US Fugitive Nicholas Rossi Faces Utah Rape Trial After Faking Death

Nicholas Rossi, legally known as Nicholas Alahverdian, is on trial in Utah for sexually assaulting two women in 2008 after allegedly faking his death and fleeing the country to avoid charges. He was arrested in Scotland in 2021 while being treated for COVID-19 under the alias Arthur Knight and was extradited to the US in January 2024 after losing an appeal. Prosecutors say Rossi used at least a dozen aliases to evade capture and portrayed him as an intelligent man who exploited vulnerable women, with one victim testifying about a whirlwind relationship during her recovery from a traumatic brain injury. Rossi appeared in court in a wheelchair and using an oxygen tank, and the trial, which started in Salt Lake County, is the first of two rape trials he faces in Utah. The defense and prosecution agree Rossi was in Utah in 2008 and had a relationship with the alleged victim, while prosecutors detailed accusations of control and sexual assault when the victim resisted. A second trial in Utah County is scheduled to begin in September 2025.