Convicted rapist Nicholas Rossi dies in Utah hospital after faking own death

American sex offender Nicholas Rossi, who faked his own death and fled to Scotland to evade prosecution, has died in a Utah hospital.

Convicted rapist Nicholas Rossi dies in Utah hospital after faking own death

American sex offender Nicholas Rossi died Thursday at a hospital in the US state of Utah, according to Ekstra Bladet.

Rossi, who also went by the name Nicholas Alahverdian, became notorious for employing extreme methods to escape justice. In February 2020, a death notice was published claiming he had died from Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The following year, however, he surfaced in Scotland, where authorities arrested him while he was hospitalized receiving treatment for COVID-19.

At that time, Rossi insisted authorities had the wrong person. He claimed to be an orphaned Irish boy named Arthur Knight who had never set foot in the United States. Investigators did not accept this explanation.

In 2024, Rossi was extradited back to the United States to face charges. He had originally been indicted in 2018 for allegedly raping a former girlfriend in Utah in 2008. He also faced accusations of additional rape and multiple incidents of domestic violence.

A court sentenced him to at least 10 years in prison for the rape conviction. He passed away in hospital from a pre-existing illness.

Source: Ekstra Bladet