5.  The applicant was born in 1944 and lives in Helsinki. 6.  The applicant purchased a company in September 1995. The company was wound-up on its own initiative in March 1996. A criminal investigation was started in regard to the financial activities of the company in February 1997 and the applicant was questioned by the police for the first time on 21 April 1997. He was, together with two other persons, suspected of aggravated debtor’s dishonesty and false accounting in 1995 and 1996. 7.  The pre-trial investigation was finalised on 26 November 1997. On 27 March 1998 the prosecutor waived prosecution due to insufficient evidence. 8.  On 22 April 1998 the bankruptcy estate requested the State prosecutor to examine the previous decision not to prosecute. On 23 December 1998 the deputy State prosecutor requested the police to conduct an additional investigation without delay due to the time that had already passed since the beginning of the investigation. On 23 December 1999, the local prosecutor was ordered to bring charges against all the suspects. An additional investigation was requested. The last investigation was concluded on 13 January 2000. 9.  The charges were brought against the applicant and the other defendants on 16 February 2000. The District Court (käräjäoikeus, tingsrätten) dismissed all the charges on 1 March 2002. 10.  Following the prosecutor’s appeal and after a two-day oral hearing, the Court of Appeal (hovioikeus, hovrätten) convicted the applicant on 18 June 2004. He was sentenced to five months’ imprisonment. The sentence was amended for reasons of equity in view of two previous prison sentences dating from 2002 and 2004. 11.  In his appeal to the Supreme Court the applicant raised the issue of the excessive length of the proceedings. The Supreme Court (korkein oikeus, högsta domstolen) refused leave to appeal on 8 February 2005.