Death of Charlotte Brown: speedboat killer “fled UK to Georgia before trial”

Jack Shepherd, 31, convicted of manslaughter of Charlotte Brown, reportedly traveled to Tbilisi from Turkey in March 2018

Clumsy detectives have not acted on reports that a fugitive speedboat killer fled to Georgia ten months ago, it has been claimed.

Jack Shepherd’s wife told Metropolitan Police officers at least six months ago that he had visited the former Soviet republic.

But Georgian police didn’t start tracking him until last week after being contacted by Interpol.

Shepherd, 31, arrived in the capital Tbilisi on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul on March 21 last year. He would have traveled from Great Britain to Turkey a few days earlier.

The fugitive fled Britain to avoid trial for the death of Charlotte Brown, 24, who was killed when her faulty speedboat crashed into the River Thames on a wet trip in 2015.

He was convicted in July of manslaughter by gross negligence and sentenced to six years.

A friend of Miss Brown’s family said he was “furious” at the delay by Met Police and Interpol in contacting Georgian authorities.

“Charlotte’s family cannot understand the reason for the delay. It is absolutely infuriating for them.

The website designer is believed to be still in hiding in Georgia as his passport has not been used since.

When he failed to show up for his trial at Old Bailey, detectives told Miss Brown’s family that they had interviewed Shepherd’s wife in South Wales and was told that ‘he had fled to Georgia.

But a country official said: “Until the Georgian side was contacted by Interpol on Monday, we had no information on this matter.”

This precedes a reunion between Miss Brown’s family and Home Secretary Sajid Javid today.

The investigation was also hampered by the removal of CCTV footage at Tbilisi airport after 25 days.

Earlier this month, it emerged the fugitive had received £ 100,000 in legal aid to fund his appeal despite being on the run, sparking fury.

It comes after Shepherd, who has a two-year-old son, and a boyfriend live in a remote town in northern Thailand.

The couple are said to have worked as freelance web designers.

The Met declined to comment on the delay, but said it “continues to work closely with the CPS, the National Crime Agency and other agencies such as Interpol.”

Charlotte Brown’s father Graham said: “Jack Shepherd has stolen a good life and must atone for his crass and reckless actions.

“If it hadn’t been for this, our lovely Charlotte would still be here.

“We want to hear from the Home Secretary on the steps taken to bring Shepherd to justice.

“We also want to know that this operation will be fully funded until he is found and put behind bars.”

The family will ask Mr Javid what action has been taken so far, what avenues of investigation are currently open and what resources are available to the police, including through the National Crime Agency (NCA).

They also want to know what can be done to obtain digital forensic evidence from web designer Shepherd’s contact with his lawyer, which could help pinpoint his location.

Shepherd’s attorney, Richard Egan, has previously denied “protecting a fugitive” despite helping him appeal his conviction as he fled the law.