AGONTSEV v. BULGARIA
Inadmissible
George Nicolaou;Ineta Ziemele;Ledi Bianku;Nona Tsotsoria;Paul Mahoney;Zdravka Kalaydjieva
1. The applicant, Mr Venko Nikolov Agontsev, is a Bulgarian national who was born in 1967 and lives in Varna. He was represented before the Court by Mr M. Ekimdzhiev and Ms K. Boncheva, lawyers practising in Plovdiv. 2. The Bulgarian Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agents, Ms M. Kotseva and Ms L. Gyurova, of the Ministry of Justice. 3. The facts of the case, as submitted by the parties, may be summarised as follows. 4. On 22 September 2002 the prosecution authorities in Varna opened criminal proceedings in relation to the murder of Mr O.K. On 11 November 2002 the applicant was arrested and charged with instigating the murder. On 12 November 2002 he was placed in pre-trial detention, where he remained until 23 June 2003 when the Varna Regional Court ordered his release on bail. The amount of bail was set at 10,000 Bulgarian levs (BGN), which was paid by Ms N.G. On 26 June 2003 the applicant was released. 5. The preliminary investigation into Mr O.K.’s death continued until 31 October 2005, when the applicant and several other individuals were indicted and sent to trial. 6. In a judgment of 29 March 2007 the Varna Regional Court convicted the applicant of aiding and abetting Mr O.K.’s murder and sentenced him to sixteen years’ imprisonment. 7. After delivery of the judgment, in a decision given at the same hearing, referring merely to the “degree of dangerousness of the offence committed and its [perpetrators], and the type and severity of the punishment imposed”, the Varna Regional Court ordered that the applicant be placed once again in custody. He was detained at the end of the hearing. 8. On 4 April 2007 the applicant appealed against his placement in custody, pointing out that while on bail he had not attempted to abscond or obstruct the investigation. On 21 April 2007 the Varna Court of Appeal declared his appeal inadmissible, noting that at that stage of the proceedings a decision ordering placement in custody could not be challenged separately from the judgment on the merits. 9. In his initial application to the Court, the applicant stated that following his detention he had not been able to recover the bail paid in 2003. However, after communication of the application the respondent Government submitted documents showing that on 3 May 2007 a representative of Ms N.G. had requested that the bail be returned to her. On 19 September 2007 the representative presented a power of attorney, and the next day the Varna Regional Court ordered the Regional Investigation Service to pay the sum back. 10. Following appeals by the accused, on 30 January 2008 the Varna Court of Appeal quashed the Varna Regional Court’s judgment of 29 March 2007 and remitted the case. On 1 July 2008, following a fresh examination, the lower court acquitted the applicant and ordered his release with immediate effect. 11. Following further appeals by the prosecution, on 25 March and 28 December 2009 respectively, the Varna Regional Court’s judgment was upheld by the Varna Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Cassation. 12. The relevant provisions of domestic law concerning remedies for excessive length of proceedings have been summarised in the Court’s decisions in the cases of Balakchiev and Others v. Bulgaria ((dec.), no. 65187/10, §§ 18-37, 18 June 2013) and Valcheva and Abrashev v. Bulgaria ((dec.), nos. 6194/11 and 34887/11, §§ 47-66, 18 June 2013).