MOSCOW, June 9. /TASS/. Lawyers of Ivan Golunov, correspondent of the Meduza media outlet, charged with attempted large-scale sale of drugs, aim to file a claim to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over the conditions of his detention, attorney Dmitry Dzhulai informed.

"Ivan was detained at 14:30 Moscow time on June 6, cuffed, and this is the exact time of his detention. However, at 14:30 today [June 8], he had not been released, and during the time leading up to the court ruling, he was detained unlawfully," Dzhulai told reporters.

"For over 24 hours, he (Golunov - TASS) had not slept, had not eaten, had not drunk anything, and he did not understand what was going on. This was real torture, and we will file a claim to the ECHR under Article 3 of the Convention on Human Rights," he added.

On Saturday, a Moscow court ruled to put Golunov under house arrest until August 7.

Golunov, 36, an investigative correspondent from the Riga-based Meduza online newspaper was detained in downtown Moscow on June 6. According to police, he was carrying several packages containing 4 grams of mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant drug. Three packages, a parcel containing a powdery substance and scales were found in his house. A criminal case was opened against Golunov.

His lawyers insisted that the police had planted the drugs on his client, explaining that this could occur at the moment when the journalist was confronted by the police. Meduza’s Director General Galina Timchenko and Chief Editor Ivan Kolpakov believe that Golunov could be prosecuted over his professional activity.