Georgia Extradites British 'Speedboat Killer'

TBILISI -- A man dubbed the "speedboat killer" by British media after a manslaughter conviction in London has been extradited to the United Kingdom from Georgia, where he fled last year ahead of his trial.

Briton Jack Shepherd was put on a plane to London's Gatwick Airport that took off at 7:20 p.m. local time (1520 GMT/UTC) on April 10 after his extradition order was signed by Georgian Justice Minister Thea Tsulukiani.

On March 26, a court in Tbilisi decided that Shepherd will return to Britain, where he plans appeal his conviction and six-year prison sentence over the death of 24-year-old Charlotte Brown.

Brown died in a speedboat crash on the River Thames in December 2015 while on a first date with Shepherd, whom she had met online.

The extradition order was based on the manslaughter conviction and an assault charge relating to an incident in March 2018 in which Shepherd, 31, is accused of causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

Shepherd disappeared shortly before his trial later in 2018 and turned up in Georgia, where he was jailed after he handed himself in to police following 10 months on the run -- mostly hiding in Tbilisi.

During their date, British authorities say, Shepherd and Brown were thrown from the speedboat when it hit branches in the water at about midnight.

Brown was found in the water unconscious and unresponsive, and Shepherd was clinging to the upturned motorboat.