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Ian Thomas Cleary, 31, who has been living in Europe for several years, was taken into custody in Metz in April 2024 a prosecutor told previously Associated Press.
Cleary was accused of raping Gettysburg College student, Shannon Keeler, a lacrosse player from Moorestown, NJ, at a party in 2013, according to court documents obtained by Daily Voice.
She confronted him via Facebook Messenger in 2020 and he notoriously replied, "So I raped you," as detailed in the affidavit of probable cause.
After sending a copy of the conversation to the Adams County sheriff, a warrant for his arrest was issued in 2021 and he has supposedly been on the run ever since. In June 2023, the US Department of Justice and US Marshals issued a wanted poster for his arrest.
Cleary transferred from Gettysburg College in 2014, completing his degree at Santa Clara University in 2016, his LinkedIn shows.
He grew up splitting his time between his father's home in Saratoga, CA, and his mom's home in Baltimore, MD, according to his Facebook.
Cleary worked for Telsa until 2017 when he left to write medieval literature, he explained on his LinkedIn and his website.
Keeler, who is represented by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, discussed "the failure of the Adams County District Attorney to prosecute despite physical evidence, eye witness accounts and Facebook messages from Mr. Cleary confessing in 2020," in a nationally televised interview by abcnews.
She graduated from Gettysburg College in 2015 and works in Charlotte, NC, according to her LinkedIn.
PCAR told us in May, "We are not commenting on yesterday’s report of Ian Cleary’s detainment in France." We've reached out for an updated statement but have yet to hear back as of Monday, July 8 at 8 p.m.
The Court of Appeal in Metz's ruling to extradite Clearly is a final decision, but no flight date has been set. Until he returns to America, he remains in police custody in France, according to the AP.
Daily Voice has reached out to officials familiar with the case for more information, so check back here for possible updates.
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