Mr Francisco Teixeira de Castro, a Portuguese citizen, was born in 1955 and lives at Campelos (Guimarães). In connection with an operation monitoring drug trafficking, two plain-clothes officers of the Public Security Police (PSP) from the Famalição police station approached an individual, V.S., on a number of occasions. He was suspected of petty drug trafficking in order to pay for drugs – mainly hashish – for his own consumption. They hoped that through V.S. they would be able to identify his supplier and offered to buy several kilograms of hashish from him. Unaware that they were police officers, V.S. agreed to find a supplier. However, despite being pressed by the two officers, he was unable to locate one.
Shortly before midnight on 30 December 1992 the two officers went to V.S.’s home saying that they were now interested in buying heroin. V.S. mentioned the name of Francisco Teixeira de Castro as being someone who might be able to find some; however, he did not know the latter’s address and had to obtain it from F.O. All four then went to the applicant’s home in the purported buyers’ car. The applicant came outside at F.O.’s request and got into the car where the two officers, accompanied by V.S., were waiting. The officers said that they wished to buy 20 grams of heroin for 200,000 escudos (PTE) and produced a roll of banknotes from the Bank of Portugal.
Mr Teixeira de Castro agreed to procure the heroin and, accompanied by F.O., went in his own car to the home of another person, J.P.O. The latter obtained three sachets of heroin, one weighing ten grams and the other two five grams each, from someone else and, on his return, handed them over to the applicant in exchange for a payment, which, though the precise figure is not known, exceeded PTE 100,000.
The applicant then took the drugs to V.S.’s home; V.S. had in the meantime returned there and the two police officers were waiting outside. The deal was to take place in the house. The officers went inside at V.S.’s invitation; the applicant then took one of the sachets out of his pocket, whereupon the two officers identified themselves and arrested the applicant, V.S. and F.O., shortly before 2 a.m. They searched all three and found the applicant to be in possession of another two sachets of heroin, PTE 43,000 in cash and a gold bracelet.
Mr Teixeira de Castro complained that he had not had a fair trial in that he had been incited by plain-clothes police officers to commit an offence of which he was later convicted. He relied on Article 6 § 1 of the Convention.
Citation: Teixeira de Castro v Portugal (App mp 25829/94) ECHR 9 June 1998
(from the official press-release prepared by the Registry Office of the European Court of Human Rights)