European Court of Human Rights

FOURTH SECTION

Application no. 31804/10
Jan ZAŁUSKA
against Poland
lodged on 24 May 2010

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The applicant, Mr Jan Załuska, is a Polish national, who was born in 1946 and lives in Warszawa. He is represented before the Court by Mr W. Wrzecionkowski, a lawyer practising in Olsztyn.

The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant, may be summarised as follows.

On 27 August 2001 the applicant was kidnapped by unknown individuals after a business meeting concerning a large-scale financial transaction in connection with privatisation of an oil refinery.

Between 27 August and 23 November 2001 the applicant was kidnapped by three individuals. The applicant was bound with a chain to a wall, beaten and left with his wounds unattended to, hung naked from a ceiling, soaked in water and asphyxiated by placing a plastic bag over his head. His persecutors interrogated him repeatedly and threatened him and his family in order to obtain information and powers of attorney. Afterwards the perpetrators left the applicant in the woods from where he managed to make his way home.

The applicant informed the police about the events. He also obtained a medical certificate confirming his injuries.

On 5 November 2002 the police arrested three persons in connection with the investigation into the events of 2001. Two of them remained in pre‑trial detention until August 2003.

On 30 June 2004 the prosecutor indicted L.M. and J.G. before the Warsaw District Court.

On 26 June 2007 the prosecutor indicted J.S., a lawyer with whom the applicant had had a meeting just before his kidnapping.

Afterwards both cases were joined and examined together (VK 1827/06).

In January and October 2008 the applicant, who joined the proceedings as an auxiliary prosecutor, asked the trial court to schedule a hearing.

On 16 November 2009 the applicant lodged a complaint about a breach of his right to trial within a reasonable time and asked for just satisfaction. He relied on the amended Law of 17 June 2004 on complaints about a breach of the right to an investigation conducted or supervised by a prosecutor and to a trial within a reasonable time (Ustawa o skardze na naruszenie prawa strony do rozpoznania sprawy w postępowaniu przygotowawczym prowadzonym lub nadzorowanym przez prokuratora I postępowaniu sądowym bez nieuzasadnionej zwłoki) (“the 2004 Act”).

On 22 December 2009 the Warsaw Regional Court allowed the applicant’s complaint and awarded him 5,000 Polish zlotys (PLN) in compensation. The court considered that there had been a delay in particular after the lodging of the bill of indictment against L.M. and J.G. Moreover, the trial court had remained inactive since 2007.

On 29 November 2010 the Warsaw District Court decided to sever the proceedings and to examine the case against L.M. and J.G. separately from the case against J.S.

In 2011 both trial courts held many hearings in the two criminal cases but have not yet finished hearing the applicant and no witnesses have been heard. No judgment has been given.

COMPLAINT

The applicant complains under Article 6 of the Convention about the length of the criminal proceedings against his persecutors. He submits that he has been living in permanent fear and anxiety knowing that the accused are at liberty and have not yet been punished.

QUESTION TO the PARTIES

Having regard to the procedural protection from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment (see paragraph 131 of Labita v. Italy [GC], no. 26772/95, ECHR 2000-IV and Denis Vasilyev v. Russia, no. 32704/04, §§ 89-100, 17 December 2009), was the investigation and judicial examination in the present case by the domestic authorities in breach of Article 3 of the Convention?