Rekubit Exchange|A man extradited from Scotland continues to claim he’s not the person charged in 2 Utah rape cases

2025-04-30 09:47:44source:Devin Grosvenorcategory:Scams

A man accused of faking his own death and Rekubit Exchangefleeing the U.S. to avoid rape charges continued to deny he is the man identified in the case during an online court appearance from jail Tuesday.

Nicholas Rossi, 36, made the appearance after missing two January court dates with no explanation. After Utah 4th District Judge Derek Pullan in Provo cleared jail officials to use reasonable force to get him to show, Rossi made his initial appearance seated behind a green gas tank and wearing an oxygen mask.

Pullan asked Rossi if he had received the charging document accusing him of raping a 21-year-old woman in Orem, Utah, in 2008.

“I’m not Nicholas Rossi, for the record,” he responded in a rasping voice with a British accent. “But I have received the document.”

READ MORE No. 8 Kansas uses balanced scoring attack to beat No. 4 Houston 78-65Utah is the latest state to ban diversity, equity and inclusion efforts on campus and in governmentUtah joins 10 other states in regulating bathroom access for transgender people

Rossi, whose legal name is Nicholas Alahverdian, has used several aliases and said he was an Irish orphan named Arthur Knight who never set foot on American soil. He did not elaborate on his identity Tuesday, and Pullan didn’t ask before setting his next court appearance for March 5.

Rossi made similar claims in a court hearing in January. He was extradited to the U.S. from Scotland earlier that month.

Rossi was not identified as a suspect in the Orem rape for about a decade due to a backlog of DNA test kits at the Utah State Crime Lab. He also faces a felony charge in Salt Lake County, where prosecutors allege he raped a 26-year-old former girlfriend after an argument, also in 2008.

He faces multiple other complaints against him in Rhode Island and Ohio for alleged domestic violence, sexual abuse and fraud.

The American fugitive grew up in foster homes in Rhode Island and had returned to the state before allegedly faking his death and fleeing the country. An obituary published online claimed Rossi died Feb. 29, 2020, of late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Authorities and his former foster family doubted his death.

Rossi was arrested in Scotland in 2021 after being recognized at a Glasgow hospital during treatment for COVID-19. He lost an extradition appeal in the country in December.

More:Scams

Recommend

California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The California Department of Motor Vehicles has apologized for an “unacceptable a

Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace

NEW YORK (AP) — The December holidaysare supposed to be a time of joyful celebration, but the season

Juan Soto praise of Mets' future a tough sight for Yankees, but World Series goal remains

NEW YORK – This was not a pretty sight for Yankees Universe.On the other side of town, Juan Soto bea