Man falsely linked to marathon bombs cleared of assault

A Massachusetts man once falsely linked by a New York newspaper to the Boston Marathon bombing has been acquitted of sexually assaulting a woman while in college.

A Massachusetts newspaper, the Sentinel & Enterprise, reports that 21-year-old Salaheddin Barhoum was found not guilty Wednesday of indecent assault and battery.

Prosecutors alleged Barhoum, then a student at Fitchburg State University, assaulted a student from New Hampshire's Franklin Pierce University in November 2015. The two had met online.

His lawyer said the encounter was consensual.

Barhoum was 16 when he was pictured with a friend on the front page of the New York Post three days after the 2013 bombing. A sub-headline read: "Feds seek these two pictured at Boston Marathon." He sued the newspaper for defamation and reached an undisclosed settlement.

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