Published on 12 January 2026
 
SECOND SECTION
Application no. 55482/22
Orce TODOROVSKI
against North Macedonia
lodged on 23 November 2022
communicated on 15 December 2025
SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE
The application concerns the alleged lack of reasoning in the courts’ decisions for the applicant’s pre-trial detention and house arrest in respect of the reasonable suspicion that he committed an offence.
On 27 May 2022 the prosecutor opened an official investigation against several individuals including the applicant, for alleged misconduct in office, and requested that the applicant be detained on remand.
On the same day, a pre-trial judge ordered the applicant to be held in detention on remand until 24 June 2022 when he was placed under house arrest with restrictions on using devices and methods for communication. On 23 August 2022 house arrest was discontinued, and he was subjected to preventive measures, including restrictions on travel outside his city, judicial supervision, confiscation of his passport, a prohibition on visiting certain companies and a restriction on contacting persons relevant to the investigation.
In the detention and house arrest orders the courts found that there was reasonable suspicion that the applicant had committed the offence in question, noting that the facts and evidence were included in the prosecutor’s investigation order.
The applicant complains under Article 5 § 3 of the Convention about the lack of reasoning in the decisions for his detention and house arrest in respect of the reasonable suspicion that he committed the crime.
 
QUESTION TO THE PARTIES
Was the applicant’s initial detention and subsequent house arrest in compliance with Article 5 § 3 of the Convention? In particular, having regard to the Court’s case-law (see Buzadji v. the Republic of Moldova [GC], no. 23755/07, §§ 87-91, 5 July 2016), did the domestic courts assess the reasonableness of the suspicion against the applicant and did they provide relevant and sufficient reasons for the applicant’s initial detention and subsequent house arrest (see Merabishvili v. Georgia [GC], no. 72508/13, § 222, 28 November 2017; Giorgi Nikolaishvili v. Georgia, no. 37048/04, § 77, 13 January 2009; compare Tase v. Romania, no. 29761/02, § 41, 10 June 2008)?