Alleged US fugitive wanted for rape has tattoos examined to prove real ID
A man believed to be a fugitive who faked his own death to avoid rape charges in the US was ordered to have his tattoos photographed in a Scottish prison in a bid to establish his true identity.
Authorities say Nicholas Rossi, 35, who also goes by the last name Alahverdian, is the man currently in custody in Edinburgh awaiting possible extradition to the US where he is wanted in Rhode Island, Utah and Ohio.
The wheelchair-bound man, however, claims his name is actually Arthur Knight and that he has never stepped foot in the US.
Prosecutors, who say Rossi has distinctive tattoos on his arms, demanded he strip down in prison in an attempt to try and prove his identity, a court heard Thursday.
Investigators took photos of the suspect in front of his lawyer last week, the BBC reported.
Sources told The Sun that skin specialists were also supposedly present to see if there was any evidence tattoos had been removed.
Prosecutors currently have possession of the photos, but it wasn’t immediately clear if they had made a determination on the alleged fugitive’s identity.
At an earlier court hearing, Sheriff Kenneth Maciver had said it shouldn’t be “rocket science” to prove the suspect’s identity.
Rossi, who has appeared in court on a ventilator, has repeatedly maintained he is not a wanted man.
When asked if he was the fugitive authorities say he is, he responded: “No, I am Arthur Knight.”
Rossi, a Rhode Island native, is accused of faking his own death in February 2020 and fleeing the US to evade prosecution for a string of sexual assaults and financial fraud.
He is wanted by Utah authorities for allegedly raping his 21-year-old ex-girlfriend in her apartment in 2008. DNA evidence collected at the time wasn’t tested until 2017 — and it came back as a match to a sexual assault case in Ohio.
Rhode Island authorities also say he is wanted in that state for failing to register as a sex offender.
Also in Ohio, Rossi faces charges of fraud for taking out credit cards in his foster father’s name and amassing more than $200,000 in debts.
Rossi told local Rhode Island media outlets just weeks before his supposed death that he was battling late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
An obituary was then published online claiming he died Feb. 29, 2020.
A year later, local police revealed they were questioning whether he’d actually passed away given they had no proof.
Authorities finally became aware of his whereabouts after Rossi was hospitalized with COVID-19 and put on a ventilator in Scotland in December last year.
Hospital staff verified his identity by comparing the patient to a photo of Rossi submitted by authorities.
Investigators then showed up at the hospital and arrested him.
Rossi’s next court hearing is scheduled for Oct. 13.