Ian Cleary, 31, was handed over to American authorities at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport this Thursday. Wanted since 2021 by Interpol, the American is accused of rape on a campus in 2023.
The end of a long wait. The prosecutor of the Metz Court of Appeal indicated that Ian Cleary, an American accused of sexually assaulting a student from Pennsylvania in 2013, was extradited this Thursday to the United States. The man, placed in pre-trial detention on April 24, 2024 pending an extradition procedure, was handed over to the American authorities at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, specifies the Metz prosecutor's office, cited by theAssociated Press .
Ian Cleary, 31, was arrested in April in Metz after three years of searching by American authorities. The latter had issued an arrest warrant for crime in 2021 and the American suspect was wanted by Interpol. The international arrest warrant accused the American of harassing 18-year-old former Gettysburg University student Shannon Keeler in 2013 at a campus party. He then allegedly entered the young woman's dormitory and then sexually assaulted her while she sent written messages to her friends to alert them. Aged 20 at the time of the alleged events, Ian Clearly left university and never returned to campus.
“I raped you”
Particularly shocked, Shannon Keeler carried out an examination for rape the same day. Subsequently, she tried to gather evidence and convince witnesses to support her in court to file a complaint. In 2015, his complaint was closed. But in 2021, a series of messages received on Facebook disturbed her. The author of these texts is Ian Clearly. “So I raped you”he wrote, before making incoherent remarks. “I’ll never do that to anyone again. I need to hear your voice. I will pray for you”he continues during the conversation. Police identified the Facebook account as that of the former student.
After learning of the American's extradition, Shannon Keeler said that this news gave her confidence in the judicial system. “This arrest and extradition restores my confidence that after many years of waiting, the justice system can work, when survivors persist with the help and support of their family, their friends, their defenders and their lawyers”she said in a statement released through her lawyer. This lawyer emphasized “incredible courage” and the “unwavering determination” of your client.
