A security camera caught the moment a chess player allegedly attempted to poison her rival with mercury—and the clip has gone viral online.
The Russian Chess Federation has suspended Amina Abakarova, a 40-year-old chess pro from Makhachkala in the Russian Republic of Dagestan. She has been detained and faces up to three years in prison if convicted of the charges of attempting to poison her 30-year-old rival, Umayganat Osmanova, Metro reported.
Footage said to show Abakarova pouring the mercury from a thermometer on her rival's board and smearing it with a chess piece has been shared by various media outlets. On X, formerly Twitter, it was posted by user Igor Sushko, who wrote that "Putin immediately fell in love with Abakarova" following the events—although there has been no suggestion that Russian President Vladimir Putin is involved in the events that transpired.
At the time of writing, the video on X had been viewed 1.2 million times.
The grainy footage shows Abakarova walking across a room and approaching one of the desks with a chessboard on it. She can be seen brushing a substance onto the board by using one of its chess pieces to distribute it. Once done, she looks around the room before walking away.
Osmanova played in the Dagestan Chess Championship in southern Russia as intended but eventually became ill with "severe dizziness and nausea," Metro reported.
After the incident was reported to the authorities by the tournament judge, the CCTV footage was later reviewed by police.
According to Chess.com, which cited an interview on Russia Today, Osmanova said she felt "terrible, disgusting, and morally depressed" when she realized she had been poisoned.
She told the television network, Chess.com reported: "I still feel bad. In the first minutes, I felt a lack of air and a taste of iron in my mouth. I had to spend about five hours on this board. I don't know what would have happened to me if I hadn't seen it earlier."
Sazhida Sazhidova, the minister of sport in Dagestan, said in a statement on Telegram that he was shocked by the incident.
He said: "Like many others, I am perplexed by what happened, and the motives of such an experienced competitor as Amina Abakarova are incomprehensible.
"The actions she took could have led to a most tragic outcome, threatening the lives of everyone who was present, including herself. Now she must answer for what she did by the law."
Abakarova, who won the North Caucasus Federal District Chess Championship in Pyatigorsk in 2023, said her motive was "personal hostility" toward Osmanova, who had recently beaten her in a regional contest, Metro reported.
According to the outlet, she has accused Osmanova of saying rude things about her and her family. Osmanova is pushing for the "maximum punishment."
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
