Speedboat crash man denies woman’s manslaughter

A WEB designer accused of killing a young woman when his speedboat capsized on the Thames admitted: “I did not even ask if she could swim,” a court heard.

Jack Shepherd had allegedly tried to seduce 23-year-old Charlotte Brown with a meal at the Shard and a champagne boat trip to Westminster after they met through a dating website.

But on giving her the wheel for a “thrill”, the speeding vessel hit a tree trunk and capsized on the evening of December 8, 2015, the Old Bailey heard.

Afterwards, the 30-year-old told police his boat had been going “full throttle”.

He said: “Neither of us were wearing life jackets, although there were two between the seats. She would not have known they were there and I did not point them out. I did not even ask if she could swim.”

Jurors were told that if Ms Brown had been wearing a life jacket, it would have “increased the probability” of her survival in the water.

A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as cold water immersion.

Prosecutor Aftab Jafferjee QC said Shepherd had been advised by police about wearing jackets on more than one occasion. The court also heard how the speedboat had defects, including “poor and sloppy steering” and a “partially opaque” windscreen.

Shepherd, who is being tried in his absence at the Old Bailey, denies manslaughter by gross negligence.