., Ms F.N., Mr A.D., Mr S.Sh., Mr Kh.B. and Mr K.B. - all of whom stated that they had learnt about the abduction from their relatives. According to the witnesses, numerous passersby had witnessed and even recorded the abduction on their mobile phones, but were afraid to provide statements to the authorities out of fear for their personal safety. 48.  On 29 April 2010 the investigation into the abduction was again suspended for failure to identify the perpetrators. The applicant was not informed about this decision. 49.  On 11 June 2010 the supervising prosecutor from the Investigations Department at the Dagestan Prosecutor’s Office again overruled the decision to suspend the investigation as unlawful and unsubstantiated and ordered that the proceedings be resumed. The decision criticised the investigators’ failure to take basic steps and to carry out the detailed orders given on 19 March 2010 (see paragraph 38 above). 50.  On 29 June 2010 the investigation was resumed and the applicant was informed accordingly. 51.  On 30 June 2010 the investigators requested that the Derbent OVD assist them in carrying out the prosecutor’s orders of 19 March and 11 June 2010. 52.  On 25 July 2010 the Derbent OVD replied to the investigators, stating that on 14 September 2009 in order to establish the whereabouts of Sirazhudin Shafiyev they had opened criminal search file no. 90430, and that it had been impossible to identify the witnesses to the abduction. 53.  On 28 July 2010 the investigation into the abduction was again suspended for failure to identify the perpetrators and the applicant was informed accordingly. 54.  On 4 August 2010 the investigation in the criminal case was again resumed in compliance with the prosecutor’s orders of 19 March 2010. 55.  On 4 September 2010 the investigation into the abduction was again suspended for failure to identify the perpetrators and the applicant was informed accordingly. 56.  The Government further stated that, although the whereabouts of Sirazhudin Shafiyev had not been established, the investigation was in progress. The applicant had been informed of the developments in the criminal proceedings. 57.  According to the applicant, the investigative authorities failed to provide her with timely updates on the progress of the investigation. 58.  Upon specific request by the Court, the Government furnished the relevant parts of criminal case file no. 904323, which amounted to 190 pages.