Rape Suspect Faked Death and Fled U.S.; Set to Stand Trial

A man accused of faking his own death to escape rape charges is set to stand trial, according to a ruling made by a Utah judge on Thursday. District Judge Barry Lawrence determined that prosecutors had provided sufficient evidence for the case against Nicholas Rossi to proceed to a jury trial. Rossi is scheduled to appear in court again for an arraignment and bail hearing on October 17.

Prosecutors allege that Rossi, 37, raped a 26-year-old ex-girlfriend following an argument in Salt Lake County back in 2008. In a different case, he is also accused of raping a 21-year-old woman in Orem, Utah, during the same year. However, he remained unidentified as a suspect for nearly a decade due to a backlog in DNA testing at the Utah State Crime Lab.

The Salt Lake Legal Defender Association, representing Rossi, has not responded to requests for comment regarding the latest developments in the case.

Rossi, who is legally named Nicholas Alahverdian, has adopted various aliases throughout his life. He has claimed to be an Irish orphan named Arthur Knight, insisting that he has never set foot in the U.S. and remains the victim of a conspiracy against him.

Raised in foster homes in Rhode Island, Rossi allegedly returned to the state before orchestrating his own death and fleeing the country. An online obituary falsely reported that he passed away on February 29, 2020, from late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma; however, both authorities and his former foster family cast doubt on this claim.

Rossi’s arrest in 2021 occurred in Scotland, where he was recognized in a Glasgow hospital while receiving treatment for COVID-19. Following his capture, he lost an extradition appeal in December of that year, which allowed U.S. authorities to pursue the pending charges against him.

Court documents from Utah County indicate that Rossi is also facing allegations of sexual assault, harassment, and potential kidnapping in Rhode Island, Ohio, and Massachusetts. Since his arrest, Rossi has participated in numerous unusual television interviews, claiming innocence and attempting to distance himself from the serious allegations.

In a noteworthy viral interview conducted by Scottish network STV News, Rossi dismissed the idea that he is an American fugitive sought for rape, referring to such claims as “a vicious lie.” In another appearance alongside his wife on “Dateline,” he reiterated his stance, asserting that he is a victim of mistaken identity.

“We were once a normal family, but thanks to the media, our lives have been interrupted,” he said during the interview, struggling to breathe through an oxygen mask. “I’d like privacy and to return to being a normal husband, but I can’t because I can’t breathe, I can’t walk.”

The legal battle surrounding Rossi is just beginning, with significant media attention focused on the unusual nature of his claims and the seriousness of the charges he faces.