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by **Seamus OBlimey** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 6:04 pm

Chess prodigy, 19, falls to death "A teenage chess champion has fallen to her death while competing in an international tournament. Jessie Gilbert, 19, from Croydon, south London, fell from the eighth floor of the Hotel Labe in Pardubice, in the Czech Republic, on Wednesday morning. She had been working towards becoming a Women's International Master and had a place to study medicine at Oxford. British Chess Magazine editor John Saunders said her death had left all her fellow chess players in shock. Miss Gilbert was taking part in the Czech Open tournament, while on her gap year before going to university. The English Chess Federation described her as one of England's leading women players. She was just 12 years old when she won the Women's World Amateur Championship - the youngest player to do so. Miss Gilbert, a former pupil of Croydon High School, was a member of Coulsdon Chess club in Surrey for 12 years. Its president, Rev Howard Curtis, said: "She was a lovely young lady, she was very helpful. "Though she obviously went higher and higher she always played for us whenever she could as a thank you for what we did for her over the years." 'Very promising player' She had also got involved in coaching younger players at the Andrew Martin Chess Academy. John Upham, from the Academy, said: "Everyone is devastated, she was such a bright spark in English chess and a very promising player." Police are investigating how she came to fall at 4.40am local time on Wednesday. Players at the Czech Open tournament observed a one-minute silence before the start of play on Wednesday." <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/5222644.stm">BBC</a> "In 1999 Jessie was 11: here are some headlines from that period: "Another potential draw is 11-year-old Jessie Gilbert, from Croydon. By winning the Women’s World Amateur Championship at Hastings at the start of this year Jessie became possibly the youngest person to win a senior world championship in any competitive arena. Against opposition from 13 countries, she acquired the Women’s World Chess Federation Master title and an automatic rating of 2050 - both age records for a British female chess player. To recognise her achievement the Brain Trust charity, in concert with the Swedish health care and education giant Bure, awarded Jessie a £4,000 chess scholarship to America, where she studied with Edmar Mednis, the New York grandmaster, for a week." Now, in Jessies' own words... I started playing chess at the age of 8 and quickly became hooked on the game. Since then I have always played as much as I can alongside school studies. I have played in a wide variety of events including having been given many opportunities to represent the country abroad. I have also always enjoyed coaching chess, both in group and individual contexts. I am currently taking a year out to play and study chess and am particularly working towards attaining a Women's International Master title. I will be starting medical school at Oxford in October 2006 but plan to continue actively participating in the chess world!" <a href="http://www.andrewmartinchessacademy.com/coach.php?staffid=24">www.andrewmartinchessacademy.com/coach.php?staffid=24</a> Are all the best minds self destructive?

by **plsmith** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 2:22 am

<blockquote>Quote:<hr>Are all the best minds self destructive?<hr></blockquote> hmm... Did she fall, or was she pushed?

by **Sepka** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 4:31 am

<a href="http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3258" target="top">www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3258</a> <blockquote>Quote:<hr>The BBC and Times are reporting that the 19-year-old English chess player Jessie Gilbert from Croydon, Surrey, has died. On Wednesday morning at 3:15 a.m. she fell from an eighth floor window of a hotel in Pardubice, Czech Republic, where she was taking part in a tournament. Nobody knows precisely what happened. The Czech police investigating her death say that they have been told by her friends that she was a sleepwalker and had tried to harm herself twice before, once with a knife. Inspector David Kakrda said that that Ms Gilbert was alone at the time of her death. He told Times Online that the police could not exclude the possibility that she fell out of the window, but that would require a certain energy to climb over the sill. He said investigators had found a lot of medication, some of which turned out to be anti-depressants which had been prescribed in her name. "We think she may have had psychological problems," said Inspector Kakrda. Organiser Jiri Petruzalek said that it appeared Ms Gilbert had committed suicide, but could not confirm this until the post-mortem had been carried out. "But everything points to it being suicide," said Petruzalek. There are no signs of anyone else being involved or an accident. She was playing quite well, certainly up to her usual standards, and there was no hint that something like this was about to happen. No one noticed anything strange in her behaviour or manner while she was here."<hr></blockquote> -Sepka the Space Weasel

by **4911** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 4:55 am

She sleepwalked out of the window? Scary.

by **Seamus OBlimey** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 2:40 am

<blockquote>Quote:<hr>or was she pushed?<hr></blockquote> "Father charged with chess girl rape Press Association Sunday July 30, 2006 1:28 AM The father of a promising young chess player who plunged to her death from a hotel window is due to stand trial over allegations that he raped her, it has emerged. Jessie Gilbert, 19, fell from her eighth-floor room at the Hotel Labe in Pardubice, 65 miles east of Prague, where she had been taking part in the Czech Open tournament. Police are continuing to investigate the teenager's death amid reports that she had been taking medication for depression. On Saturday it emerged her father, 48-year-old Ian Gilbert, had been charged with seven counts of rape and two of indecent assault. It is thought that the charges against him relate to more than one victim. The Royal Bank of Scotland employee is on bail awaiting trial at Guildford Crown Court on August 24. Until recently Miss Gilbert had been living with her parents Ian and Angela and sister Samantha in the village of Woldingham, Surrey. But her parents had recently divorced, sold the house and moved to separate properties. Neighbours are reported to have said the family had been through a "difficult time". While there have been suggestions that the teenager may have been sleepwalking, organisers of the tournament believe she may have committed suicide. John Saunders, editor of British Chess Magazine, said he had been approached independently by "a number" of chess players who had spoken of a possible problem with sleepwalking. But Jan Mazuch, director of the Czech Open, said he believed she had jumped from the eighth-floor room." <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/story/0,,-5982465,00.html?gusrc=ticker-103704">Guardian</a> Pushed.

by **Sepka** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 3:53 am

<a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=398148&in_page_id=1770">www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=398148&in_page_id=1770</a> <blockquote>Quote:<hr>The father of a child chess prodigy who plunged to her death from an eighth floor hotel window is facing trial accused of raping her. Jessie Gilbert, 19, downed a cocktail of drinks with a friend before apparently throwing herself from her room, police in the Czech Republic said. Now it has emerged that the teenager, who was competing in an international chess tournament, had been tormented by the criminal proceedings against her father. Ian Gilbert, a City banker, has been charged with seven counts of rape and two of indecent assault - understood to relate to more than one victim. He is due to appear in court next month. Jessie, whose mother is a research scientist, had been taking a gap year to play chess while preparing to go to Oxford University to study medicine. But her life had been thrown into turmoil after her father was charged with raping her. Czech police captain David Krkada said: 'She was afraid and had bad feelings about it.' As part of the police inquiry, she will have been interviewed by detectives in a 'rape suite' and given them a statement - probably videotaped - in connection with the allegation. If Mr Gilbert denied the charges when he appeared in court next month his daughter faced the harrowing prospect of giving evidence against her own father, and being cross-examined by his barrister. Neighbours said the Gilbert family had been through a 'very difficult time' when news of Jessie's tragic death emerged on Thursday. In recent months 48-year-old financier Mr Gilbert, who works in private banking for the Royal Bank of Scotland, has split from his wife Angela, 52. Neighbours in the Surrey village of Woldingham say the family's £800,000 detached home has been sold while the couple recently divorced and moved to separate properties. News of her father's rape charges came as more details emerged of the last troubled hours of Jessie, who became a chess world champion at the age of 11. She had been sharing a room at the Hotel Labe in Pardubice, 65 miles east of Prague, with her best friend and fellow chess player Amisha Parmar, 14. On the night of the tragedy, the two girls drank heavily in their room. They had a small bottle of sparkling wine, a half litre of vodka, liqueur and two beers from the minibar as well as a large bottle of Bacardi they had bought from a shop. Mr Krkada said: 'At some point the younger girl, who was not used to drinking, became ill and went to the bathroom. When she emerged, Jessie had gone but Amisha didn't realise what had happened. 'Jessie has a history of sleepwalking so she assumed she had wondered off in her sleep or just gone for a walk to get some fresh air. 'This was about midnight. But at 3.30am Amisha was woken to be told her friend had died. She had fallen to the ground. It is still not certain what happened. It could have been an accident. But there are several factors which suggest she probably jumped. She was on medication for depression and we found prescription pills in her room. 'Amisha also told us that she had attempted to hurt herself a couple of times before by cutting her wrists with a broken bottle but had never told her family about it. 'There was also a lot of trouble in her family. Her parents split up and her father is facing a serious court case. She was afraid and had bad feelings about it. 'We are more or less done with the case now and we have given permission for the body to be flown back to England. 'We are just awaiting the autopsy results and we are checking her mobile phone records to see if there were any phone calls or texts around the time of her death. 'Amisha said Jessie wasn't the type of person to leave a suicide note.' Devastated Amisha, who is Britain's top chess player in her age group, is said to be devastated. Her chess coach David Levens, 67, said: 'Amisha is broken-hearted and blames herself. They were sharing a room. She was her closest friend and she will never see her again. She is in a terrible state. She is far too upset to speak to anyone.' Miss Gilbert was once ranked as one of the most intelligent people on earth. She hit the headlines in 1999 when she beat adults to win the World Women's Amateur chess title at the age of 11, just three years after she started playing. The success earned her a £4,000 chess scholarship to America, where she studied with Grand Master Edmar Mednis for a week. The same year she was finalist in the Brain of the Year competition run by the Brain Trust charity, where she was beaten to the title by the U.S. astronaut John Glenn. A former pupil of £9,000-a-year Croydon High School, an independent school for girls, she had been due to play her next game in the Czech Open on the day her body was found. Amisha was too distressed to continue with the tournament and flew home to Ilkeston, Derbyshire, on Thursday with her mother Krishna and elder sister. Jessie, who has one elder and two younger sisters, had until three months ago lived with her parents at their detached home in village of Woldingham, near Caterham. Surrey police have confirmed that Ian Gilbert was on bail awaiting trail at Guildford Crown Court on August 21 charged with seven counts of rape and two of indecent assault. Czech police say counterparts in the Surrey force contacted them after news of Jessie's death and gave them details of the allegations. Mr Gilbert's employer the Royal Bank of Scotland said: 'Aware of the sad and untimely death of Jessie Gilbert, our thoughts are with the Gilbert family. We would ask that everybody respects the family's privacy at this sad time.' Jessie's mother was distraught when she heard of the tragedy. She said she had lost a 'much-loved' and 'exceptionally talented' daughter. <hr></blockquote> Personally, I'm guessing it was an impulsive suicide. If a nineteen year old could drink as was described in the article without passing out or being violently sick, her life wasn't going well. I do have to admire the incisive style of reporting that reveals to the reader that "Jessie's mother was distraught when she heard of the tragedy." Some things you just need a reporter to tell you. -Sepka the Space Weasel

by **Seamus OBlimey** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 5:07 am

"Bank death riddle over contractor The man found dead in a Staffordshire bank was a 49-year-old contractor from West Yorkshire, police believe. Officers have handed back the Halifax branch in Market Square, Rugeley, to the bank, following the discovery of a body by a worker on Friday morning. The bank is set to remain closed until late on Monday morning. Officers have yet to release the man's name or say how he died. They previously said he had legitimate access to the premises. Police are appealing for people in the Market Square area on Thursday night or Friday morning to come forward." <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/staffordshire/5226564.stm">BBC</a> According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Bank_of_Scotland#Constituents_of_the_Royal_Bank_of_Scotland_Group">Wikipedia</a> the Halifax bank is owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland. Surely no connection just strange coincidence?

by **Seamus OBlimey** » Thu Dec 14, 2006 2:30 pm

Chess star father cleared of rape

A father has been found not guilty of raping his chess prodigy daughter.

Ian Gilbert, 48, was accused of assaulting Jessie Gilbert at the family home in Woldingham, Surrey, over a period of five years.

He told Guildford Crown Court how his daughter was "quite capable of planning ahead" and could have made up the claims after they had argued.

Jessie, 19, from Croydon, south London, fell to her death from a hotel window in the Czech Republic in July.

She had been competing in an international chess tournament at the time of her death.

Mr Gilbert, a Royal Bank of Scotland director, was accused of repeatedly raping Jessie between 1995 and 2000.

The jury also found him not guilty of two counts of rape and four counts of indecent assault on other people.

Reading a short statement outside the court after the verdict, Mr Gilbert's solicitor Colin Reynolds said his client had "strenuously denied allegations" all along.

"He is grateful to the jury for their obvious careful consideration of all the evidence and for returning appropriate verdicts which reflect the truth.

"He would ask you to respect his privacy as he now seeks to restore stability in his personal and professional life."

Drug overdose

During the trial Mr Gilbert suggested Jessie may have deliberately drip-fed information about the alleged abuse to family and friends before she contacted police, in order to make her story more credible.

The court heard Jessica fell out with her father after a row about a laptop computer and there were other disagreements.

She told her mother that she had been raped after her father moved out of the family home. Her parents later divorced.

The court heard that Jessie got drunk and told her friends on two occasions that she was raped by her father.

On a night-out with friends she climbed a wall at Croydon's clock tower and threatened to jump off.

Another time, she took an overdose of paracetamol but survived.

Jessie's death came shortly before Mr Gilbert's trial was originally scheduled to start.

In court, Mr Gilbert said that allegations of rape were "disgusting" and that Jessie was playing a game of chess against him and was preparing a strategy for revenge.

Mr Gilbert's new wife Sally was present with him at the court.

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