Jamaican university lecturer Russell McLean, who was extradited to the United States on Thursday, is being held in the Broward County Jail in Florida on 16 charges including sexual assault, burglary and kidnapping.
McLean has been a lecturer at the Mandeville-based Northern Caribbean University (NCU) for 18-and-a-half years. He was based in the College of Humanities, Behavioural and Social Sciences at the private Seventh-Day Adventist-run university.
He waived his right to an extradition hearing when he appeared in court in May.
The 65-year-old McLean was located while serving as a faculty member at NCU and arrested with the assistance of U.S. Marshals in the long running cold case.
In Florida, Margate police said an investigation resumed after several sexual batteries and attempted batteries took place between June 1996 and November 1997, where the suspect broke into homes and threatened victims with a gun before assaulting them.
According to media reports out of Florida, in 2007, evidence in a burglary case led to the identification of McLean as a person of interest. During the investigation, McLean fled to Jamaica, officials said.
In 2018, DNA evidence was obtained and compared to rape kits taken from the incidents in the 1990s. It matched with McLean and an arrest warrant was issued in August 2020.
Investigators believe there may be more victims and ask anyone with information to contact Margate Police at 954-972-7111.
