https://www.scmp.com/rss/524049/feed Nicholas Alahverdian, formerly a child welfare campaigner, he is accused of faking his death in 2020 to evade justice, subsequently fleeing to the UK. Extradited from Scotland in January 2024, after being identified in a Glasgow hospital despite claiming to be an Irish orphan named Arthur Knight. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse An American who faked his own death and fled to Scotland to evade justice was sentenced Monday to five-years-to-life in prison for raping his ex-girlfriend 17 years ago. Nicholas Rossi, 38, who potentially could spend the rest of his days behind bars, went to great lengths to conceal his identity and flee after committing the rape in the western state of Utah in 2008, authorities said. State Judge Barry Lawrence pointed to this as an “aggravating factor” as he handed down the sentence in a Salt... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3329724/us-man-arrested-scotland-and-convicted-utah-rape-faces-life-prison?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3329724/us-man-arrested-scotland-and-convicted-utah-rape-faces-life-prison?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Oct 2025 23:17:41 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A Rhode Island man accused of faking his death and fleeing the United States to evade rape charges was found guilty on Wednesday of sexually assaulting a former girlfriend in his first of two Utah trials. A jury in Salt Lake County found Nicholas Rossi guilty of a 2008 rape after a three-day trial in which his accuser and her parents took the stand. The verdict came hours after Rossi, 38, declined to testify on his own behalf. He will be sentenced in the case on October 20 and is set to stand... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3321896/us-man-accused-faking-his-death-found-guilty-sexual-assault?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3321896/us-man-accused-faking-his-death-found-guilty-sexual-assault?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Aug 2025 11:45:02 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A man accused of faking his death and fleeing to the United Kingdom to avoid rape charges faced an alleged victim in court on Monday as a jury trial in Utah began. The man known in the US as Nicholas Rossi, whose legal name is Nicholas Alahverdian, is accused of sexually assaulting two women in Utah in 2008. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Prosecutors are trying the cases separately, with the first set in Salt Lake County. Rossi, 38, was arrested in Scotland in 2021 - a year after he... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3321508/trial-begins-us-fugitive-accused-faking-his-death-uk-avoid-rape-charges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3321508/trial-begins-us-fugitive-accused-faking-his-death-uk-avoid-rape-charges?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Aug 2025 23:35:27 +0000