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U.S. citizen charged with attacking a Pennsylvania student extradited from France

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U.S. citizen charged with attacking a Pennsylvania student extradited from France

PHILADELPHIA — An American man, Ian Cleary, accused of sexually assaulting a college student in Pennsylvania back in 2013, has been extradited from France to the United States. This transfer occurred on Thursday after Cleary had been detained in Metz, France, since April. His arrival in the U.S. will involve him being transported to Pennsylvania, as confirmed by a representative from the U.S. Marshals Service. The extradition followed a lengthy search lasting three years, which concluded when a French appeals court approved his transfer to U.S. authorities.

Cleary, now 31 years old and originally from Saratoga, California, was reportedly handed over to U.S. officials at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport, according to the prosecutors’ office in Metz. The case has had significant emotional weight for Shannon Keeler, the former Gettysburg University student who has spent over a decade seeking justice. Keeler expressed that the news of Cleary’s extradition has rejuvenated her belief in the justice system, stating, “After many years of waiting, the justice system can work, when survivors persist with the help and support of family, friends, advocates, and attorneys.” This quote was shared via a press release from her attorney.

The international manhunt for Cleary started in 2021 when the state of Pennsylvania issued a felony warrant following an investigative article that revealed local prosecutors’ hesitance in taking on campus sexual assault cases. Cleary is charged with stalking Keeler, who was 18 years old at the time, during a campus party in 2013. Authorities allege that he broke into her dormitory and assaulted her while she attempted to contact friends for assistance. At that point, Cleary was a 20-year-old student at Gettysburg but did not return to campus afterward.

On the day of the assault, Keeler underwent a rape examination and gathered witnesses alongside evidence to support her claim. After discovering disturbing Facebook messages attributed to Cleary in 2021, she pushed for further investigation. The messages read, “So I raped you,” and other alarming comments included, “I’ll never do it to anyone ever again,” and “I’ll pray for you.” Police subsequently confirmed that the Facebook account from which these messages were sent actually belonged to Cleary.

Typically, the media refrains from identifying sexual assault victims without their explicit permission, but Keeler has granted that consent. At this stage, no court hearing dates have been scheduled in Adams County, Pennsylvania, where Gettysburg is located. Moreover, Cleary has not yet secured legal representation in court records. Attempts to reach his family have been unsuccessful, with a woman who answered his mother’s phone hanging up on a reporter, while numbers for his father are no longer connected.

Keeler’s legal representative, Andrea Levy, acknowledged the tremendous bravery and persistence demonstrated by Keeler throughout this process. Levy expressed gratitude toward law enforcement at all levels for their efforts in capturing and extraditing Ian Cleary, highlighting the crucial support Keeler received from those around her.