Georgia to extradite Briton who fled UK after speedboat death

A court in Georgia ruled on Tuesday to extradite a British man who went on the run following the death of a woman in a speedboat crash on the River Thames in London. Jack Shepherd, 31, was convicted in Britain in absentia last year of the manslaughter by gross negligence of Charlotte Brown, 24. He was sentenced to six years in jail.

After months on the run, Shepherd turned himself in to police in Georgia earlier this year. He told the court on Tuesday he agreed to his extradition so he could take part in an appeal process. "This week he will be extradited, he will be sent to the United Kingdom," Tariel Kakabadze, Shepherd's lawyer, said after a court hearing in Tbilisi.

Shepherd took Brown for a ride on a speedboat in December, 2015 during a first date. The boat crashed and the couple were thrown into the water. Shepherd was found clinging to the hull but Brown was pulled from the water unconscious and died from cold water immersion.

Prosecutors said Shepherd was drunk and that neither he nor Brown was wearing a life-jacket. (Reporting by David Chkhikvishvili; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Ed Osmond)