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The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Spanish authorities violated the rights of two women who alleged they were drugged and raped in Pamplona in 2016, citing serious investigative failures and evidence manipulation.
The Strasbourg-based court found that police mishandled crucial evidence, including the disappearance of bar surveillance footage, the loss of data from one suspect’s phone, and the overwriting of a hard drive containing forensic information. It also noted a conflict of interest, as one of the investigating officers was related to one of the suspects.
According to the ruling, the women said they had drinks with two men on the night of December 7, 2016, but had no memory of events until waking up undressed in one of the men’s homes, with physical signs of sexual activity. The suspects claimed the encounter was consensual.
The case was closed in 2021 after Spanish courts ruled there was insufficient evidence to prove the women had been drugged or that the men were aware they were unconscious during the encounter. However, the ECHR found that the state’s handling of the case amounted to a breach of the prohibition against inhuman or degrading treatment and violated the women’s right to respect for private life.
The court criticised the “manifestly inadequate” police conduct and said the failure to safeguard key evidence went beyond isolated errors. It also noted that subsequent probes into potential police misconduct were delayed and handled by the same authorities involved in the flawed initial investigation, raising concerns about impartiality.
As part of its ruling, the ECHR ordered Spain to pay each woman €20,000 (£16,900) in damages and an additional €5,000 (£4,200) jointly for legal costs.
