US convicted rapist who fled to Scotland after staging own death dies in prison hospital

A man whose extraordinary attempt to avoid arrest and extradition spanned continents, fake identities and even a fabricated death has died behind bars in the United States.Nicholas Rossi, the American convicted rapist who made international headlines after allegedly faking his own death and fleeing to Scotland, died Thursday night in a Utah hospital while serving a prison sentence for two rape convictions.The Utah Department of Corrections said the 38-year-old died from complications linked to a pre-existing medical condition after choosing to discontinue treatment. Authorities said both his family and victims had been informed.Rossi, born Nicholas Alahverdian in Rhode Island, was serving a sentence of 10 years to life after being convicted in separate 2024 trials for raping two women in Utah in 2008.His downfall followed one of the most bizarre fugitive sagas in recent memory.

In 2020, an online obituary claimed Rossi had died from non-Hodgkin lymphoma. But investigators grew suspicious, particularly as he was wanted in connection with rape allegations and other investigations in the US.The mystery unraveled in 2021 when hospital staff at Glasgow's Queen Elizabeth University Hospital reportedly recognized Rossi from an Interpol notice while he was receiving treatment on a Covid ward.

Distinctive tattoos helped identify him, despite his insistence that he was actually "Arthur Knight," an Irish-born orphan who had never set foot in America.For years, Rossi fought extradition in Scottish courts, appearing at hearings in a wheelchair, often wearing an oxygen mask and formal suits while maintaining he was the victim of mistaken identity. He repeatedly denied being Rossi and dismissed evidence linking him to the wanted American fugitive.Scottish courts ultimately rejected his claims, with a judge describing his story as implausible. After exhausting legal challenges, he was extradited to the United States in January 2024 and later admitted his true identity during court proceedings.Utah prosecutors portrayed Rossi as a serial sexual predator who spent years trying to escape accountability. One victim testified that Rossi became abusive shortly after a whirlwind engagement and raped her in 2008.

Another woman reported being assaulted after confronting him over money she alleged he had stolen.Salt Lake County Attorney Sim Gill said Rossi had spent years attempting to avoid justice but ultimately died in prison after being publicly convicted."Mr Rossi was a sexual predator who tried to escape accountability," Gill said, adding that his victims could take some solace in knowing he died incarcerated and fully aware of his crimes.