US rape suspect Nicholas Rossi tried to hijack his court hearing to hold a minute’s silence for the late Queen.
Rossi, who fled to Scotland from America to escape an array of alleged offences, made the request over a jail video link at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Thursday.
The 35-year-old, who maintains he is actually a man called Arthur Knight, is currently being held in the city’s Saughton Prison.
Rossi told Sheriff Kenneth Maciver moments after the hearing started: “Can I ask your lordship if we can begin with a minute of silence in memory of Her Majesty?”
But the sheriff immediately shut Rossi down, telling him “I’m not hearing you very well”.
Sheriff Maciver then continued with the case which heard a psychiatrist has met with Rossi behind bars to assess his mental condition.
The sheriff also underlined the importance of both legal teams being ready for a planned four-day extradition hearing in November.
Rossi, who is accused of faking his own death in the US, was arrested at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital last December while receiving treatment for Covid-19.
He told a hearing earlier this month he’d had a heart attack in jail while his mental health was deteriorating and he was suffering from hallucinations.
Ronnie Renucci KC told the court he’d now received sanction to appear as Rossi’s new lawyer.Mr Renucci said preparation of a psychological report was under way but was being held up by a “Catch 22”. He said the medical records under the name Nicholas Rossi couldn’t be released as his client maintained he was Arthur Knight so his mandate wasn’t being accepted by health chiefs.
Mr Renucci - the latest in a string of lawyers to represent Rossi - said he’d only spoken to Rossi over video and needed to consult with him in person.
He made a motion to hold a continued preliminary hearing on October 6 to see what “further progress” had been made.
Sheriff Maciver asked about the purpose of a psychological report and whether it could be used to try and “bar extradition down the road”.
Mr Renucci said a report may be useful for “a number of reasons”, but replied that “may well be”.
Rossi, in a wheelchair and wearing an oxygen mask, attempted to interject, telling the court: “There are no medical records in the name of Nicholas Rossi in NHS Scotland or NHS England. I am not Nicholas Rossi and I have never been known by that name.”
Sheriff Maciver replied it was important that the question of identity be resolved “quickly”.
The sheriff said the Crown had “fingerprints” and there was the issue of tattoos, which Nicholas Rossi is believed to have. The sheriff added: “He could submit that he has no tattoos on either arm.”
Sheriff Maciver said the accused was being held in custody and resolving he wasn’t the “wrong man” was “pressing”. He added: “It’s not that difficult.”
Weeping Rossi tried to interrupt repeatedly, raising his hand and asking: “Can anyone hear me?”
The sheriff let him speak when Rossi only repeated that the court should be considering the matter of his identity.
Sheriff Maciver set the next hearing for October 6.
US prosecutors claim Rossi raped a 21-year-old in Utah, in 2008. He is also said to have attacked women in Rhode Island, Ohio and Massachusetts. They say he has previously used the names Nick Alan, Nicholas Brown, Arthur Brown and Arthur Knight.
Rossi reportedly told US media in December 2019 that he had late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma and had weeks to live. Several outlets reported that he had died in February 2020.
