Court Sends British Suspect to Three-Month Pre-extradition Detention

On January 25, Tbilisi City Court sent the British citizen Jack Shepherd, whom the British media often refer to as “Speedboat Killer”, to three-month pre-extradition detention.

Shepherd, convicted of manslaughter by gross negligence following the death of Charlotte Brown in the River Thames in 2015, was sentenced to six-year detention in absentia in Britain last July.

Georgian Interior Ministry reported on January 23 that “accompanied by his lawyers,” Shepherd, who is subject to an European arrest warrant and a Red Notice, “handed himself in” at one of the police departments in capital Tbilisi, following the joint search operation of the two countries’ police services launched on January 12.

The Ministry also said that in a phone call to Georgian Interior Minister Giorgi Gakharia, British Home Secretary Sajid David thanked Georgia for cooperation.

Shepherd’s lawyer in Tbilisi, Mariam Kublashvili contests the extradition, saying Shepherd is depressive with “suicidal tendencies” and that extradition to the UK “might worsen his condition… possibly threatening his life.” Her fellow defense lawyer Tariel Kakabadze added that Shepherd has received some threats from unidentified source by phone, implying that he might face “serious problems” in prison in the UK.

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