A coroner has concluded that the Army's handling of a teenage soldier's sexual assault complaint played a significant role in her death by suicide.
Royal Artillery Gunner Jaysley Beck, 19, was found dead in her room at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire on December 15, 2021.
The Salisbury inquest heard how a senior colleague's assault and subsequent minor punishment, combined with harassment from her line manager, contributed to her death.
The inquest heard that in July 2021, Battery Sergeant Major Michael Webber, then 39, grabbed Beck's leg and tried to kiss her during a team-building stay on Thorney Island, Hampshire.
Jaysley Beck was found dead in her room at Larkhill Camp in Wiltshire on December 15, 2021
FAMILY HANDOUT
The incident occurred after a drinking game called Last Man Standing.
A colleague testified that Beck had called her "frightened and in tears" after Webber had "pinned" her down and tried to kiss her.
Beck was so terrified she spent the night sleeping in her car for safety.
Following the incident, Webber received only a "minor sanction" and was ordered to write an apology letter to Beck.
The letter angered Beck, particularly as it ended by saying his "door was open" for her.
Despite the complaint against him, Webber was later promoted to Warrant Officer Class 1, the most senior non-commissioned soldier rank in the British Army.
An Army report later suggested the lenient handling of this incident may have discouraged Beck from reporting subsequent issues.
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A colleague testified that Beck had called her "frightened and in tears" after Webber had "pinned" her down and tried to kiss her
FAMILY HANDOUT
In the months before her death, Beck received thousands of messages from her line manager, Bombardier Ryan Mason.
Mason sent 1,000 messages in October 2021 and 3,600 in November.
He also wrote a 14-page document about his "feelings towards Jaysley" and booked adjacent hotel rooms during a work trip a week before she died.
The Army later determined Mason's actions amounted to "unwelcome sexual attention" and "harassment".
Beck's mother, Leighann McCready, told the inquest her daughter "did not feel safe" as Mason's behaviour intensified.
In one message to Mason, Beck had written: "This whole falling in love with me... it's becoming a bit too much."
In an emotional tribute, McCready said: "Jayse was the very heart of our family. The loss we feel is beyond words, there's a void that can't be filled, our hearts will be forever broken."
In the months before her death, Beck received thousands of messages from her line manager, Bombardier Ryan Mason
PA
Brigadier Melissa Emmett, head of the army personnel services group, formally acknowledged the Army's failures at the inquest.
"We let her down in so many ways for which we have already apologised, and if I can apologise again, for what it's worth, I would do," she said.
"We could have, and we should have, done more," Emmett added, describing the chain of command's actions as "well-meaning but erroneous."
Assistant Coroner Nicholas Rheinberg found it "difficult to believe" Mason had not manipulated Beck by demanding support for his mental health issues.
The coroner noted the "adverse effect" of Mason's messages on "a very young woman with problems of her own."
Beck had described Mason's conduct as "creepy" and "frightening," with concerns he was tracking her phone, though the coroner found this unlikely.
The coroner concluded that how Beck's complaint was handled "played more than a contributory part in her death."
