PROCEDURE

The case originated in an application (no. 33176/06) against the Republic of Poland lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) by a Polish national, Mr Sebastian Gulczyński (“the applicant”), on 8 August 2006.

The applicant was represented by Ms A. Pietras, a lawyer practising in Gdynia. The Polish Government (“the Government”) were represented by their Agent, Mr J. Wolasiewicz of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The applicant alleged, in particular, that his detention on remand had exceeded a “reasonable time” within the meaning of Article 5 § 3 of the Convention.

On 27 September 2007 the President of the Fourth Section of the Court decided to give notice of the application to the Government. It was also decided to examine the merits of the application at the same time as its admissibility (Article 29 § 3).

THE FACTS

I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE

The applicant was born in 1976 and lives in Gdańsk.

On 2 March 2003 the applicant was arrested on suspicion of armed robbery and theft committed as part of an organised criminal gang.

On 3 March 2003 the Gdańsk Regional Court (Sąd Okręgowy) ordered his pre-trial detention. It referred to the likelihood that the applicant had committed the offences with which he had been charged. It further considered that there was a reasonable risk that the applicant would obstruct the investigation by inducing witnesses to give false testimony.

In the course of the investigation the applicant’s detention was prolonged by the Regional Court several times. The court referred to the likelihood of a severe sentence of imprisonment being imposed on the applicant and the complexity of the case. It relied on the fact that there were no circumstances to justify the application of a different preventive measure.

On 20 November 2003 the Gdańsk Regional Prosecutor (Prokurator Okręgowy) indicted the applicant together with 13 other persons on charges of armed robbery, fraud, destruction of documents and theft committed as part of an organised criminal gang. The prosecutor asked the court to hear evidence from at least 120 witnesses.

The trial began on 17 March 2004. The trial court held on average three hearings per month.

In the course of the trial the applicant’s detention was prolonged by the Regional Court and the Gdańsk Court of Appeal (Sąd Apelacyjny) several times. The court relied on the previous grounds. It also referred to the need to conclude the proceedings and in particular to ensure that the numerous co-accused and witnesses were questioned.

The applicant’s appeals against the decisions extending his detention and against the detention order, and all his subsequent, numerous applications for release and appeals against refusals to release him, were unsuccessful.

In particular, on 31 July 2006 the applicant made an application for his detention to be lifted or replaced by another preventive measure. He referred to the fact that his role in the organised criminal gang had been marginal and that the process of obtaining evidence had been successfully completed. On 17 August 2006 the Regional Court dismissed the application.

On 15 November 2006 the Gdańsk Regional Court convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to eight years’ imprisonment. The judgment became final, as on 28 November 2006 the applicant informed the Gdańsk Regional Court that he would not appeal.