www.theolivepress.es 12 the olive press - February 4th - 18th February 12 12 2015 www.theolivepress.es
INTERNATIONAL grandmasters had something other than their chess boards to ‘check out’ at this year’s Chess Festival. Posing for pictures with chess world celebrities, Miss Gibraltar Shyanne Azzopardi (pictured) added some unexpected glamour to the competition at the Caleta hotel. Getting the tournament underway, Azzopardi
Moto-menace
Smoked out CUSTOMS officers arrested two men at the Land Frontier when they attempted to smuggle 800,000 cigarettes worth £75,000 into Gibraltar.
Bullseye! THE world’s best darts players – including world number one Michael van Gerwen – are set to appear at the Gibraltar darts trophy from March 20 to 22.
the olive press - February 4th - 18th February 2015 www.theolivepress.es
Pretty good start for chess festival ON the Rock
NEWS IN BRIEF A SPATE of motorbike thefts has led the RGP to warn Yamaha Cygnus owners to report suspicious activity and secure their bikes in well-lit places.
Gibraltar NEWS
Live by the sword...
A SWORD-WIELDING teenager has dodged jail despite cutting a man’s ear in a street fight. Instead the 17-year-old was handed a four month suspended sentence and ordered to undertake anger management sessions. In the incident at Rosia Bay last August, the perpetrator removed the sword from his motorbike’s storage compartment and unsheathed it in broad daylight. His victim was taken to hospital where he received stitches. A BB gun was also recovered from the man’s motorbike as police arrested him at the scene.
was all smiles as she helped draw out the first round ties. The first round went largely as expected, with 19 of the 20 grandmasters sailing through to the next leg of the competition. With more than 300 players taking part, top prize for the men’s competition is £20,000 while the women’s champ nets £15,000.
Windscreen wipe out A MAN who died from illnesses including Legionnaire’s disease contracted the bug from bacteria-ridden windscreen wash in his family car. A postmortem determined Legionnaire’s disease con-
Baby wipes the floor
MEET the Rock’s baby of the year! Picked by Miss Gibraltar Shyanne Azzopardi, ninemonth-old Kaitlyn Jayne Bright was crowned Gibraltar’s cutest baby.
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tributed to the man’s deteriorating health and was a key factor in his death. Subsequent investigations revealed that the windscreen wash in his car was not chemically safe and was riddled with bacteria which can lead
to Legionnaire’s disease when inhaled. The Environmental Agency, as well as the laboratory which analysed the man’s car, is urging people against using ‘DIY and non-commercial screen washes’. “The public is strongly encouraged to use proper screenwash in their cars,” Dr Vijay Kumar, Director of Public Health, told the Olive Press. Legionnaire’s disease is a rare form of pneumonia caused by Legionella bacterium. It usually affects older people, with a higher risk in smokers and those with poor immune systems.
February 6, 10pm
Reggae band Heritage will perform live at the Ivy Sports Bar and Grill in celebration of Bob Marley’s 70th Earth Day. Free entry.
February 6, 10pm Artful Dodger will be performing at the Dusk Nightclub. Tickets on the door.
February 19, 8pm Anne-Sophie Bertrand will be the featured artist at Gibraltar’s Philharmonic Society harp recital at the Convent ballroom. Tickets £20 from Sacarello’s coffee shop, the Silver Shop or call + 350 200 72134 Commercially available screen wash contains chemicals that kill the deadly bacteria.
Lost and found AN expat businessman who disappeared from Gibraltar in 2012 owing thousands in unpaid bills is apparently back to his old tricks and living in Yorkshire. Brit Richard Brooks also owes around £1,000 to Help for Heroes charity – money raised through the Soapbox Derby he helped organise. Brooks arrived on the Rock in 2010 setting up a car company motortrading.gi, but vanished with an increasing list of debts to local companies. Soapbox organiser Laura Green said at the time: “I don’t know where the money went but I have received calls from a lot of people wanting to know where he is.” For three years Brooks seemed to have escaped, but now the Olive Press can reveal he is back in business in Darlington. A Darlington charity source said: “He is a scary person, we grew anxious of him and looked him up and found the Olive Press article. “He is doing exactly the same here as he did in Gibraltar. “He has been reported to the police but I am afraid to say much more,” they added. His ex business partner Derek Dalmedo, formerly owner of
EXCLUSIVE By Tom Powell
DC Motors, was owed around £4,000 by Brooks. “He left a string of debts believed to total well over £20,000. Everyone was looking for him,” he said. When contacted by the Olive Press – also a victim of Brook’s unpaid debts – Brooks said: “You’ve completely lost me.” He then
Three years after fleeing the Rock with a string of debts, businessman Richard Brooks is at it again – in England promptly hung up the phone. Anyone with information should contact newsdesk@ theolivepress.es
ALL TALK: Brooks left the Rock in a cloud of smoke