US fugitive Rossi claims ‘I cannot raise my arms’ despite flapping them in recent TV interview

FANTASIST Nicholas Rossi said at his extradition hearing yesterday that he couldn’t raise his arms above his head – despite waving it in a recent TV interview.

The 35-year-old US rape suspect was filmed getting out of his seat and falling backwards to be caught by his wife Miranda in an absurd attempt to prove he can’t walk.

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The fugitive sex offender also raised his hand twice this week to get the attention of his solicitor at Edinburgh Sheriff Court – and dramatically threw up an arm as he tried to fire him yesterday

Rossi, who has more than a dozen pseudonyms and claims to be Irish orphan Arthur Knight, is fighting extradition to his native Utah on charges of sexual assault and fraud.

Speaking yesterday, he said he was too ill to raise his arms above his head.

And he refuted a prison doctor’s statement that he had no medical reason to use a wheelchair.

But on Wednesday, Rossi raised his hand twice in court to attract the attention of his defender Mungo Bovey KC.

has said at his extradition hearing that he could not raise his arms above his head – although he had apparently done so the previous day.

The 35-year-old fugitive faces extradition in connection with a spate of rape allegations in the US, which he is accused of faking his own death to avoid.

Testifying before Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Thursday, Rossi said he couldn’t raise his arms above his head because he was so unwell.

He also said he wasn’t paralyzed but claimed his leg muscles were so weak that he couldn’t walk or support himself.

Rossi also dismissed claims made by HMP Edinburgh GP Dr. Barbara Mundweil on using an electric wheelchair.

In her testimony on Wednesday, Dr. Mundweil said there was no medical reason for Rossi to use a wheelchair and that while he uses an electric wheelchair in court, he uses a manual version in prison.

Rossi told the court that he “can’t raise my arms above my head and hold them there,” although he has regularly raised his arm fully up for extended periods at previous hearings to attract the attention of various sheriffs.

He added: “I’m not paralyzed. I can’t walk, I can’t stand, I can’t support myself in any way from the waist down.

He said: “The entire population of HMP Edinburgh would testify that fellow inmates push those in wheelchairs.”

“They’re called pushers and they get £2.50 a week.

Assistant Attorney Alan Cameron told Rossi that in light of the extradition, no one could trust anything he said and that he would do everything possible to avoid it.

Rossi replied: “I’ve been thinking about going to the United States just to prove I’m not Nicholas Rossi.”

He also claimed he was “neglected and abused” as much as he suffered “physically and mentally.”

During cross-examination by Mr Cameron, Rossi was unable to answer a question about his parents’ names.

He claimed documents relating to his birth parents are in the care of an “individual” in Ireland.

He added: “Before this Act (Birth Tracking Act) came into force it was illegal for an adopted adult to see these records (in Ireland).”

He informed Mr Cameron that he would submit the documents as soon as they were in his possession.

Rossi then repeated a series of claims that he was a victim of a Crown Office conspiracy and made serious allegations against Utah prosecutor David Leavitt.

The Scottish Sun revealed that Rossi was first arrested in December 2021 at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, where he was being treated for Covid.

He refuses to be extradited and insists he is Irish orphan Arthur Knight – but a court ruled last year that he was Rossi.

Rossi was seen waving his arms in a US television interview that aired in April.

The hearing before Sheriff Norman McFadyen continues.

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