After a three-year search, the suspect who texted a US college student: “So I raped you” was arrested.

An American accused of raping a student in her dorm and later texting her, “So I raped you,” has been arrested in France after a three-year international search for the fugitive.

Ian Thomas Cleary was taken into custody in France, where embassy officials said he was living as a “homeless transient,” Gettysburg police Detective Chris Evans told USA TODAY.

Cleary, 31, is charged with sexual assault for raping an 18-year-old woman who voluntarily identified herself as Shannon Keeler after he allegedly forced his way into her dorm at Gettysburg College in 2013.

“I need to know whether I did it or not”

Cleary, who was also attending college at the time, followed Keeler and her friend home from a party, Evans wrote in a 2021 arrest warrant. Gettysburg College is a small liberal arts college of about 2,600 students in southern Pennsylvania, 140 miles west of Philadelphia.

When Cleary offered Keeler’s friend $20 to leave, the two told him to leave, the arrest warrant states. A few minutes after arriving at her dorm, Keeler heard a knock on her door. She opened the door without looking through the peephole because she thought it was her friend. Instead, Cleary burst in and sexually assaulted her, the warrant states.

According to an Associated Press investigation, Keeler reported the incident, met with police and filled out a rape test kit the next day. But authorities refused to press charges for eight years – until the woman received a series of incriminating messages from Cleary on Facebook Messenger, the warrant says.

“I need to hear your voice. I need to know if I did it or not,” Cleary wrote to her in 2019, according to the arrest warrant. “So I raped you. I will never do that to anyone again.”

Police believe Cleary left the United States before the arrest warrant was issued

When police issued the arrest warrant in June 2021, Cleary had already left the country. The U.S. Marshals Service picked up the case days later and a wanted poster with Cleary’s name was posted.

Evans said Cleary’s mother told police in an interview months earlier that Cleary had been out of the country. The evidence, he said, suggested Cleary was running from the law. “He comes from a wealthy family, so it seems kind of strange to me that he would be living as a homeless transient if he wasn’t trying to avoid these charges,” he said.

The extradition process could take up to four years, Evans said. Cleary will not necessarily face additional penalties if he evades arrest. “That could be a decision the prosecution can make later,” he said. “That could change, but in my opinion there are no further charges that I would like to file.”

Process pending: Former Illinois basketball player Terrence Shannon Jr. faces trial on rape charges

Andrea Levy, an attorney for Keeler, declined to comment on Clearly’s arrest in an email to USA TODAY. Adams County District Attorney Brian Stinnett’s office did not respond to a request for comment. It is unclear whether Cleary has retained a lawyer in France.

Cleary left Gettysburg College after the alleged attack. He graduated from Santa Clara University in 2016 and worked at Tesla before traveling to France, according to a LinkedIn page and personal website that appear to be his. He has self-published several medieval fantasy novels and translations of French medieval poems on Amazon and the website.

According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, college women ages 18 to 24 are three times more likely to be victims of sexual assault. Only 20% report to law enforcement.

Cybele Mayes-Osterman is a breaking news reporter for USA Today. You can reach her by email at [email protected]. Follow her on X @CybeleMO.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ian Thomas Cleary, suspect who wrote ‘So I raped you,’ arrested