Jack Shepherd, 38, previously went on the run in Georgia while facing jail for the manslaughter of Charlotte Brown, 24, who died in a speedboat crash on the River Thames in central London
Speedboat killer Jack Shepherd has pleaded guilty to violently assaulting a woman – including attacking her with a set of barbecue tongs.
The 38-year-old pleaded guilty over a prison video link on Tuesday to two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and damaging property.
The assaults happened in February and June last year, and sparked Shepherd’s recall to prison.
He was originally jailed for 10 years for manslaughter in 2018 over the death of 24-year-old Charlotte Brown when his speedboat crashed during a first date in central London.
Shepherd skipped his Old Bailey trial while on the run in Georgia, before he was eventually extradited back to the UK to serve his sentence.
He was set free on licence in January 2024, but faced recall to prison in September last year after he was accused of violence towards a woman.
Bearded Shepherd today appeared at Isleworth Crown Court via videolink from HMP Swaleside in Kent wearing an open-collared blue shirt, with his sleeves rolled up. He pleaded guilty to three offences with two others remaining on file.
Shepherd formally pleaded guilty to three charges, including two counts of ABH and criminal damage, during a plea hearing at Isleworth Crown Court. He pleaded not guilty to counts of intentional suffocation and controlling and coercive behaviour. The court heard those charges will remain on file.
Shepherd pinned down the woman in her 50s and punched her in February 2025, struck her in the chest with barbecue tongs in June 2025, and damaged her keys in that same month.
Shepherd will be sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court on September 4.
Shepherd was automatically released in January 2024 after serving less than six years before being recalled to jail on September 13 last year for breaching his licence by allegedly writing to his latest alleged victim in breach of his bail conditions and missing his 11pm curfew when returning to his approved premises.
It had previously been reported Shepherd, originally from Exeter, Devon, had been returned to jail, but details of the recall were only finally made public earlier this month in a parole board report that revealed his latest charges and ruled a future parole hearing should now be heard in public.
Ms Brown was fatally thrown from his speedboat boat on the River Thames, when it hit a submerged tree trunk, in December 2015.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain in 2019, Ms Brown’s emotional dad Graham admitted he would never get closure over his daughter’s death. He said: “Jack Shepherd wasn’t at his trial, he was found guilty in his absence and he absconded. It left a gap of emptiness, really.
“It’s been absolutely devastating. Charlotte was a beautiful daughter. She was a beautiful soul and a beautiful daughter…. Everyone I’ve spoken to and come in touch with have been incredibly supportive. I would say thank you to the press and to everyone who supported us through this process, the police and everybody.”
