MEDVED v. LATVIA and 3 other applications

2025-03-21T00:00:00
Published on 7 April 2025   FIRST SECTION Application no. 1353/24 Igor MEDVED against Latvia and 3 other applications (see list appended) communicated on 21 March 2025 SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE The applications concern the applicant’s initial and continued pre-trial detention. The applicant – a Belarusian national – was arrested on 22 March 2023 on suspicion of having violated international sanctions imposed by the European Union. On 23 March 2023 an investigating judge ordered the applicant’s detention pending trial. On 5 April 2023 a higher-court judge upheld that decision. The applicant’s detention was then periodically reviewed by judicial decisions of 17 May, 5 July, 25 July, 18 September, 15 November, and 1 December 2023, 5 January, 15 March, 3 April, 15 April, 20 May, 19 June, 21 August, 5 November, and 26 November 2024. The applicant alleges that his initial and continued pre-trial detention was not justified and that the judicial decisions lacked sufficient reasoning. He relies on Article 5 §§ 1 (c) and 3 of the Convention. QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES 1.  Was the applicant’s initial and continued detention in compliance with Article 5 §§ 1 (c) and 3 of the Convention?   2.  In particular, having regard to the Court’ s case-law (see, for example, Buzadji v. the Republic of Moldova [GC], no. 23755/07, §§ 85-91, 5 July 2016; Urtāns v. Latvia, no. 16858/11, §§ 28-30, 28 October 2014; and Bluks Savickis v. Latvia, no. 44570/19, §§ 35-37, 13 June 2024), did the domestic courts assess the reasonableness of the suspicion that the applicant had committed the offence he had been charged with and did they provide relevant and sufficient reasons for the applicant’s initial and continued detention?       APPENDIX No. Application no. Case name Lodged on Applicant Year of Birth Place of Residence Nationality Represented by 1. 1353/24 Medved v. Latvia 03/01/2024 Igor MEDVED 1974 Lapmežciems Belarusian Oskars JONĀNS 2. 12533/24 Medved v. Latvia 23/04/2024 Igor MEDVED 1974 Lapmežciems Belarusian Jānis STRENCIS 3. 25271/24 Medved v. Latvia 28/06/2024 Igor MEDVED 1974 Lapmežciems Belarusian Jānis STRENCIS 4. 4478/25 Medved v. Latvia 05/02/2025 Igor MEDVED 1974 Lapmežciems Belarusian Jānis STRENCIS