SkyECC and EncroChat evidence before the ECtHR: Norwegian convictions of 20 and 12 years challenged on fair-trial grounds

On 6 May 2026 the European Court of Human Rights (Second Section) communicated the applications Isha v. Norway and Emmen v. Norway to the Norwegian Government. Both concern SkyECC and EncroChat evidence obtained from French authorities and used as decisive evidence in Norwegian drug proceedings. The Borgarting Court of Appeal convicted the applicants on 31 May 2024 and sentenced them to 20 and 12 years' imprisonment, noting that neither side had access to the underlying data, collection methods or technical documentation; the Supreme Court refused leave to appeal on 15 November 2024. The applicants rely on Art. 6 § 1 ECHR. The Court's questions refer to Yüksel Yalçınkaya v. Türkiye [GC] and concern the decisive character of the evidence, the integrity and completeness of the datasets, the defence's ability to challenge authenticity and the chain of custody, equality of arms and the adequacy of the domestic reasoning.