A senior Israeli official accused of child sex crimes in the United States has failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing in his case, weeks after he returned to Israel, prompting concerns that he may have fled to avoid facing trial.

The Israeli official was arrested on August 6, but the incident was not made public until more than a week later, when the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department announced an undercover operation “targeting child sex predators”.

Alexandrovich was released and allowed to return to Israel after being charged with luring or attempting to lure a child online to engage in sexual conduct.