Nicholas Alahverdian

Nicholas Alahverdian
Alahverdian in 2012
Born (1987-07-11) July 11, 1987 (age 37)
Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.[1]
Other names
  • Nicholas Rossi
  • Nicholas Alahverdian Rossi[2]
  • Nicholas Edward Rossi[2]
  • Nicholas Alahverdian-Rossi[2]
  • Nick Alan[2]
  • Nicholas Brown[2]
  • Nicholas Brown Knight[3]
  • Arthur Brown[2]
  • Arthur Knight[2][4]
Criminal chargeIndecent exposure (2008)
Sexual assault (2022)
PenaltyRegistration as a sex offender (2008)

Nicholas Alahverdian (born July 11, 1987),[5][6] also known as Nicholas Rossi and Arthur Knight, among other aliases,[4] is an American sex offender who faked his own death in 2020.[7][8][9][10][11]

Alahverdian alleged that he suffered abuse and negligence in the Department of Children Youth and Families (DCYF), Rhode Island's social service system.[7][12][13][14] In support of this allegation, he unsuccessfully sued the DCYF in federal court in 2011, then voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit when Rhode Island waived his medical expenses debt of around US$200,000.[15]

In January 2020, Alahverdian said that he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.[7][16] In February 2020, news outlets reported Alahverdian's death, citing his family's anonymous testimony and his obituary.[17][18] The reports of his death were disputed, as they occurred after the FBI initiated a fraud investigation against him, while Rhode Island police had issued a warrant for him for failure to register as a sex offender.[8]

In October 2021, he was identified in a hospital in Scotland while undergoing treatment for COVID-19. He was arrested that December on charges of an alleged rape in Utah in 2008, for which a sealed arrest warrant had been issued in September 2020, and other alleged crimes. In November 2022, Edinburgh Sheriff Court confirmed that the arrested man was Nicholas Rossi, despite his claims of mistaken identity.[19] In August 2023, a sheriff ruled that he could be extradited to the United States;[20] this was confirmed by Justice Secretary Angela Constance in October 2023,[21] and he was extradited on January 5, 2024.[22]

He gave up his claim of mistaken identity in a Utah court on August 23, 2024.[23]

  1. ^ Gilmour, Lauren (August 2, 2023). "Who is Nicholas Rossi and what is he accused of?". The Irish News. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Ambrose, Tom (January 14, 2022). "US man who faked death to evade rape charge arrested in Glasgow hospital". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 15, 2022. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  3. ^ Hay, Katharine (January 22, 2022). "US man accused of faking his own death remanded in custody". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Peiser, Jaclyn (January 13, 2022). "He faked his death to evade sexual assault charges, officials say. Police found him in a Scottish hospital". Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  5. ^ Voeglein, Claire. "Six things to know about Nicholas Alahverdian, the RI man who apparently faked his death". The Providence Journal. Archived from the original on January 14, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  6. ^ "Nicholas Alahverdian, R.I. child welfare activist, dies at 32". MSN.com. March 4, 2020. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  7. ^ a b c "Longtime child welfare advocate fighting cancer". WJAR. January 10, 2020. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  8. ^ a b Mooney, Tom. "He was reported dead, but the state police kept looking for Nick Alahverdian". The Providence Journal. Archived from the original on January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  9. ^ "Authorities question whether child welfare activist died". Associated Press. January 28, 2021. Archived from the original on January 30, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference providencealive was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "Nicholas Rossi: Fingerprints 'confirm identity' of man accused of rape and faking his own death, court told". Archived from the original on July 8, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
  12. ^ "Accusations of abuse, neglect in DCYF homes". GoLocalProv. March 2, 2011. Archived from the original on December 2, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  13. ^ Heller, Mathias (February 9, 2012). "Legislation spotlights domestic abuse". The Daily Herald. Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  14. ^ Buteau, Walt (March 19, 2011). "Street Stories: DCYF". WPRI on YouTube. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference Buteau33 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Klamkin, Steve (January 9, 2020). "DCYF critic, diagnosed with cancer, speaks out on troubled agency". WPRO News. Archived from the original on January 9, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  17. ^ "Child welfare activist dies of cancer". Associated Press. Archived from the original on March 4, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  18. ^ "Rhode Island child welfare reform advocate dies of cancer". NBC 10 News. March 3, 2020. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference confirmed was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ "Nicholas Rossi: US fugitive who faked his death can be extradited". BBC News. August 2, 2023.
  21. ^ "Nicholas Rossi to be extradited to US on rape charges". BBC News. October 5, 2023. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  22. ^ "US fugitive Rossi extradited from Scotland". BBC News. January 5, 2024.
  23. ^ "Nicholas Rossi: Fugitive abandons mistaken identity claims". August 23, 2024.