4.  The applicant was born in 1967 and lives in Moscow. 5.  S. was the owner of a one-room flat located at 6-60, Smolenskaya Street, Moscow. On 7 February 2008 S. died. 6.  An unidentified person presenting a passport in the name of M. and claiming that she was S.’s sister and heir applied to G., a notary, seeking the recognition of her rights in respect of the flat. In support of her claim she submitted a copy of her birth certificate. 7.  On 18 March 2009 G. issued a certificate confirming, inter alia, M.’s title to the flat. The city authorities registered M.’s title to the flat in the State land register. 8.  On 19 May 2009 an unidentified person posing as M. sold the flat to the applicant. According to the documents submitted by the applicant, the purchase price was 6,499,999 Russian roubles (RUB). The city authorities registered the sale of the flat and the applicant’s title to it in the State land register. 9.  On an unspecified date the police opened a criminal investigation into the fraudulent acquisition of the flat. It was established that the document presented to the notary as M.’s birth certificate had been forged. 10.  On 23 September 2009 the police informed the Department of Housing and Housing Policy of the City of Moscow (the “Housing Department”) of the pending criminal investigation. 11.  On 1 December 2009 the Housing Department brought an action seeking the transfer of the applicant’s flat to the City of Moscow (“the City”). 12.  On 11 March 2010 the criminal investigation was suspended. 13.  On 27 December 2010 the Presnenskiy District Court of Moscow allowed the Housing Department’s action. It reasoned that M. had died intestate with no surviving kin and that her flat should have been considered bona vacantia. It annulled the applicant’s title to the flat and ordered its transfer to the City of Moscow. 14.  Following an appeal by the applicant, on 14 July 2011 the Moscow City Court upheld the judgment of 27 December 2010. 15.  On an unspecified date the judgments of 27 December 2010 and 14 July 2011 were enforced. Subsequently the City of Moscow sold the flat to a private party under a social assistance scheme that permitted the buyer to pay the purchase price in instalments. 16.  On 12 October 2017 the criminal investigation into the fraudulent acquisition of the flat was reopened.