https://www.inquisitr.com/6313109/althea-bernstein-case-closed-no-evidence/

Law enforcement has decided to close the case on alleged hate crime victim Althea Bernstein. The 18-year-old had claimed in June that she had been attacked by four white men who had poured lighter fluid onto her face and burned her in a vicious and racially motivated attack.

According to The Wisconsin State Journal, the Madison Police Department announced it was closing the case, citing that “after an exhaustive probe, detectives were unable to corroborate or locate evidence consistent with what was reported.”

“We were unable to corroborate [Bernstein’s story], but we are not speculating on what did and did not happen,” claimed Madison Police Chief Vic Wahl.

In addition, the FBI and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice — who had also been looking into the matter — released a similar statement that explained their decision to close the investigation as well.

“After reviewing all available evidence, authorities could not establish that the attack, as alleged by the complainant, had occurred,” it read.

Over the summer, the alleged crime had earned headlines across the country and the world, as the United States had just begun its summer of Black Lives Matters protests following the death of George Floyd. Bernstein even spoke of the incident on Good Morning America and earned a personal phone call from Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex.