A US man who faked his own death and fled to Scotland has been sentenced to at least five years in prison for rape. Nicholas Rossi, 38, received the sentence on Monday in Utah for raping a woman in 2008. He faces a second sentencing in November for a separate rape conviction.
District Judge Barry Lawrence handed down an indeterminate sentence of five years to life, meaning the parole board will decide the actual release date. The victim told the court Rossi left a 'trail of fear, pain and destruction'. She said: 'This is not a plea for vengeance. This is a plea for safety and accountability.'
Rossi maintained his innocence, saying softly: 'I am not guilty of this. These women are lying.' He did not testify at his trial. Prosecutors argued he 'uses rape to control women' and poses a risk to public safety.
Rossi was identified in 2018 through a DNA rape kit from a backlog. Months after being charged, an online obituary claimed he died of cancer in February 2020. However, police doubted his death. He was arrested in Scotland in 2021 after hospital staff recognised his tattoos from an Interpol notice. He was extradited to Utah in January 2024.
Rossi, who grew up in foster homes in Rhode Island, used at least a dozen aliases. He also faces fraud charges in Ohio and was wanted for failing to register as a sex offender in Rhode Island.
