* Italian accused former UN Congo envoy Doss of nepotism
* Probe urges clarification in hiring of close relatives (Adds UNDP comments, background)
By Basil Katz
NEW YORK, Sept 2 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Thursday dismissed the case against a former U.N. employee accused of biting a U.N. security guard after complaining of nepotism at the world body.
Nicola Baroncini, 36, was charged with third-degree assault in the June 2009 incident.
He had been offered a deal to plead guilty to a lesser charge of harassment but refused, saying at the time "I want the case to go to trial, so I can have my say and show how people are hired at the U.N."
A spokeswoman for the Manhattan District Attorney said the New York judge dismissed the case after Baroncini agreed to perform two days of community service and complete an anger management course.
Baroncini was accused of biting a U.N. security officer who tried to escort him out of an office where he had gone to complain about being passed over for a position in favor of the daughter of a high-level U.N. official.
The Italian said he was defending himself from three U.N. guards who used pepper spray on him and beat him.
Baroncini said he had been complaining about Alan Doss, a former U.N. undersecretary-general and special envoy to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [ID:nN10530413]
He said he was showing another U.N. official an e-mail from Doss that he alleged was evidence the envoy had used his influence to smooth the employment of his daughter.
An internal U.N. investigation of Doss found no reason to take action against him, U.N. officials have said.
But a U.N. Development Program (UNDP) probe into the hiring of Doss' daughter found that "a current staff member had misrepresented information provided as part of the recruitment process."
UNDP officials declined to say who had been guilty of misrepresenting information
The program's auditors recommended clarifying rules regarding the hiring of close relatives working at the United Nations and conducting reference checks earlier in the hiring process.
Doss, a Briton, declined to comment on the U.N. investigations while they were underway and has since retired. (Additional reporting and writing by Louis Charbonneau; Editing by Xavier Briand)
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