Convicted rapist Nicholas Rossi, who faked his death and fled to Scotland, dies at 38 in Utah hospital
Nicholas Rossi, the American rapist who fled to Scotland and faked his own death, died Thursday after discontinuing medical treatment for chronic conditions. He was serving 10 years to life for two 2008 rapes.
Death in custody
Nicholas Rossi, 38, died in a Utah hospital on Thursday June 25, 2026, at 8:32 p.m. after choosing to discontinue medical treatment, according to the Utah Department of Corrections. The department said he had been suffering from chronic, degenerative conditions. A recent prison photo showed him relying on oxygen.
A decade on the run
Rossi fled the United States in 2017, eventually settling in Scotland under multiple aliases. In 2020, he created a fake memorial page claiming one of his identities, Nicholas Alahverdian, had died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and that his ashes were scattered at sea. He then lived as Arthur Knight, an Irish-born orphan, in Glasgow, marrying Miranda Knight and working as an academic.
He was a master manipulator. She saw through him.
Prosecutors said Rossi had a pattern of meeting women online and "sweeping them off their feet" before becoming controlling. He had purchased a wedding ring for one girlfriend before she ended the relationship; he was later convicted of raping her and another woman in 2008.
The Glasgow arrest
In December 2021, Rossi was hospitalized with Covid at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow. A nurse recognized his face and distinctive tattoos from an Interpol red notice and alerted authorities. Rossi insisted he was Arthur Knight and that it was a case of mistaken identity, but a Scottish court ruled in November 2022 that he was Rossi.
Extradition and sentencing
Rossi was extradited to the United States in January 2024 and stood trial for two rapes. He was convicted and sentenced to two consecutive terms of five years to life, effectively 10 years to life. A sentencing judge described him as a "serial abuser of women" and "the very definition of a flight risk."
- Rossi rapes two women in Utah.
- Flees US, eventually settles in Scotland.
- Fakes own death with memorial page for alias Nicholas Alahverdian.
- Arrested in Glasgow hospital after nurse recognizes him.
- Scottish court rules that he is Nicholas Rossi.
- Extradited to US.
- Convicted of rape, sentenced to 10 years to life.
- Dies in Utah hospital after discontinuing medical treatment.
Reaction
He died knowing he was caught. Even though he didn't spend a long time in prison, there's some justice to that.
The Utah Department of Corrections stated it had notified Rossi's family and his victims before announcing the death.
