therefore first to be established whether the armed men belonged to the federal forces.
69. The Court notes at the outset that despite its repeated requests for a copy of the file on the investigation concerning the abduction of Isa Zaurbekov, the Government refused to produce it, referring to Article 161 of the Russian Code of Criminal Procedure. The Court observes that in previous cases it has found this explanation insufficient to justify the withholding of key information requested by it (see, for example, Imakayeva v. Russia, No. 7615/02, § 123, ECHR 2006-XIII). In view of the foregoing, and bearing in mind the principles cited above, the Court finds that it can draw inferences from the Government's conduct in this respect.
70. It further considers that the applicants presented a coherent and consistent picture of their relative's detention on 11 February 2003. The second applicant herself was an eyewitness to the events in question and also corroborated her account with eyewitness statements by her two neighbours, Ms D. and Ms M.-M. (see paragraph 13 above). In this latter connection the Court rejects the argument by which the Government called into question the reliability of Ms M.-M.'s statement, alleging that it contradicted the oral evidence given by her to the investigating authorities. The Court notes that the applicants produced a copy of Ms M.M.'s statement, whereas the Government failed to furnish the Court with a copy of the transcript of the witness interview on which they relied. It further observes that the applicants stated that the perpetrators had acted in a manner similar to that of a security operation. In particular, they had arrived in a large group in military vehicles during the night, had checked the identity papers of a man living in the flat and had searched the flat. Also, the intruders had spoken Russian without an accent and had had a Slavic appearance. In the Court's opinion, the fact that a large group of armed men in camouflage uniforms were able to move freely during the curfew and to apprehend a person at his home in a city area strongly supports the applicants' allegation that they were representatives of the federal forces.
71. The Court observes that where the applicant makes out a prima facie case and the Court is prevented from reaching factual conclusions owing to the lack of crucial documents, it is for the Government to argue conclusively why the documents in question cannot serve to corroborate the allegations made by the applicant, or to provide a satisfactory and convincing explanation of how the events in question occurred. The burden of proof is thus shifted to the Government and if they fail in their arguments, issues will arise under Article 2 and/or Article 3 (see {Togcu} v. Turkey, No. 27601/95, § 95, 31 May 2005, and Akkum and Others v. Turkey, No. 21894/93, § 211, ECHR 2005-II).
72. Taking into account the above elements, the Court is satisfied that the applicants have made out a prima facie case that their relative was detained by State agents. The Government's statement that the investigation did not find any evidence to support the allegation of involvement of personnel of the federal military forces or security agencies in the abduction is insufficient to relieve them of the above-mentioned burden of proof. The Court is also sceptical about the Government's suggestion of the possible implication of illegal fighters in the abduction of Isa Zaurbekov, given that this allegation was not specific and was not supported by any materials. Drawing inferences from the Government's failure to submit the documents from the criminal investigation file which were in their exclusive possession or to provide another plausible explanation of the events in question, the Court finds it established that Isa Zaurbekov was apprehended on 11 February 2003 by State agents.
73. The Court further
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