Nicholas Rossi, extradited fugitive who faked his death, begins rape trial in Salt Lake County

UTAH COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) — Nicholas Rossi, the man who was extradited from Scotland to Utah to face 2008 rape allegations, is in court today, Aug. 11, for a jury trial in Salt Lake County.

Rossi, whose legal name is Nicholas Alahverdian, is accused of faking his death to

escape rape charges in Salt Lake County and Utah County.

In Oct. 2024, attorneys on the Utah County case said they were “close on a possible resolution,” suggesting that plea deal discussions were underway. On Jan. 7, 2025, Judge Derek Pullan followed up on the discussions. Rossi’s defense attorney, Daniel Diaz, responded by saying they “unfortunately haven’t been fruitful,” confirming that the case would go to trial.

Utah County lawyers confirmed in Jan. 2025 that plea deal discussions were now permanently off the table, with State Prosecutor Stephen Jones claiming that the state withdrew its plea offer “with the understanding it will not be offered again.”

Rossi’s Salt Lake County trial is scheduled to begin today, Aug. 11, and run through Friday, Aug. 15. The trial focuses on his alleged rape of a 24-year-old woman in Dec. 2008. The two had allegedly dated briefly at the time the incident took place.

Court documents state that Rossi trapped the woman in his bedroom, not allowing her to leave, and committed the assault.

Rossi is accused of faking his death to escape charges after he allegedly told a media outlet he had late-stage cancer and his obituary was later published online, according to the Associated Press. The obituary claimed he died on Feb. 29, 2020.

The following year, Rossi was arrested for an unrelated incident in a Glasgow hospital while being treated for COVID-19. He was then recognized as a fugitive and extradited to the United States, according to the Associated Press.

In addition to the Utah charges, Rossi also faces charges related to sexual assault, harassment, and possible kidnapping in Rhode Island, Ohio and Massachusetts.

ABC4 will be providing updates on Monday’s trial in Salt Lake County below:

Opening Statements

The jury consists of four women and six men. Stipulated facts include that Nicholas Rossi is the same individual as the person with the alias name. He was in Utah during 2008 and had a relationship with the alleged victim from Nov. through Dec. of that year.

Prosecutors’ opening statement describes the victim’s life at the time. She worked at a bank, loved to dance, and ended up getting in an accident. While healing, she met Rossi online and they met up.

Shortly after meeting, Rossi began pressuring her to marry him, and they were engaged within two weeks. He pressured her into buying them engagement rings, prosecutors said, and quickly became controlling.

When she decided to end the relationship, he wouldn’t let her leave the parking lot of a mall they were at. She drove him home and he allegedly convinced her to come inside. She again told him the relationship wasn’t going to work.

Rossi then raped her, prosecutors said. She told her parents but they didn’t take action so she gave up, instead filing a small claims to get the money back for the ring that he kept. The court will hear from those close to the alleged victim at the time of the incident, as well as an expert who will discuss how sexual assault survivors react to their assault and a detective involved in the case.

Defense’s opening statement claims Rossi is innocent. They said this case is a puzzle with multiple pieces missing. They claim the two had a whirlwind romance, and that she only contacted police 13 years later, when she saw him on the news, and had already built up years of resentment.

Hearing from Victim

The victim, 41, now happily married with three dogs, said she was 24 when the alleged rape took place. She was reportedly living with her parents at the time and working at a credit union.

A car accident at the time left her with a traumatic brain injury and she was in the ICU for seven days. By mid-November, she was dancing again. She met Rossi online, through his post in the personal section of Craigslist.

She said she was going to be alone for her birthday that year, so they decided to meet up. They spent the first date hanging out at Rossi’s apartment in Orem.

“He was very charming and seemed very interested in school and politics and music. He was very nice to me,” she said.

The would go out a few times a week. She said they spent a lot of time at the Apple Store because Rossi liked their products. At one point, he was going to get evicted from his apartment and she gave him $1,000. She said it made up almost all her savings at the time.

“He was constantly borrowing money from me,” she said.

She spent another $2,000 on engagement rings, which she said was Rossi’s idea. Things went downhill quickly, she said.

“He started to become very controlling and dictated how I dressed,” she said.

One night at the Gateway Mall, Rossi allegedly said something rude to her, causing a fight.

“That was the first time I had ever seen such rage in his eyes,” she said. “I was just sitting in the car hoping he’d stop so that I could leave.”

Rossi allegedly yelled at her in the car ride back to his house. He also said he would call the cops and claim that she hit him, according to the victim. After an hour of waiting outside the home and pretending to call the cops, Rossi convinced her to come inside.

There, she sought to end the relationship. According to the victim, Rossi raped her in the bedroom. She said she was petrified, unsure of what else he was capable of.

After she left, she decided she could never see him again in person and changed her phone number to cut off contact. They would stop all communication shortly after.