Gunman kills British teacher

A young teacher from London has been shot dead in Georgia weeks after arriving in the eastern European country.

Nigel Ockenden was shot in the back at point-blank range in his flat in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, police said today.

Officers are mystified as to the motive of the 27-year-old's killing, but have ruled out burglary as there was no sign of forced entry and nothing was stolen.

Foreign Office officials today confirmed they were speaking with police in Tbilisi to ascertain the nature of his death.

A seasoned traveller who had travelled to Georgia to teach English, Mr Ockenden had been fully aware of the volatile situation in the former Soviet state. He had told friends that he had gone to "one of the most dangerous countries in the world".

It is thought Mr Ockenden, who lived in Camberwell, died after a visitor arrived at his flat at

10.30am. He had only been in the country since September.

Today Mr Ockenden's mother Eleanor told the Standard the family was expecting a long diplomatic process to find out the circumstances surrounding his death.

Speaking from the family home in Caterham, Mrs Ockenden said: "We're working with the British consulate to try to find out what went on. It's obviously very, very difficult and it's still early days." Her son's former headteacher Alison Woodhouse, from Warlingham County Secondary School in Surrey, spoke of a creative young man who loved art and poetry.

He published his oil paintings on his website, which included abstract images, portraits and sketches. Ms Woodhouse said: "He was a lovely student - hardworking and intelligent.

"He was very unusual and didn't go along with the crowd. He was a creative person. I am sure he would have made a great teacher. We are all shocked and upset."

Police are searching for anyone who could have information on Mr Ockenden's murder. "We have asked his colleagues at school about his private life but nobody seems to have known him very well," said a police source.

Irakli Topuria, director of International House English Language School in Tbilisi, said: "We cannot think of any motive. Nigel was a loner but he didn't have enemies."

Neighbour Magda Betanali, 42, said Mr Ockenden had been sharing the flat with another British man named Patrick, but he had moved out three weeks ago.

Mr Ockenden, a graduate in philosophy and politics from Warwick University, had previously travelled to Mongolia and Poland with his TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) qualification.

Today it emerged that he wrote in his most recent Friends Reunited entry: "Now in TEFL exile in Tbilisi, Georgia, one of the most dangerous and romantic countries in the world. The food is a lot better than in Mongolia."

Georgia has endured civil wars and a recent democratic revolution since splitting from the former Soviet Union in 1991.

It is one of the most lawless countries in the world and the Foreign Office advises against travelling to some areas.