A court in Georgia ruled on Friday that the British fugitive should remain in the country for three months, pending possible extradition.
ADVERTISEMENTA court in Georgia ruled on Friday that a British man who went on the run after killing a woman in a speedboat crash should remain behind bars in the country for three months pending possible extradition.
Jack Shepherd, 31, disappeared while on bail over the manslaughter of his date, 24-year-old Charlotte Brown. He was sentenced in absentia last July to six years in prison.
The web designer showed up at a police station in Tbilisi on Wednesday and turned himself in.
Speaking from the enclosed glass dock on Friday, Shepherd said he wished he could speak to Brown's family.
"Not a single day passes when I don't think about the loss of Charlotte's life and what effect it had on her family," he said. "I wish I'd sat down with Charlotte's family and explained."
Shepherd took Brown for a ride on the River Thames on a speedboat he said he owned during their date in December 2015, when it hit debris throwing them both in the water.
Prosecutors said Shepherd was drunk and that neither he nor Brown were wearing life jackets.
Shepherd was found clinging to the hull, while Brown was pulled from the water unconscious and died from cold water immersion.
In a statement on Wednesday, London’s Metropolitan Police said it had received information from the National Crime Agency (NCA) that Shepherd was in the custody of police in Georgia.
“His identity has yet to be officially confirmed. However, if the man is confirmed as Shepherd, extradition proceedings will begin immediately,” it said.