Gilles Andruet

Gilles Andruet
Country  France
Born 30 March 1958
Versailles, France
Died 22 August 1995 (aged 37)
Saulx-les-Chartreux, France
Title International Master
Peak rating 2450

Gilles Andruet (born 30 March 1958, Versailles – 22 August 1995 near Saulx-les-Chartreux, Essonne) was a French chess player, an International Master and a former national champion.[1] He was the son of rally driver Jean-Claude Andruet.

Chess career

Andruet was a member of the French team at the 1982, 1984 and 1988 Chess Olympiad.[2] In 1988 he won the French Chess Championship and reached his peak Elo rating (2450).[3] During the 1989 Championship, Andruet was involved in a violent altercation with Jean-Luc Seret and subsequently withdrew from the tournament despite the fact that he was in the lead after 10 of 14 rounds.[4] He played less regularly after 1991.

Murder and subsequent trial

Andruet was also a gambler. Starting in 1993, he regularly played backgammon and blackjack in casinos and although he initially won significant amounts of money, he eventually became a pathological gambler riddled with debt.[5] On August 22, 1995, Andruet's body was found on the shores of the Yvette in Saulx-les-Chartreux. He had been beaten to death. The investigation focused on Joseph Liany and his son Franck who had presumably helped Andruet cash a check of 398,000 French francs. Josepth Liany was eventually tried eight years later, convicted of murder and sentenced to a 15-year prison term. His son Franck received a seven-year sentence for his role in the affair. Joseph Liany subsequently identified his nephew Sacha Rhoul as the man solely responsible for the murder. A new trial in 2006 cleared Liany but convicted Rhoul in absentia.[6] Rhoul had been living in Marrakech where he and his father managed the Palais Rhoul, a well-known luxury hotel. Jean-Claude Andruet, Gilles' father repeatedly called for the arrest and extradition of Rhoul.[7] On February 25, 2010, Moroccan authorities arrested Rhoul following an Interpol mandate and extradited him on March 6.

References

This article is largely a translation of that appearing on the French Wikipedia site - see the language link in the left margin to gain access.

  1. ↑ Gilles Andruet player profile and games at Chessgames.com
  2. ↑ See 25th Chess Olympiad: Lucerne 1982, 26th Chess Olympiad: Thessaloniki 1984 and 28th Chess Olympiad: Thessaloniki 1988 and Gilles Andruet at OlimpBase
  3. ↑ FIDE rating history: Andruet, Gilles at OlimpBase
  4. ↑ Epinal 1989 - 64ème championnat de France
  5. ↑ Neal, Urba (2008-01-20). "Retour sur le meurtre du génie des échecs" (in French). Bakchich. Retrieved 8 March 2010.
  6. ↑ "Meurtre d'un ancien champion d'échecs : l'accusé acquitté en appel" (in French). AFP. 2006-03-17.
  7. ↑ Mouhoubi, Samy (2010-02-18). "Affaire Andruet : le combat acharné d’un père "révulsé"" (in French). France-Soir. Retrieved 8 March 2010.

External links