CAT/C/MDA/CO/3
(a)
Persons suspected of having committed an offence can be detained in socalled police isolators for a period of 72 hours after being arrested before being brought
before a judge, and that some have been detained for up to two months;
(b)
That preventive arrest and detention, when persons are most vulnerable to
torture and ill-treatment, is applied excessively, even in cases when the crime committed
does not qualify for preventive arrest and detention; that the number of persons placed in
pretrial detention has increased by more than 20 per cent since 2013; and that alternatives to
detention are rarely used;
(c)
The excessive use of pretrial detention causes overcrowding in all temporary
detention facilities and that inadequate material conditions prevail in such facilities,
including dirty and badly ventilated cells, lack of heating in winter and toilets that are not
separated from the cells;
(d)
There are no protocols or provisions for staff who are qualified to deal with
arrested persons with mental or intellectual disabilities;
(e)
There is a lack of clarity regarding the de jure and de facto closure of police
temporary detention isolators that have been deemed unfit for use (arts. 2, 11 and 16).
11.
The State party should:
(a)
Ensure that all persons who are arrested on criminal charges are
brought before a judge within 48 hours and that no one is held in pretrial detention
for longer than prescribed by law, for offences for which preventive detention is not
prescribed by law, or in places of detention that have been deemed unfit for use; and
provide redress to victims of unjustified prolonged pretrial detention;
(b)
Amend its legislation and take all necessary measures to shorten the
duration of pretrial detention, which should be used as an exception and as a measure
of last resort, and should be applied for limited periods of time, in accordance with
international standards; and consider replacing pretrial detention for minor crimes
with non-custodial measures, including electronic surveillance;
(c)
Improve material conditions in temporary detention facilities and
pretrial facilities and ensure that those deemed unfit for habitation are not used;
(d)
Ensure that so-called police isolators and pretrial detention facilities
have protocols and qualified staff to interact with persons with mental or intellectual
disabilities.
Impunity for acts of torture and ill-treatment
12.
The Committee is gravely concerned at reports that most cases of torture and cruel,
inhuman and degrading treatment in the context of criminal investigations are attributed to
police officers and law enforcement personnel during the arrest and the preliminary
investigation period, and that law enforcement personnel induce violence among inmates in
order to punish or elicit cooperation from targeted detainees. The Committee is also
concerned about the low rate of criminal investigations into allegations of torture and illtreatment during pretrial detention under article 166 (1) of the Criminal Code, amounting to
less than 20 per cent of cases, and the very low number of convictions of perpetrators.
13.
In particular, the Committee is concerned that, although 108 complaints were
registered by prosecutors concerning the post-election violence of 7 April 2009 that
resulted in more than 600 injuries and four deaths, fewer than 10 persons were held
accountable and, to date, no one has been punished with deprivation of liberty. The
Committee is also concerned by recent cases revealing that measures put in place to
encourage the investigation of allegations of torture are not functioning in practice. The
Committee notes in this regard the death of Andrei Braguta on 26 August 2017, which
reportedly occurred after he was severely beaten by police officers and four cell mates
against whom the other police officers present did not intervene, and after he subsequently
contracted pneumonia in the Penitentiary No. 16 hospital facility in circumstances
suggesting gross negligence. While criminal charges have been brought against three police
officers and four inmates at the detention centre in connection with the case, the Committee
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