Rape suspect Nicholas Rossi extradited from Scotland to US
Rossi first came to the attention of authorities after he became ill with COVID and was taken to a Glasgow hospital.
Friday 5 January 2024 16:56, UK
Rape suspect Nicholas Rossi has been extradited from Scotland to America after a long-running legal battle.
It comes after he was ruled to be a man wanted in Utah over the alleged rape of a woman in 2008.
US officials say he is a fugitive who faked his own death - even setting up his own memorial service - before fleeing to the UK.
He claimed to be a victim of mistaken identity and said he was an Irish orphan named Arthur Knight who had never been to America.
However, it emerged he had changed his name four times in three years and concocted a number of stories to hide from justice, said Sky's Scotland correspondent Connor Gillies.
first came to the attention of authorities after he became ill with COVID and was taken to Glasgow's Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in December 2021.
A year later, Edinburgh Sheriff Court ruled his tattoos and fingerprints matched those of Rossi - as featured on a global Interpol wanted notice.
Rossi suggested they had been inked on him by a rogue NHS employee when he was unconscious in hospital.
Read more from Sky News:
HMRC criticised over Luke Littler tax remark
Homes 'targeted' by gang dressed in dark clothing
The case played out over a number of years in Scottish courts, with Rossi dismissing his legal teams and representing himself.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said on Friday: "We assisted partner agencies with the extradition of a 36-year-old man."
It comes after appeal judges last month quashed Rossi's appeal.
Gillies said the extradition brings "an end to a huge game of cat and mouse he played with the legal system".
"The time is up, the game is up," said Sky's correspondent.