The family of an Irishman whose body was pulled from a river in Georgia say they're "absolutely devastated" at his loss.
A murder investigation's underway in the death of Thomas Kennedy.
Police there allege the 28-year-old was beaten by a group of men and then thrown into the Mtk'uari River.
Five men have been charged in relation to his death, and have been refused bail.
The Department of Foreign Affairs says it stands ready to provide consular assistance to Thomas' family.
A GoFundMe page, set up to help cover the cost of repatriating his body has so far raised more than €35,000.
On the page, the organisers say:
"On Friday the 9th of October our beautiful Tom was found in Mtk'uari River in Georgia. He died brutally and tragically.
"We are absolutely devastated there are no words, life will never be the same again without our beautiful talented boy. It is currently very difficult to repatriate Tom home due to the Covid19 restrictions, so we are setting up this GoFundMe Page to raise funds to bring Tom home as soon as possible, this is costly, and with the help of the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust, we will get him to his beloved home of County Mayo.
"Our aim is to raise money in order to fund the expenses associated with Tom's passing. These include but are not limited to repatriation, funeral cost, and for Tom's family to travel to Georgia to see the Criminal Trial of his death.
