Man Might Be Dead Because of False Accusation

After a Utah 16-year-old girl told her 17-year-old brother she had been sexually assaulted aboard a public bus, the boy found the man she accused and attacked him, police say. Michael Fife, 62, suffered head injuries, fell to the ground, and lost consciousness in the alleged April 23 attack. He died four days later. But now police say no sexual assault actually occurred. Video from the bus shows Fife simply walking past the girl, with nothing else taking place, police say.

That day, the girl called her brother and within minutes, the teen found Fife exiting the bus, the Deseret News reports. The Logan police chief tells Fox 13 the teen did "kind of a linebacker-type charge toward the gentleman, knocking him down," and left him lying on the sidewalk. His sister reported the alleged sexual assault to police around 6:15 that night, just over three hours after she said it happened. The incident is still under investigation. Police are consulting with the Cache County Attorney’s Office, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. A GoFundMe campaign for Fife's funeral expenses has so far raised more than $1,500. (More Utah stories.)