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Man who fled US following 2004 rape charge brought back to Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH — It’s been more than 14 years since an Israeli national charged accused of raping a teenage girl fled the country, but on Thursday he was brought back to Pittsburgh to face charges.

On Sept. 7, 2004, Moshe Journo allegedly raped the 15-year-old victim at his former girlfriend’s tanning salon.

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Following his arrest, Journo was released on bond, but not forced to turn over his Israeli passport.

The next day, police said, he fled the country.

“I understand she might have thought that we forgot about her, forgot about this case, but I just want to assure you the law enforcement community in this region did not," Allegheny County Deputy Sheriff Kevin Krauss said.

According to WPXI's news partners at the Trib, it's unclear why the passport was never seized. In a report from 2004, the newspaper spoke to former Dormont Police Chief Russ McKibben who said his department was not authorized to seize the document.

Police say that in 2017, Journo was taken into custody in Israel. He fought extradition, but this week the FBI and Allegheny County Sheriff's Office traveled to Israel to take him into custody.

“The FBI remains steadfast in searching for individuals trying to avoid prosecution,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Jones.

The alleged victim, now 30 years old, is willing to testify in court, investigators said.

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