American fugitive Nicholas Rossi has confirmed his identity and admitted using an alias in a court in Utah.
Rossi was extradited from Scotland to the US in January after a lengthy case in the Scottish courts.
District Judge Barry Lawrence ruled during Rossi’s preliminary hearing in Utah that prosecutors had presented enough evidence to warrant a jury trial, KTVX-TV reported.
On Wednesday, Rossi confirmed he was born with the name Nicholas Alahverdian in a hearing to determine bail in one of the charges of rape.
He claimed he used the alias Arthur Knight after receiving “credible threats”.
Prosecutors say Rossi, 37, raped a 26-year-old woman in Salt Lake County in 2008.
In a separate case, he is accused of raping a 21-year-old woman in Orem, Utah, that same year.
He was not identified as a suspect for around a decade due to a backlog of DNA tests at the Utah State Crime Lab.
He was determined to be a flight risk if released and bail was denied as the case continues. Rossi denies the charges.
STV NewsRossi is alleged to have faked his own death before hiding out in Scotland.
He was accused of setting up his own memorial service and fleeing to the UK in an effort to avoid US prosecution.
The 36-year-old had claimed to be an Irish orphan named Arthur Knight, but a court ruled he was actually registered sex offender Nicholas Rossi.
He was found guilty of sexual imposition and public indecency while a student at Sinclair College in Dayton, Ohio, in 2008.
He was caught and arrested after someone recognised him while being treated for Covid-19 at a hospital in Glasgow in December 2021.
Edinburgh Sheriff Court ruled his tattoos and fingerprints matched those of Rossi – who was featured on an Interpol wanted notice.
An order granting Rossi’s extradition from Scotland was signed in September 2023 and he was flown back to America in January.
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