Convicted child rapist waiting extradition

William George Nicol, 80, a convicted child rapist in Tri-City, Wash., awaits extradition from the Imperial County as details of his crime emerge.

Nicol is being held without bail in the county jail after he was captured by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Calexico downtown port of Nicol entry attempting to enter

the country Oct. 3. Deputy Imperial County District Attorney Heather Trapnell on Tuesday said Nicol is still in county jail and the court hasn’t set a date for his arraignment.

She said it should be scheduled in the next few days.

According to the Tri-City Herald, a newspaper centered in Kennewick, Wash., Nicol has been on the run for about a year.

The Herald stated a nationwide arrest warrant was issued Oct. 21 when Nicol skipped out before a jury verdict was read in Benton County Superior Court.

Nicol was on trial for sexually assaulting a grade-school boy for at least four years. Nicol contended the boy had been put up to lying. His attorney notified him he was likely going to be convicted as a result of a specific question the jury sent to the judge.

During deliberation, Nicol told his lawyer he was going to use the restroom, but instead walked out of the Benton County Justice Center.

He was convicted on two counts of first-degree child rape and one count of first-degree child molestation.

He is facing a mandatory minimum of 13 and a half years to 18 years in prison.