The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has fined Russia at about 62 thousand Euro for Russia’s failure to investigate and abduction of a young Chechen man.

Here is the press release:

EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS

Press Release
ECHR 118 (2013)
18.04.2013

The European Court of Human Rights has today notified in writing the following judgement which is not final.

Askhabova v. Russia (no. 54765/09)

The applicant, Tamara Askhabova, is a Chechen national who was born in 1951 and lives in Shali, the Chechen Republic. The case concerned the abduction and disappearance of her son, Abdul-Yazit Askhabov, born in 1983. She alleged that three armed men in masks and military camouflage uniforms had broken into the family home in the early hours of the morning on 5 August 2009, had dragged her son out of bed and had taken him away without any further explanation. He had not been seen since. Another two of her five sons had been killed, in 2000 and shortly before Abdul-Yazit’s disappearance, due to their alleged connections with illegal armed groups. Ms Askhabova alleged that police officers had abducted and killed her son and that the Russian authorities’ ensuing investigation into her allegations had been ineffective. She relied in particular on Article 2 (right to life), Article 3 (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment), Article 5 (right to liberty and security), and Article 13 (right to an effective remedy).

Two violations of Article 2 (death of the applicant’s son + ineffective ensuing investigation)
Violation of Article 3 (mental suffering caused to the applicant)
Violation of Article 5 (unlawful detention of the applicant’s son)
Violation of Article 13 in conjunction with Articles 2 and 3

Just satisfaction: EUR 60,000 (non-pecuniary damage) and EUR 1,800 (costs and expenses)