ON-THE-RUN SHEPHERD FOOLED KILLER’S »» »» HIDEOUT
Rooms rented in name of Jack Grant Residents’ shock at fugitive’s identity
where he wooed a string of women with trips in his dodgy speedboat, enjoyed meals at swish restaurants and boasted of his success.
In the cramped beige bedroom, there is only just enough room for a double bed.
The living room is sparsely furnished with a small single wooden bed, a table and two chairs.
The flat’s rusty white metal balcony overlooks rows and rows of identical Soviet homes in the former Eastern bloc. Landlord Nika Nadidze, 37 – who showed us round – said he befriended the rare Brit in the area as he thought he might be lonely.
“He said his name was Jack Grant. I joked ‘are you Hugh Grant’s brother?’ and he laughed,” says Nika.
HAPPY
“I didn’t ask him why he had moved to Georgia. I thought he just wanted to get away from civilisation and live a new, more simple life.
“In May, I asked him if he wanted to take part in a charity run with me and my friends. He was happy to join us.
“That night we were all going out together to get dinner, but he said ‘I’m sorry, I have a new girlfriend and I must go meet her’. I was very happy for him.”
At the end of May, Shepherd told Nika he and his girlfriend wanted to move in together. “Jack asked if would be OK if he ended his tenancy early,” said Nika.
“He had signed for six months, but was leaving after three. Of course I told him it was okay and not to worry about it. He had met my nine-year-old daughter Tuti, who can speak fluent English, and he was very nice to her. He never told me he had a wife and child of his own back in England.
“He said he was trying to learn some Georgian. I once saw him with a Georgian-to-English learning book at the flat.”
A bank worker who moved in after Shepherd left found his language book in the wardrobe.
Nika was stunned when he discovered the truth about his old tenant while browsing his phone one night. “I looked on Facebook and saw something about Jack Shepherd.
“I saw the picture and thought ‘is that Jack?’” he said.
“Then when I realised it was, it was a shock for me. I shouted out in shock. It woke my wife up.
“But my feelings about Jack are still the same as before. I can’t imagine he would mean to do something bad to someone. I thought he was a nice guy.”
The truth is the opposite. A devious womaniser, Shepherd wed his long-
LANDLORD NIKA ON ARRIVAL OF THE MYSTERY ENGLISHMAN