Free Willy: Bills Player Clear of Masturbation Charges

A case of mistaken identity may be cause for some clubhouse chiding in the off season.

Call it a case of mistaken identity, but for Buffalo Bills fullback Corey McIntyre his March arrest in Florida is nothing short of embarrassing.

On Wednesday, Port St. Lucie authorities dropped the misdemeanor exposure charge against McIntyre after the witness who fingered the NFL player as the man who she claimed she caught masturbating on her porch backed off the statements.

T.O.'s Got McIntyre's Back

The Palm Beach State Attorney's Office said the victim's identification of McIntyre as the suspect was also questionable. Another possible suspect has been arrested in a similar case, police said. That man weighs about 150 pounds, while McIntyre is nearly 260 pounds of chiseled muscle.

Still, McIntyre, 30, was arrested in March while on his morning bike ride and accused of playing with himself in public. he posted a $10,000 bond and has been free since, but it may be a while before he can live down the ordeal.

"I just want to say that I'm happy that my name has been cleared today," McIntyre said Wednesday after a team practice in New York. "I have maintained my innocence all through this process, and I'm just glad it's out of the way. I'm sorry for the embarrassment to my family and to the Bills, and now my focus is on training camp. And that's all I have to say."

We're sure his NFL teammates, who are notorious for taking good-natured jabs at a colleague's misfortune, won't be so hush-hush about the issue. On second thought, if McIntyre takes too much of a beating from his teammates, he always has new Bill wide receiver Terrell "That's my teammate" Owens to cry for him.

"They never should have been filed in the first place and Corey, his family, and the Bills never should have been subjected to this kind of pain and embarrassment," said Brett Tessler, McIntyre's agent.

On Monday, authorities arrested a man accused of exposing himself on June 2 in the same area where McIntyre had been riding his bike, said Thomas Nichols of the Port St. Lucie Police Department.

Police acknowledged the only similarities between McIntyre and the latest suspect arrested is that they are both black and have dreadlocks.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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