Sexual assault case against Kevin Spacey dropped

Boston: A criminal case against Hollywood star Kevin Spacey, who was accused of groping an 18-year-old man at a Massachusetts bar in 2016, has been dropped by the prosecutors in Massachusetts.

Indecent assault and battery charges were dropped after the accuser refused to testify about a missing phone, which the defence said could prove the actor's innocence. Several sexual misconduct accusations have been made against the actor but this was the only one to result in a criminal case.

The accuser had said Spacey bought him alcohol and groped him at a bar on the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts. Spacey's lawyers had accused the man of deleting text messages and said the phone could be used to prove their client's innocence.