Alexander Bells lie

The original inventor of the telephone wasnt Alexander Bell like most believe.
Antonio Meucci, 5 years earlier had allready demonstrated a working model of a device he called the "Teletrofono" He filed his patent in 1871.

In the same year though he was badly injured in a boiler explosion while on a ferry. He couldnt speak much english and was living on the dole and he failed to send the $10 needed to renew his patent in 1874.

In 1876 Bell filed his patent and naturally Meucci sued.

He sent off his original sketches and working models to a lab at Wester Union.

Unfortunately, Alexander Bell worked in the very same lab and all of Meucci's paperwork and models had all dissapeared.

Meucci died in 1889 while his case was still under way, without gaining credit for the invention that was so rightfully his.

I doubt this is true. Where's the proof? Some parts of the story were conveniently placed like Bell belonging to the same lab...