STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) – A convicted rapist who spent eight years on the lam skiing and mountain climbing in Europe says he can’t pay a $10,000 fine because he doesn’t earn enough money in prison.

Alex Kelly is now 40 and scheduled to be released next month after serving more than 10 years of a 16-year sentence. Kelly was sentenced under the state’s now defunct system of giving inmates time off for good behavior instead of parole.

He was convicted in 1997 of raping two teenage girls four days apart in 1986.

The former Darien High School wrestling star fled to Europe in 1987 before the start of his trial. He surrendered in Switzerland in 1995.

Kelly is due back in Stamford Superior Court next week, giving court officials time to gather more details on his finances.

A judge can keep him in prison past his release date if he determines Kelly can pay the fine but is refusing to do so.

Kelly says he’s too old to ask his parents for money and earns just $1.75 a day in prison.

AP-ES-10-23-07 1639EDT