A Virginia jury acquits an ex-CIA recruit in an assault case that led to sexual misconduct reforms

Associated Press

A former CIA officer-trainee has been acquitted of charges that he attacked a female colleague in a stairwell at CIA headquarters. A Virginia jury on Wednesday acquitted Ashkan Bayatpour of assault and battery charges in a 2022 case. The case spurred a flood of sexual misconduct complaints and reforms at the CIA. The 40-year-old former Navy intelligence officer had been accused of wrapping a scarf around the woman’s neck and trying to kiss her on the mouth. He stopped working at the spy agency last year after a judge convicted him on the same charge. His appeal entitled him to the jury trial at which he was acquitted.