Mr. Sergey Sankin battered by the police in 2000 has received 3 million 137 thousand roubles awarded to him as compensation of moral and material damage by the Sormovskiy district court of Nizhny Novgorod on 17 June 2008.

You may remember that according to the judgment, the defendant, Finance Mininstry of Nizhny Novgorod region, is to pay Mr. Sankin 1 million 137 thousand roubles as compensation of damage to health and 2 million roubles as compensation of moral damage at one time. Besides, Mr. Sankin will be paid 17 000 roubles monthly till April 2009.

This compensation is the largest one paid for tortures by the police and awarded by a Russian court.

In December 2005 the Sormovskiy district court of Nizhny Novgorod sentenced two police officers who had bettered Mr. Sankin, senior sergeant Alexey Guganov and sergeant Dmitriy Ageyev, to 5 years and 6 months of imprisonment in an increased security penal colony.

The court has determined that in May 2000 retired military officer, participant of anti-terrorist missions in the North-Caucasus Mr. Sergey Sankin was detained by the police in his own flat in course of a domestic quarrel and taken to a police station and battered there by officers Ageyev and Guganov. The battery resulted in a concussion and multiple bruises on the head and body. In course of investigation there was a forensic medical and psychological examination. According to the examination report, the brain injury incurred to Mr. Sankin caused a psycho-somatic disorder. 

For 5 years the investigation was stopped many times “for the lack of corpus delicti in the actions of the police”. Specialists of the Nizhny Novgorod office of the Committee against Torture carries out a public investigation and collected enough evidence proving officer Ageyev’s and officer Guganov’s involvement into the crime.   

Mr. Sankin’s application claiming violation of articles 3 and 13 of the European Convention was declared admissible by the European Court. The Interregional committee against Torture represents Mr. Sankin’s interests in the European Court of Human Rights.