Battyman actor from Empire allegedly gets jumped in Chicago; Update: Arrested for filing fake report
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Chicago police want to talk to Jussie Smollett, but they don't know when that'll happen
By Ryan Young, Brad Parks and Dakin Andone, CNN
Updated 3:46 PM ET, Tue February 19, 2019
Smollett denies playing a role in his attack, according to a statement from his attorneys.
The sources told CNN the two men are now cooperating fully with law enforcement and that there are records that show the two brothers purchased the rope found around Smollett's neck at a hardware store in Chicago.
Olabinjo "Ola" Osundairo also was released without being charged.
Smollett's attorneys, Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson, issued a statement to CNN Saturday night saying Smollett was angry about these latest developments.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with," the statement read. "He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying."
Smollett identifies as gay and since 2015 has played the gay character of Jamal on the Fox TV drama "Empire."
What happened
According to Chicago Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, the actor told detectives he was attacked by two men near the lower entrance of a Loews hotel in Chicago. Police were told the two men yelled "'Empire' fa***t" and "'Empire' n***er'" while striking him.
In a supplemental interview with authorities, Smollett confirmed media reports that one of the attackers also shouted, "This is MAGA country," a reference to President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan.
The day after the incident, police released surveillance images that showed two silhouetted individuals walking down a sidewalk, and police said they were wanted for questioning.
The brothers said in a statement they are not racist or homophobic.
Police on Friday said the men were being viewed as "potential suspects" and that detectives had "probable cause that they may have been involved in an alleged crime."
But by Friday night they had been released, Guglielmi said, "due to new evidence as a result of today's investigations."
"And detectives have additional investigative work to complete," he added.
One of the men has appeared on "Empire," Guglielmi said. A police source also told CNN on Friday night that the men had a previous affiliation with Smollett, but did not provide additional details.
Smollett has expressed frustration about not being believed
Following the alleged attack, Smollett's colleagues and fans rallied around him, expressing shock and sadness.
"We have to love each other regardless of what sexual orientation we are because it shows that we are united on a united front," Lee Daniels, the creator of "Empire," said in a video posted to his Instagram page on January 29. "And no racist f*** can come in and do the things that they did to you. Hold your head up, Jussie. I'm with you."
Smollett gave his first detailed account of what he says was a hate crime against him, and the aftermath, in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America" that aired Thursday.
"It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim or a Mexican or someone black I feel like the doubters would have supported me a lot much more," Smollett said. "And that says a lot about the place where we are as a country right now."
Smollett stated that one of the attackers shouted "this is MAGA country" before punching him in the face. But he refuted reports that said he told police the attackers wore "Make America Great Again" hats.
"I never said that," he told ABC's Robin Roberts. "I didn't need to add anything like that. They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There's no which way you cut it. I don't need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae."
By Ryan Young, Brad Parks and Dakin Andone, CNN
Updated 3:46 PM ET, Tue February 19, 2019
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Smollett denies playing a role in his attack, according to a statement from his attorneys.
The sources told CNN the two men are now cooperating fully with law enforcement and that there are records that show the two brothers purchased the rope found around Smollett's neck at a hardware store in Chicago.
Olabinjo "Ola" Osundairo also was released without being charged.
Smollett's attorneys, Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson, issued a statement to CNN Saturday night saying Smollett was angry about these latest developments.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with," the statement read. "He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying."
Smollett identifies as gay and since 2015 has played the gay character of Jamal on the Fox TV drama "Empire."
What happened
According to Chicago Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, the actor told detectives he was attacked by two men near the lower entrance of a Loews hotel in Chicago. Police were told the two men yelled "'Empire' fa***t" and "'Empire' n***er'" while striking him.
In a supplemental interview with authorities, Smollett confirmed media reports that one of the attackers also shouted, "This is MAGA country," a reference to President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan.
The day after the incident, police released surveillance images that showed two silhouetted individuals walking down a sidewalk, and police said they were wanted for questioning.
The brothers said in a statement they are not racist or homophobic.
Police on Friday said the men were being viewed as "potential suspects" and that detectives had "probable cause that they may have been involved in an alleged crime."
But by Friday night they had been released, Guglielmi said, "due to new evidence as a result of today's investigations."
"And detectives have additional investigative work to complete," he added.
One of the men has appeared on "Empire," Guglielmi said. A police source also told CNN on Friday night that the men had a previous affiliation with Smollett, but did not provide additional details.
Smollett has expressed frustration about not being believed
Following the alleged attack, Smollett's colleagues and fans rallied around him, expressing shock and sadness.
"We have to love each other regardless of what sexual orientation we are because it shows that we are united on a united front," Lee Daniels, the creator of "Empire," said in a video posted to his Instagram page on January 29. "And no racist f*** can come in and do the things that they did to you. Hold your head up, Jussie. I'm with you."
Smollett gave his first detailed account of what he says was a hate crime against him, and the aftermath, in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America" that aired Thursday.
"It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim or a Mexican or someone black I feel like the doubters would have supported me a lot much more," Smollett said. "And that says a lot about the place where we are as a country right now."
Smollett stated that one of the attackers shouted "this is MAGA country" before punching him in the face. But he refuted reports that said he told police the attackers wore "Make America Great Again" hats.
"I never said that," he told ABC's Robin Roberts. "I didn't need to add anything like that. They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There's no which way you cut it. I don't need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae."
Jussie Smollett Faces Prison, Career Ruin if He Lied About Attack
By GENE MADDAUS and BRENT LANG
CREDIT: VICTORIA WILL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK
Jussie Smollett is facing prison time and the implosion of his career if it turns out he lied about being the target of a hate crime, legal and public relations experts say.
“The best thing that Jussie can do is pray and pray a lot,” said Ronn Torossian, founder of 5W Public Relations. “If he made it up, he has big problems in both the court of law and the court of public opinion.”
The “Empire” star claimed he was beaten up on Jan. 29 by two men who used racial and homophobic slurs. Smollett’s co-stars and colleagues on “Empire,” celebrities such as Ellen Page and Zendaya, and public figures such as Sen. Kamala Harris rallied behind the actor, releasing statements of support. However, Smollett’s account is now being challenged, with police investigating whether or not he paid two acquaintances, Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, to stage the attack.
Chicago police confirmed on Tuesday that they received a tip from someone claiming to have seen the three men together in an elevator of Smollett’s apartment building on the evening of the attack. However, later in the day, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi tweeted that the tip was unfounded.
If Smollett falsified a police report, the charge is a Class 4 felony in Illinois, and carries a potential sentence of one to three years in prison. Smollett could also be ordered to pay restitution to compensate for the cost of the Chicago Police Department investigation.
“It’s a very, very, very serious situation,” said Phil Turner, a former federal prosecutor who now works in criminal defense in Chicago. “He’s got some very significant exposure.”
Smollett told police that two men attacked him at 2 a.m., poured bleach on him, and put a noose around his neck. He also claimed they told him that it was “MAGA country,” a reference to Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. Chicago investigators are now seeking to speak with Smollett.
Federal investigators are also probing a threatening letter that was sent to the “Empire” set. The letter included homophobic language and contained a white powder, which was later determined to be a crushed painkiller tablet. Should that letter turn out to be fake, federal prosecutors could also pursue a mail fraud charge, legal experts say.
Andrew Weisberg, a former prosecutor in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, said Smollett could get probation, assuming that he has a clean record. Update: NBC News reported Tuesday, and Variety confirmed, that Smollett pleaded no contest in 2007 to three misdemeanor counts stemming from a DUI incident in Los Angeles, including one count of giving false information to the police. According to the criminal complaint filed by the L.A. City Attorney’s office, Smollett gave a false name, pretending to be his brother Jake.
Weisberg also said prosecutors may face pressure not to be lenient.
“It’s a very high-profile case,” he said. “Prosecutors tend to be tougher because everybody’s watching. … I think they may come down hard, in terms of not reducing it to a misdemeanor.”
Steve Greenberg, a Chicago defense attorney, said prosecutors could also file a charge of obstruction of justice. He said it was likely, though, that Smollett would be allowed to plead to a misdemeanor, and not serve jail time.
“They’re not going to ruin a guy’s life over this,” Greenberg said. “People make false reports all the time to the police. They get in a DUI, they call police and say, ‘My car was stolen.’ Ninety percent of the time, even if they’re charged with a felony, those people end up pleading to a misdemeanor.”
Smollett has retained two criminal defense attorneys, Victor Henderson and Todd Pugh. They have denied that Smollett staged the attack, and said he will continue to cooperate.
“His lawyers may be having a psychiatrist examine the guy so they could prepare some kind of psychiatric defense,” Turner said.
Smollett, like celebrity fabulists such as Lance Armstrong and Ryan Lochte, may see endorsement opportunities and roles dry up if he is found to have been untruthful. Public relations experts say he will need to demonstrate that he’s learned a lesson.
“If he made this up, he broke the trust of a lot of his fans,” said Ray Drasnin, founder of Purple Penguin PR. “Say you lied and you’re sorry for that lie. Apologize to the people who have supported you, promise to make it up, and find a cause that’s near and dear to your heart and devote yourself to it.”
Richard Levick, chairman and CEO of LEVICK, said people shouldn’t rush to judgment regarding Smollet and cautioned that there are still, in the words of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, “too many unknown unknowns.” Yet if Smollett did fabricate the attack, Levick says he needs to be more proactive.
“He needs to get ahead of this as much as he can,” he said. “He needs to go see the police. He needs to apologize. He needs to make the announcement about what happened instead of letting the facts leak out. If he lied, there’s no excuse, but there may be some explanation.”
By GENE MADDAUS and BRENT LANG
CREDIT: VICTORIA WILL/INVISION/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK
Jussie Smollett is facing prison time and the implosion of his career if it turns out he lied about being the target of a hate crime, legal and public relations experts say.
“The best thing that Jussie can do is pray and pray a lot,” said Ronn Torossian, founder of 5W Public Relations. “If he made it up, he has big problems in both the court of law and the court of public opinion.”
The “Empire” star claimed he was beaten up on Jan. 29 by two men who used racial and homophobic slurs. Smollett’s co-stars and colleagues on “Empire,” celebrities such as Ellen Page and Zendaya, and public figures such as Sen. Kamala Harris rallied behind the actor, releasing statements of support. However, Smollett’s account is now being challenged, with police investigating whether or not he paid two acquaintances, Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, to stage the attack.
Chicago police confirmed on Tuesday that they received a tip from someone claiming to have seen the three men together in an elevator of Smollett’s apartment building on the evening of the attack. However, later in the day, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi tweeted that the tip was unfounded.
If Smollett falsified a police report, the charge is a Class 4 felony in Illinois, and carries a potential sentence of one to three years in prison. Smollett could also be ordered to pay restitution to compensate for the cost of the Chicago Police Department investigation.
“It’s a very, very, very serious situation,” said Phil Turner, a former federal prosecutor who now works in criminal defense in Chicago. “He’s got some very significant exposure.”
Smollett told police that two men attacked him at 2 a.m., poured bleach on him, and put a noose around his neck. He also claimed they told him that it was “MAGA country,” a reference to Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. Chicago investigators are now seeking to speak with Smollett.
Federal investigators are also probing a threatening letter that was sent to the “Empire” set. The letter included homophobic language and contained a white powder, which was later determined to be a crushed painkiller tablet. Should that letter turn out to be fake, federal prosecutors could also pursue a mail fraud charge, legal experts say.
Andrew Weisberg, a former prosecutor in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, said Smollett could get probation, assuming that he has a clean record. Update: NBC News reported Tuesday, and Variety confirmed, that Smollett pleaded no contest in 2007 to three misdemeanor counts stemming from a DUI incident in Los Angeles, including one count of giving false information to the police. According to the criminal complaint filed by the L.A. City Attorney’s office, Smollett gave a false name, pretending to be his brother Jake.
Weisberg also said prosecutors may face pressure not to be lenient.
“It’s a very high-profile case,” he said. “Prosecutors tend to be tougher because everybody’s watching. … I think they may come down hard, in terms of not reducing it to a misdemeanor.”
Steve Greenberg, a Chicago defense attorney, said prosecutors could also file a charge of obstruction of justice. He said it was likely, though, that Smollett would be allowed to plead to a misdemeanor, and not serve jail time.
“They’re not going to ruin a guy’s life over this,” Greenberg said. “People make false reports all the time to the police. They get in a DUI, they call police and say, ‘My car was stolen.’ Ninety percent of the time, even if they’re charged with a felony, those people end up pleading to a misdemeanor.”
Smollett has retained two criminal defense attorneys, Victor Henderson and Todd Pugh. They have denied that Smollett staged the attack, and said he will continue to cooperate.
“His lawyers may be having a psychiatrist examine the guy so they could prepare some kind of psychiatric defense,” Turner said.
Smollett, like celebrity fabulists such as Lance Armstrong and Ryan Lochte, may see endorsement opportunities and roles dry up if he is found to have been untruthful. Public relations experts say he will need to demonstrate that he’s learned a lesson.
“If he made this up, he broke the trust of a lot of his fans,” said Ray Drasnin, founder of Purple Penguin PR. “Say you lied and you’re sorry for that lie. Apologize to the people who have supported you, promise to make it up, and find a cause that’s near and dear to your heart and devote yourself to it.”
Richard Levick, chairman and CEO of LEVICK, said people shouldn’t rush to judgment regarding Smollet and cautioned that there are still, in the words of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, “too many unknown unknowns.” Yet if Smollett did fabricate the attack, Levick says he needs to be more proactive.
“He needs to get ahead of this as much as he can,” he said. “He needs to go see the police. He needs to apologize. He needs to make the announcement about what happened instead of letting the facts leak out. If he lied, there’s no excuse, but there may be some explanation.”
https://www.vox.com/2019/2/17/18228444/jussie-smollett-hoax-hate-crime-claims-explained
Hate crime or hoax? The drama behind the Jussie Smollett case, explained.
The Empire actor is being accused of orchestrating his own attack.
By Amanda Sakuma and German Lopez Updated Feb 19, 2019, 4:10pm ESTSHARE
Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for ABA
It’s been almost three weeks since actor and singer Jussie Smollett came forward saying he was the victim of a hate crime in an attack that briefly left him hospitalized. But now news reports, citing anonymous sources, are calling Smollett’s story into question, fueling a firestorm of outrage and confusion over what to believe and how to feel about the case.
Smollett, who is black and gay, plays a queer character in the Fox drama Empire. Initial reports of the attack were quickly met with an widespread outpouring of support from Smollett’s colleagues, the LGBTQ community at large, and politicians. Empire co-creator Danny Strong, for example, condemned the attack and tweeted his support of Smollett.
Chicago police said from the outset that they were treating the incident as a possible hate crime. Media reports followed every development in the unexpected case of a celebrity who claimed to be a victim of targeted violence and hate.
But in the weeks since Smollett’s story first made headlines, the narrative has taken a number of twists and turns — from assumed tragedy to suspected hoax. Several reports, citing unnamed sources, suggest that police are investigating whether Smollett helped orchestrate his own attack. And federal investigators are reportedly looking into whether Smollett played a role in sending a threatening letter to himself prior to the attack.
Smollett, however, has stood by his initial claims, with his lawyers arguing in a statement that he “has now been further victimized” by the allegations of a hoax.
Though much of what happened on that January night is still unclear — or perhaps because it’s unclear — the story has activated virtually every lightning rod issue dividing America today, from racism and homophobia to distrust in the media and politically motivated attacks. Here’s what we know so far.
Police initially detained two suspects — only to release them when the investigation’s trajectory “shifted”
Smollett says he was attacked on January 29 by two masked men at the entrance of the Loews hotel in Chicago. He claims they yelled racist and homophobic remarks — making references to his show Empire and President Donald Trump’s signature slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Smollett says one attacker tied a noose around his neck and poured a substance on him that he believed was bleach; then the two fled.
Police were unable to find surveillance video of the attack even though it was in a heavily trafficked area with plenty of cameras nearby. They did, however, release images from surveillance video a day after the incident that showed two shadowed people walking down a sidewalk. Authorities wanted to take them in for questioning.
On Wednesday, February 13, police arrested two Nigerian men, Olabinjo Osundairo and Abimbola Osundairo, brothers who were later found to have known Smollett prior to the incident. Their lawyer says one of them had worked as an extra on the set of Empire; Smollett’s lawyer says another was his personal trainer for a brief stint, though neither attorney specified which brother served which role, or whether they were both talking about the same person.
Police raided their homes in search of the liquid suspected of being poured on Smollett. They recovered Empire scripts, a phone, and a black mask.
Until Friday, February 15, the brothers were being treated by authorities as “persons of interest.” But by that afternoon, the narrative had turned. Police released them both without charges, saying new evidence has “shifted the trajectory of the investigation.”
Mostly unnamed sources are driving rumors of a hoax. Smollett has since lawyered up.
Rumors began circulating earlier this week that Smollett was somehow involved in his own attack, and that he may have even orchestrated it all. By Saturday, February 16, police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said they were looking to re-interview Smollett (though authorities still haven’t indicated why).
Initially, local media outlets were primarily the ones driving the story. According to CBS Chicago, two unnamed sources with “intimate knowledge of the investigation” said Smollett was potentially behind the attack and had involved the two brothers. ABC7 ran another story, again with unnamed sources who claimed that police were investigating whether the attack was staged “allegedly because Smollett was being written off of ‘Empire.’”
Guglielmi pushed back on the reports, tweeting on Thursday, February 14, that the reports of a hoax were unconfirmed by detectives and that the ABC7 sources in particular “are uninformed and inaccurate.”
National outlets, however, have backed up the local reports since Thursday, February 14. An unnamed source told CBS News that theOsundairos told investigators that Smollett had paid them off. CNN similarly reported that “[t]wo law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation” said Smollett “paid two men to orchestrate an assault on him that he reported late last month.”
CBS News, citing anonymous sources, reported that Smollett was upset that he didn’t get a “bigger reaction” from a threatening letter sent to him, so he staged the attack. The FBI and US Postal Service are now investigating if Smollett played a role in sending the threatening letter, two unnamed federal officials told ABC News.
But a law enforcement official also told ABC News that police haven’t independently verified allegations that Smollett orchestrated the Osundairos’ attack.
In his first televised interview since first reporting his account of the attack, Smollett on Thursday, February 14, told ABC host Robin Roberts he was “pissed off” that critics doubted his story.
Stories soon surfaced that Smollett had hired a high-profile defense attorney, Michael D. Monico, who is best known for representing Michael Cohen, but those reports appear to have been premature. Instead, Smollett is being represented by Chicago defense attorneys Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson. On Saturday, February 16, they released a statement saying Smollett is “angered and devastated” to find that he knows the alleged perpetrators in the case.
“He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying,” the statement continued.
The rumors feed into a conservative conspiracy around media bias
Underpinning all the twists in Smollett’s story is his suggestion from day one that his alleged assailants supported Trump. The actor said in his statement to police that his masked attacker told him, “This is MAGA country,” along with racist and homophobic remarks. He later had to push back on reports that they were wearing MAGA hats while pinning him down.
“They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There’s no which way you cut it. I don’t need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae,” Smollett said in his interview with Roberts on Thursday, February 14.
So once rumors began to surface suggesting that Smollett manufactured his attack, conservative media and pundits quickly pointed to his story as evidence of a broad conspiracy aimed at vilifying Trump supporters. As conservative CNN commentator S.E. Cupp notedover the weekend, Trumpers were “giddy” in their reaction to reports speculating about a hoax. And it’s clear from the responses to Cupp’s tweet that Smollett’s critics saw the new developments as validation that Trump supporters — not minorities, LGBTQ individuals, or other disadvantaged groups — are the people who are actually being persecuted.
It’s very similar to the “validation” seen last month after the Covington Catholic School teenswere dragged online for seeming to harass Native American elders. Once it became clear there was more to the story, conservative media quickly coalesced behind the students, saying they were the real victims in this case: victims of liberals’ instinctive dismissal of anyone wearing a MAGA cap.
As Vox’s Zack Beauchamp wrote at the time, the Covington drama became something of a Rorschach test, with “each side seeing what it wants to in a way that’s more revealing about their own worldviews than the actual incident.” For the right, it revealed several of their “core animating assumptions”:
From their point of view, the liberal reaction to the video, and not the footage itself, was the biggest problem. It reveals a culture where white men are acceptable targets of hate who deserve no sympathy and no due process, and where the left-wing mob wields tremendous power through its command of the public sphere.
That view connects to a broader assumption shared by many conservatives: that white Christian men are a persecuted minority in modern America.
Then, as now, the ensuing backlash to the initial news reports also ignited anti-media sentiment among conservatives. Even though most coverage of the actor’s attack directly reflected police statements, and it was clear the investigation was ongoing, the developing narrative is being taken as a sign that journalists blindly accept any stories with a careless disregard for the facts — particularly those stories that support liberal ideals.
In both the Covington and Smollett cases, liberals were quick to condemn what was, at first glance, unacceptable behavior. In the latter case, even President Trump, who is often criticized for taking his time before commenting on cases where the victims are minorities or from disadvantaged groups, denounced Smollet’s alleged attack as “horrible.”
“It doesn’t get worse, as far as I’m concerned,” he said from the Oval Office days after news broke.
No matter how the facts shake out — for all the speculation, police are still not calling Smollet a “suspect” — the case now hits at the core identity that Trump shares with his supporters, perpetuating a dangerous worldview that the media is corrupt and the stories of racism and bigotry are better off not being believed.
https://www.vox.com/2019/2/17/18228444/jussie-smollett-hoax-hate-crime-claims-explained
Hate crime or hoax? The drama behind the Jussie Smollett case, explained.
The Empire actor is being accused of orchestrating his own attack.
By Amanda Sakuma and German Lopez Updated Feb 19, 2019, 4:10pm ESTSHARE
It’s been almost three weeks since actor and singer Jussie Smollett came forward saying he was the victim of a hate crime in an attack that briefly left him hospitalized. But now news reports, citing anonymous sources, are calling Smollett’s story into question, fueling a firestorm of outrage and confusion over what to believe and how to feel about the case.
Smollett, who is black and gay, plays a queer character in the Fox drama Empire. Initial reports of the attack were quickly met with an widespread outpouring of support from Smollett’s colleagues, the LGBTQ community at large, and politicians. Empire co-creator Danny Strong, for example, condemned the attack and tweeted his support of Smollett.
Chicago police said from the outset that they were treating the incident as a possible hate crime. Media reports followed every development in the unexpected case of a celebrity who claimed to be a victim of targeted violence and hate.
But in the weeks since Smollett’s story first made headlines, the narrative has taken a number of twists and turns — from assumed tragedy to suspected hoax. Several reports, citing unnamed sources, suggest that police are investigating whether Smollett helped orchestrate his own attack. And federal investigators are reportedly looking into whether Smollett played a role in sending a threatening letter to himself prior to the attack.
Smollett, however, has stood by his initial claims, with his lawyers arguing in a statement that he “has now been further victimized” by the allegations of a hoax.
Though much of what happened on that January night is still unclear — or perhaps because it’s unclear — the story has activated virtually every lightning rod issue dividing America today, from racism and homophobia to distrust in the media and politically motivated attacks. Here’s what we know so far.
Police initially detained two suspects — only to release them when the investigation’s trajectory “shifted”
Smollett says he was attacked on January 29 by two masked men at the entrance of the Loews hotel in Chicago. He claims they yelled racist and homophobic remarks — making references to his show Empire and President Donald Trump’s signature slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Smollett says one attacker tied a noose around his neck and poured a substance on him that he believed was bleach; then the two fled.
Police were unable to find surveillance video of the attack even though it was in a heavily trafficked area with plenty of cameras nearby. They did, however, release images from surveillance video a day after the incident that showed two shadowed people walking down a sidewalk. Authorities wanted to take them in for questioning.
On Wednesday, February 13, police arrested two Nigerian men, Olabinjo Osundairo and Abimbola Osundairo, brothers who were later found to have known Smollett prior to the incident. Their lawyer says one of them had worked as an extra on the set of Empire; Smollett’s lawyer says another was his personal trainer for a brief stint, though neither attorney specified which brother served which role, or whether they were both talking about the same person.
Police raided their homes in search of the liquid suspected of being poured on Smollett. They recovered Empire scripts, a phone, and a black mask.
Until Friday, February 15, the brothers were being treated by authorities as “persons of interest.” But by that afternoon, the narrative had turned. Police released them both without charges, saying new evidence has “shifted the trajectory of the investigation.”
Mostly unnamed sources are driving rumors of a hoax. Smollett has since lawyered up.
Rumors began circulating earlier this week that Smollett was somehow involved in his own attack, and that he may have even orchestrated it all. By Saturday, February 16, police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said they were looking to re-interview Smollett (though authorities still haven’t indicated why).
Initially, local media outlets were primarily the ones driving the story. According to CBS Chicago, two unnamed sources with “intimate knowledge of the investigation” said Smollett was potentially behind the attack and had involved the two brothers. ABC7 ran another story, again with unnamed sources who claimed that police were investigating whether the attack was staged “allegedly because Smollett was being written off of ‘Empire.’”
Guglielmi pushed back on the reports, tweeting on Thursday, February 14, that the reports of a hoax were unconfirmed by detectives and that the ABC7 sources in particular “are uninformed and inaccurate.”
National outlets, however, have backed up the local reports since Thursday, February 14. An unnamed source told CBS News that theOsundairos told investigators that Smollett had paid them off. CNN similarly reported that “[t]wo law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation” said Smollett “paid two men to orchestrate an assault on him that he reported late last month.”
CBS News, citing anonymous sources, reported that Smollett was upset that he didn’t get a “bigger reaction” from a threatening letter sent to him, so he staged the attack. The FBI and US Postal Service are now investigating if Smollett played a role in sending the threatening letter, two unnamed federal officials told ABC News.
But a law enforcement official also told ABC News that police haven’t independently verified allegations that Smollett orchestrated the Osundairos’ attack.
In his first televised interview since first reporting his account of the attack, Smollett on Thursday, February 14, told ABC host Robin Roberts he was “pissed off” that critics doubted his story.
Stories soon surfaced that Smollett had hired a high-profile defense attorney, Michael D. Monico, who is best known for representing Michael Cohen, but those reports appear to have been premature. Instead, Smollett is being represented by Chicago defense attorneys Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson. On Saturday, February 16, they released a statement saying Smollett is “angered and devastated” to find that he knows the alleged perpetrators in the case.
“He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying,” the statement continued.
The rumors feed into a conservative conspiracy around media bias
Underpinning all the twists in Smollett’s story is his suggestion from day one that his alleged assailants supported Trump. The actor said in his statement to police that his masked attacker told him, “This is MAGA country,” along with racist and homophobic remarks. He later had to push back on reports that they were wearing MAGA hats while pinning him down.
“They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There’s no which way you cut it. I don’t need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae,” Smollett said in his interview with Roberts on Thursday, February 14.
So once rumors began to surface suggesting that Smollett manufactured his attack, conservative media and pundits quickly pointed to his story as evidence of a broad conspiracy aimed at vilifying Trump supporters. As conservative CNN commentator S.E. Cupp notedover the weekend, Trumpers were “giddy” in their reaction to reports speculating about a hoax. And it’s clear from the responses to Cupp’s tweet that Smollett’s critics saw the new developments as validation that Trump supporters — not minorities, LGBTQ individuals, or other disadvantaged groups — are the people who are actually being persecuted.
It’s very similar to the “validation” seen last month after the Covington Catholic School teenswere dragged online for seeming to harass Native American elders. Once it became clear there was more to the story, conservative media quickly coalesced behind the students, saying they were the real victims in this case: victims of liberals’ instinctive dismissal of anyone wearing a MAGA cap.
As Vox’s Zack Beauchamp wrote at the time, the Covington drama became something of a Rorschach test, with “each side seeing what it wants to in a way that’s more revealing about their own worldviews than the actual incident.” For the right, it revealed several of their “core animating assumptions”:
From their point of view, the liberal reaction to the video, and not the footage itself, was the biggest problem. It reveals a culture where white men are acceptable targets of hate who deserve no sympathy and no due process, and where the left-wing mob wields tremendous power through its command of the public sphere.
That view connects to a broader assumption shared by many conservatives: that white Christian men are a persecuted minority in modern America.
Then, as now, the ensuing backlash to the initial news reports also ignited anti-media sentiment among conservatives. Even though most coverage of the actor’s attack directly reflected police statements, and it was clear the investigation was ongoing, the developing narrative is being taken as a sign that journalists blindly accept any stories with a careless disregard for the facts — particularly those stories that support liberal ideals.
In both the Covington and Smollett cases, liberals were quick to condemn what was, at first glance, unacceptable behavior. In the latter case, even President Trump, who is often criticized for taking his time before commenting on cases where the victims are minorities or from disadvantaged groups, denounced Smollet’s alleged attack as “horrible.”
“It doesn’t get worse, as far as I’m concerned,” he said from the Oval Office days after news broke.
No matter how the facts shake out — for all the speculation, police are still not calling Smollet a “suspect” — the case now hits at the core identity that Trump shares with his supporters, perpetuating a dangerous worldview that the media is corrupt and the stories of racism and bigotry are better off not being believed.
https://www.vox.com/2019/2/17/18228444/jussie-smollett-hoax-hate-crime-claims-explained
So this guy (right wing Vietnamese) made a whole twitter thread on false hate crime accusations
Indiana church vandalized with slurs
Kara Berg, IndyStarPublished 5:05 p.m. ET Nov. 13, 2016 | Updated 2:48 p.m. ET Nov. 14, 2016
Minorities are expressing fear and reporting racial and religious discrimination after Donald Trump's victory. USA TODAY NETWORK
TWEET11LINKEDIN11COMMENT11EMAIL11MORE11
St. David's Episcopal Church in Bean Blossom was vandalized sometime Saturday night.
Vandals painted tags on the walls, depicting a swastika, an anti-gay slur and "Heil Trump."
The Rev. Kelsey Hutto, priest in charge at St. David's Episcopal Church, said she was disheartened after finding the graffiti on the walls of the church Sunday morning. But her next thought was more positive.
"Well, we must be doing something right," Hutto said she thought. "We stated one time that doing the right thing was not always the popular thing. We were targeted for a reason, and in our mind it was for a good reason."
As Christians, Hutto said they need to respond to hateful acts with love and joy. That's what God calls on them to do, no matter what color people are, where they came from or who they love.
They just need to respect the differences of every human being, she said.
Since Election Day, there have been more than 200 incidents of hateful harassment and intimidation across the country, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. And the rise in hate crimes since the election appears to be worse than what happened after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Richard Cohen, president of the Southern Poverty Law Center, told USA Today.
The vandalism at the church, about 25 miles south of Indianapolis, comes days after students in vice president-elect Mike Pence's hometown taunted other students by chanting "build that wall."
In VP-elect Pence's hometown, students face 'Build that wall!' taunts
Post-election spate of hate crimes worse than post-9/11, experts say
Hutto said there is no doubt the atmosphere in the country has changed since president-elect Donald Trump and his running mate Pence were elected on Tuesday.
"But what we really need to focus on is not the election, but rather the fact that love conquers all hate," Hutto said. "Anytime hate is presented, love needs to be our response. That's how we're responding."
On Facebook, Hutto expressed the same sentiments, saying they wouldn't let the actions of a few people damper their love of Christ and the world.
"We will continue to live out our beliefs and acceptance of all people and respecting the dignity of every human being. We pray for the perpetrators as well as those who the derogatory marks were directed at," Hutto said in her post. "This act was an act of separation. Separation of us from each other and a separation from God which is the definition of a sin. We pray for unification with God, with God's people and with ourselves. This is only one image of a worldwide phenomenon in which we are dividing ourselves and the world from God. We hope and pray that as the days and weeks continue we find a way to bridge this division from God and each other and ourselves."
Follow IndyStar reporter Kara Berg on Twitter: @karaberg95.
Indiana church vandalized with slurs
Kara Berg, IndyStarPublished 5:05 p.m. ET Nov. 13, 2016 | Updated 2:48 p.m. ET Nov. 14, 2016
Minorities are expressing fear and reporting racial and religious discrimination after Donald Trump's victory. USA TODAY NETWORK
TWEET11LINKEDIN11COMMENT11EMAIL11MORE11
St. David's Episcopal Church in Bean Blossom was vandalized sometime Saturday night.
Vandals painted tags on the walls, depicting a swastika, an anti-gay slur and "Heil Trump."
The Rev. Kelsey Hutto, priest in charge at St. David's Episcopal Church, said she was disheartened after finding the graffiti on the walls of the church Sunday morning. But her next thought was more positive.
"Well, we must be doing something right," Hutto said she thought. "We stated one time that doing the right thing was not always the popular thing. We were targeted for a reason, and in our mind it was for a good reason."
As Christians, Hutto said they need to respond to hateful acts with love and joy. That's what God calls on them to do, no matter what color people are, where they came from or who they love.
They just need to respect the differences of every human being, she said.
Since Election Day, there have been more than 200 incidents of hateful harassment and intimidation across the country, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. And the rise in hate crimes since the election appears to be worse than what happened after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Richard Cohen, president of the Southern Poverty Law Center, told USA Today.
The vandalism at the church, about 25 miles south of Indianapolis, comes days after students in vice president-elect Mike Pence's hometown taunted other students by chanting "build that wall."
In VP-elect Pence's hometown, students face 'Build that wall!' taunts
Post-election spate of hate crimes worse than post-9/11, experts say
Hutto said there is no doubt the atmosphere in the country has changed since president-elect Donald Trump and his running mate Pence were elected on Tuesday.
"But what we really need to focus on is not the election, but rather the fact that love conquers all hate," Hutto said. "Anytime hate is presented, love needs to be our response. That's how we're responding."
On Facebook, Hutto expressed the same sentiments, saying they wouldn't let the actions of a few people damper their love of Christ and the world.
"We will continue to live out our beliefs and acceptance of all people and respecting the dignity of every human being. We pray for the perpetrators as well as those who the derogatory marks were directed at," Hutto said in her post. "This act was an act of separation. Separation of us from each other and a separation from God which is the definition of a sin. We pray for unification with God, with God's people and with ourselves. This is only one image of a worldwide phenomenon in which we are dividing ourselves and the world from God. We hope and pray that as the days and weeks continue we find a way to bridge this division from God and each other and ourselves."
Follow IndyStar reporter Kara Berg on Twitter: @karaberg95.
Last edited:
Only way we can learn is if we question
I'm almost over agreeing
It's about perspective and how others feel.
Gives me insight and information
I just wish I liked traditional classes I'd still be enrolled in them
I learn via other avenues now
Without ceasing
It's the only way to live.
Learn and do. Also do what you learn
Also idgaf about being "wrong" if I am I cop to it .
It's rare because for the most part I defer to experts in field of discussion
And I do my research first
.I'd never argue with you about construction
I'd ask you
Lol I love these deflection posts. Like errbody ain't already upset about something every damn day. This is one FAKE one that they caught red handed and instead of just acknowledging it, they gotta pretend they care so much about something else. Where was his post about that shit when he was posting FOR Jussie? Fuck outta here
I've been re reading this line for damn near 30 minutes
Who’s to say that Jussie isn’t suffering the same thing that Ethan Couch has suffered. IMO Jussie is suffering from ‘Affluenza’. He should get off with a warning
The criminal case is the least of his worries since his lawyers will get him down to a misdemeanor.
However his career will be about as successful as Milli Vanilli after they were exposed.
Dude is a gay man who works in an industry where gay people have a lot of power. They will never forget this shit.
I was just saying he better use that mental illness/cac excuse......of course it won't work because he's a nigga 1st, a Nigga 2nd and a fag 3rd so he's gonna find out those cac excuses don't work for his black ass......bout to get his nigga wake up call but he's so fucking stupid he still won't get it
He better give that route a shot. I'd buy it
I see exactly what he's doing because he KNOW it's curtains for that fruitcake.
I keep saying Juicy Somlette better say he crazy, bi polar/ off his meds or say that fag LEE Daniels turned him out
Lol @ Juicy Somlette no mercy!I see exactly what he's doing because he KNOW it's curtains for that fruitcake.
I keep saying Juicy Somlette better say he crazy, bi polar/ off his meds or say that fag LEE Daniels turned him out
Jussie Smollett attack: Prosecutors speaking with Smollett's attorneys, police say
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Jussie Smollett has not been seen or heard from in days. Chicago police are still working to determine if the attack on the "Empire" actor was real or staged.
Updated 19 mins ago
CHICAGO --
Prosecutors are speaking with Jussie Smollett's attorneys as part of their investigation into an alleged attack on the "Empire" actor, Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi confirmed Wednesday to ABC News.
"We are hopeful that we'll have a chance to ask the questions that we have," Guglielmi said. "It doesn't matter what the investigation shows; if you have information that's helpful to law enforcement, it behooves you to contact authorities and share that information. We have been very diplomatic and have been working with him and his attorneys. We got information, and that what we want to run by him. If the opportunity is not taken [to come in], we're going to go with other methods to create a culture of accountability."
Guglielmi said that no evidence had been presented to a grand jury on behalf of the Smollett case on Tuesday. He also said he could not confirm reports that half a dozen subpoenas seeking Smollett's cell phone and bank records have been issued.
"The only tool for detectives to be able to corroborate information is a search warrant and a subpoena. I am not at liberty to discuss the specifics, but it is not uncommon for any detective or law enforcement to subpoena records," Guglielmi said.
WATCH: Cook County State's Attorney recuses herself from Smollett case
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Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx has recused herself from the investigation surrounding the alleged attack on "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett, her office told ABC News.
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx has recused herself from the investigation surrounding the alleged attack on Smollett, her office told ABC News on Tuesday.
"Out of an abundance of caution, the decision to recuse herself was made to address potential questions of impartiality based upon familiarity with potential witnesses in the case," a spokeswoman told ABC News via email.
First Assistant State's Attorney Joseph Magats will act as the state's attorney for this matter, a spokeswoman for Foxx's office said.
Former Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez criticized Foxx in a Facebook post Wednesday:
"Maybe I should have just recused myself from the difficult cases that came across my desk when I was State's Attorney. I was under the impression that when the voters elected me and I took my oath of office it meant I had to do my job."
Alvarez lost the March 2016 Democratic primary to Foxx, after fallout from the Laquan McDonald shooting investigation.
20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment issued this statement Wednesday: "Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show."
Earlier Tuesday, a tip that Smollett was seen on the night of his attack with two brothers who were arrested and later released without charges was deemed "unfounded" by Chicago police, according to CPD spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
Smollett reported in January that he was attacked by two masked men who hurled racist and homophobic slurs at him, beat him and looped a rope around his neck in Chicago's Streeterville neighborhood.
An unknown person who lived in Smollett's building or was visiting a resident of the building reported seeing the three men together in an elevator in the building on the night in question, Guglielmi said.
The tip was not supported by video evidence obtained by detectives, Guglielmi tweeted Tuesday evening.
Hours earlier, the brothers and their lawyer were seen at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. The attorney was seen leaving about 3:45 p.m. without comment. Chicago police told ABC News that the brothers met with prosecutors and police but did not testify before a grand jury Tuesday.
On Monday, a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation told ABC News that the brothers told police that Smollett staged the attack on himself because he was upset a threatening letter he received a week prior did not get enough attention.
Detectives are actively investigating the allegation, but have not confirmed it to be true, the official said.
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
ABC7 Legal Analyst Gil Soffer discusses questions in the Jussie Smollett case.
Chicago police said this weekend that they are "eager" to re-interview Smollett after releasing the two brothers, who were initially identified as persons of interest in the alleged attack. A spokeswoman for Smollett said his attorneys are talking to police.
The brothers, who are not considered suspects in the attack, also told police that they were paid to stage the attack, the official said.
"We are not racist. We are not homophobic and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens," the brothers said in a statement.
RELATED: Timeline of key moments in alleged attack on 'Empire' actor
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
Chicago police are investigating whether "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett may have staged his attack on Jan. 29 in Chicago.
The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the letter, which was sent to the Chicago studio for "Empire" on Jan. 22, and whether Smollett played a role in sending the letter, two federal officials confirmed to ABC News. The letter is currently in the FBI crime lab for analysis, according to one of those sources.
Last week, Smollett sat down with Good Morning America's Robin Roberts and spoke about the letter.
"Just because on the letter, it had a stick figure hanging from a tree with a gun pointing towards it with the words that said, 'Smollett, Jussie, you will die, black (expletive),'" Smollett said. "There was no address, but the return address said in big, red, you know, like caps, 'MAGA.' Did I make that up too?"
WATCH: Jussie Smollett interview with "Good Morning America": 'I am not weak'
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
Jussie Smollett attack: Exclusive GMA interview (1 of 3)
Jussie Smollett to GMA: 'I'm pissed off'
Jussie Smollett sat down with Robin Roberts for an exclusive interview on "Good Morning America."
After the police department investigated Smollett's attack for weeks as a possible hate crime, they discovered that one of the brothers bought the rope to be used in the attack at a local hardware store. The Chicago Sun-Times reports the store was the Crafty Beaver hardware store in Ravenswood.
RELATED: Brothers tell police that Jussie Smollett paid them to stage attack, sources say
Late Saturday, Smollett's attorneys Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson released a statement, addressing reports that the actor may have staged the attack.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with. He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying.
"One of these purported suspects was Jussie's personal trainer who he hired to ready him physically for a music video. It is impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime against Jussie or would falsely claim Jussie's complicity.
"Jussie and his attorneys anticipate being further updated by the Chicago Police Department on the status of the investigation and will continue to cooperate. At the present time, Jussie and his attorneys have no inclination to respond to "unnamed" sources inside of the investigation, but will continue discussions through official channels."
A CPD spokesman said Sunday, "While we are not in a position to confirm, deny or comment on the validity of what's been unofficially released, there are some developments in this investigation and detectives have some follow-ups to complete which include speaking to the individual who reported the incident."
ABC7 Eyewitness News also learned Tuesday that Smollett pleaded no contest to DUI, driving without a license and providing false information to law enforcement in Los Angeles in 2007. He was sentenced to two years of probation and either spent three days in jail or paid a fine of $100 for the three misdemeanor charges, according to the LA city attorney's office, though it's unclear which option he chose.
If convicted of filing false police report, which is a felony in Illinois, Smollett could face up to three years in prison.
Also Tuesday, a group of mothers who lost their sons to violence and whose cases remain unsolved gathered to speak out about the amount of resources dedicated to the Smollett case rather than their sons' unsolved cases.
"I'm just calling on Chicago police today to listen to our words and listen to what we are talking about today," said Sheila Rush, whose son was murdered. "Like I said, it's been nine years and I want justice."
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Current time00:00Seek
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Jussie Smollett has not been seen or heard from in days. Chicago police are still working to determine if the attack on the "Empire" actor was real or staged.
Updated 19 mins ago
CHICAGO --
Prosecutors are speaking with Jussie Smollett's attorneys as part of their investigation into an alleged attack on the "Empire" actor, Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi confirmed Wednesday to ABC News.
"We are hopeful that we'll have a chance to ask the questions that we have," Guglielmi said. "It doesn't matter what the investigation shows; if you have information that's helpful to law enforcement, it behooves you to contact authorities and share that information. We have been very diplomatic and have been working with him and his attorneys. We got information, and that what we want to run by him. If the opportunity is not taken [to come in], we're going to go with other methods to create a culture of accountability."
Guglielmi said that no evidence had been presented to a grand jury on behalf of the Smollett case on Tuesday. He also said he could not confirm reports that half a dozen subpoenas seeking Smollett's cell phone and bank records have been issued.
"The only tool for detectives to be able to corroborate information is a search warrant and a subpoena. I am not at liberty to discuss the specifics, but it is not uncommon for any detective or law enforcement to subpoena records," Guglielmi said.
WATCH: Cook County State's Attorney recuses herself from Smollett case
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx has recused herself from the investigation surrounding the alleged attack on "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett, her office told ABC News.
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx has recused herself from the investigation surrounding the alleged attack on Smollett, her office told ABC News on Tuesday.
"Out of an abundance of caution, the decision to recuse herself was made to address potential questions of impartiality based upon familiarity with potential witnesses in the case," a spokeswoman told ABC News via email.
First Assistant State's Attorney Joseph Magats will act as the state's attorney for this matter, a spokeswoman for Foxx's office said.
Former Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez criticized Foxx in a Facebook post Wednesday:
"Maybe I should have just recused myself from the difficult cases that came across my desk when I was State's Attorney. I was under the impression that when the voters elected me and I took my oath of office it meant I had to do my job."
Alvarez lost the March 2016 Democratic primary to Foxx, after fallout from the Laquan McDonald shooting investigation.
20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment issued this statement Wednesday: "Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show."
Earlier Tuesday, a tip that Smollett was seen on the night of his attack with two brothers who were arrested and later released without charges was deemed "unfounded" by Chicago police, according to CPD spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
Smollett reported in January that he was attacked by two masked men who hurled racist and homophobic slurs at him, beat him and looped a rope around his neck in Chicago's Streeterville neighborhood.
An unknown person who lived in Smollett's building or was visiting a resident of the building reported seeing the three men together in an elevator in the building on the night in question, Guglielmi said.
The tip was not supported by video evidence obtained by detectives, Guglielmi tweeted Tuesday evening.
Hours earlier, the brothers and their lawyer were seen at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. The attorney was seen leaving about 3:45 p.m. without comment. Chicago police told ABC News that the brothers met with prosecutors and police but did not testify before a grand jury Tuesday.
On Monday, a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation told ABC News that the brothers told police that Smollett staged the attack on himself because he was upset a threatening letter he received a week prior did not get enough attention.
Detectives are actively investigating the allegation, but have not confirmed it to be true, the official said.
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
ABC7 Legal Analyst Gil Soffer discusses questions in the Jussie Smollett case.
Chicago police said this weekend that they are "eager" to re-interview Smollett after releasing the two brothers, who were initially identified as persons of interest in the alleged attack. A spokeswoman for Smollett said his attorneys are talking to police.
The brothers, who are not considered suspects in the attack, also told police that they were paid to stage the attack, the official said.
"We are not racist. We are not homophobic and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens," the brothers said in a statement.
RELATED: Timeline of key moments in alleged attack on 'Empire' actor
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
Chicago police are investigating whether "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett may have staged his attack on Jan. 29 in Chicago.
The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the letter, which was sent to the Chicago studio for "Empire" on Jan. 22, and whether Smollett played a role in sending the letter, two federal officials confirmed to ABC News. The letter is currently in the FBI crime lab for analysis, according to one of those sources.
Last week, Smollett sat down with Good Morning America's Robin Roberts and spoke about the letter.
"Just because on the letter, it had a stick figure hanging from a tree with a gun pointing towards it with the words that said, 'Smollett, Jussie, you will die, black (expletive),'" Smollett said. "There was no address, but the return address said in big, red, you know, like caps, 'MAGA.' Did I make that up too?"
WATCH: Jussie Smollett interview with "Good Morning America": 'I am not weak'
EMBEDMORE NEWS VIDEOS
Jussie Smollett attack: Exclusive GMA interview (1 of 3)
Jussie Smollett to GMA: 'I'm pissed off'
Jussie Smollett sat down with Robin Roberts for an exclusive interview on "Good Morning America."
After the police department investigated Smollett's attack for weeks as a possible hate crime, they discovered that one of the brothers bought the rope to be used in the attack at a local hardware store. The Chicago Sun-Times reports the store was the Crafty Beaver hardware store in Ravenswood.
RELATED: Brothers tell police that Jussie Smollett paid them to stage attack, sources say
Late Saturday, Smollett's attorneys Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson released a statement, addressing reports that the actor may have staged the attack.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with. He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying.
"One of these purported suspects was Jussie's personal trainer who he hired to ready him physically for a music video. It is impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime against Jussie or would falsely claim Jussie's complicity.
"Jussie and his attorneys anticipate being further updated by the Chicago Police Department on the status of the investigation and will continue to cooperate. At the present time, Jussie and his attorneys have no inclination to respond to "unnamed" sources inside of the investigation, but will continue discussions through official channels."
A CPD spokesman said Sunday, "While we are not in a position to confirm, deny or comment on the validity of what's been unofficially released, there are some developments in this investigation and detectives have some follow-ups to complete which include speaking to the individual who reported the incident."
ABC7 Eyewitness News also learned Tuesday that Smollett pleaded no contest to DUI, driving without a license and providing false information to law enforcement in Los Angeles in 2007. He was sentenced to two years of probation and either spent three days in jail or paid a fine of $100 for the three misdemeanor charges, according to the LA city attorney's office, though it's unclear which option he chose.
If convicted of filing false police report, which is a felony in Illinois, Smollett could face up to three years in prison.
Also Tuesday, a group of mothers who lost their sons to violence and whose cases remain unsolved gathered to speak out about the amount of resources dedicated to the Smollett case rather than their sons' unsolved cases.
"I'm just calling on Chicago police today to listen to our words and listen to what we are talking about today," said Sheila Rush, whose son was murdered. "Like I said, it's been nine years and I want justice."
Its a smart play... he using the current hot topics as a shield.
Mental Health awareness is VERY big right now
and the continued narrative that African Americans FROWN upon it is ALSO big now
so if he can hit them BOTH? AND get the sympathy card?
Then the show looks WORSE firing him, but they can have him on "paid leave"...
wait for the noise to die down
and when its sweeps?
BRING HIM BACK
In between time?
Speaking Tours about mental illness, toxic masculinity and how being a gay Black men oppressed by straight men pressured him into this.
Damn, home boy might just make it in by the buzzer.
MAYBE.
Chicago detectives are seeking Jussie Smollett's financial records, police source says
By Ray Sanchez, Ryan Young and Bill Kirkos, CNN
Updated 4:10 PM ET, Wed February 20, 2019
Chicago detectives investigating an alleged attack on Jussie Smollett are working to obtain the actor's financial records, a high-ranking police source said Wednesday.
Investigators have also sought to ask Smollett additional questions about the attack he reported on January 29. Asource close to Jussie Smollett's team told CNN Wednesday that he has not given police a follow-up interview and no such meeting is scheduled.
Smollett told authorities that two men attacked him, putting a rope around his neck and pouring an unknown chemical substance on him.
The actor denies playing a role in his attack, according to a statement from his attorneys.
In a statement, 20th Century Fox Television, which produces the series "Empire" on which Smollett appears, and Fox Entertainment expressed support for the actor Wednesday.
"Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show," the statement said.
Two law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation have told CNN that police believe Smollett paid two brothers to orchestrate an assault on him.
The brothers, who were arrested and released in connection with the attack, met Tuesday with police and prosecutors at a Chicago courthouse, Chicago police spokesman Tom Ahern said. The county's top prosecutor, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx, has recused herself from the investigation, according to a spokeswoman from her office.
Brothers are cooperating with law enforcement, sources say
The men -- whom attorney Gloria Schmidt identified as Olabinjo Osundairo and Abimbola Osundairo -- were arrested February 13 but released without charges Friday after Chicago police cited the discovery of "new evidence." The two are no longer suspects at this time, Chicago police have said.
In a joint statement issued to CNN affiliate WBBM, the men said: "We are not racist. We are not homophobic, and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens."
Abimbola Osundairo was arrested and then released without being charged.
Anne Kavanaugh of Media Pros 24/7, a media consulting firm representing Smollett, released a statement this week, saying in part, "Smollett's attorneys will keep an active dialogue going with Chicago police on his behalf."
The police sources said that the brothers are cooperating with law enforcement and said that records show they purchased the rope found around Smollett's neck at a hardware store in Chicago.
Olabinjo Osundairo also was released without being charged.
Actor told police he was attacked near entrance of a Loews hotel
Smollett's attorneys, Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson, issued a statement Saturday describing their client as angry about allegations he orchestrated the attack.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with," the statement said.
"He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying."
Smollett is openly gay and since 2015 has played the gay character of Jamal on the Fox TV drama "Empire."
The actor told detectives two men attacked him near the lower entrance of a Loews hotel in Chicago, according to Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. Police were told the two men yelled, " 'Empire' fa***t" and "'Empire' n***er,' " while striking him.
In a supplemental interview with authorities, Smollett confirmed media reports that one of the attackers also shouted, "This is MAGA country," a reference to President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan.
The day after last month's incident, police released surveillance images showing two silhouetted individuals walking down a sidewalk, and police said they were wanted for questioning.
Police late last week said the men were being viewed as "potential suspects." But by Friday night they had been released, Guglielmi said.
One of the men has appeared on "Empire," Guglielmi said. A police source also told CNN on Friday night that the men had a previous affiliation with Smollett but did not provide additional details.
Smollett expressed frustration about not being believed
Smollett gave his first detailed account last week of what he says was a hate crime against him, and the aftermath, in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America."
"It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim or a Mexican or someone black I feel like the doubters would have supported me a lot much more," Smollett said. "And that says a lot about the place where we are as a country right now."
Smollett said that one of the attackers shouted, "This is MAGA country," before punching him in the face. But he denied reports that said he told police the attackers wore "Make America Great Again" hats.
"I never said that," he told ABC's Robin Roberts in an interview that aired February 14. "I didn't need to add anything like that. They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There's no which way you cut it. I don't need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae."
By Ray Sanchez, Ryan Young and Bill Kirkos, CNN
Updated 4:10 PM ET, Wed February 20, 2019
Chicago detectives investigating an alleged attack on Jussie Smollett are working to obtain the actor's financial records, a high-ranking police source said Wednesday.
Investigators have also sought to ask Smollett additional questions about the attack he reported on January 29. Asource close to Jussie Smollett's team told CNN Wednesday that he has not given police a follow-up interview and no such meeting is scheduled.
Smollett told authorities that two men attacked him, putting a rope around his neck and pouring an unknown chemical substance on him.
The actor denies playing a role in his attack, according to a statement from his attorneys.
In a statement, 20th Century Fox Television, which produces the series "Empire" on which Smollett appears, and Fox Entertainment expressed support for the actor Wednesday.
"Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show," the statement said.
Two law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation have told CNN that police believe Smollett paid two brothers to orchestrate an assault on him.
The brothers, who were arrested and released in connection with the attack, met Tuesday with police and prosecutors at a Chicago courthouse, Chicago police spokesman Tom Ahern said. The county's top prosecutor, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx, has recused herself from the investigation, according to a spokeswoman from her office.
Brothers are cooperating with law enforcement, sources say
The men -- whom attorney Gloria Schmidt identified as Olabinjo Osundairo and Abimbola Osundairo -- were arrested February 13 but released without charges Friday after Chicago police cited the discovery of "new evidence." The two are no longer suspects at this time, Chicago police have said.
In a joint statement issued to CNN affiliate WBBM, the men said: "We are not racist. We are not homophobic, and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens."
Abimbola Osundairo was arrested and then released without being charged.
Anne Kavanaugh of Media Pros 24/7, a media consulting firm representing Smollett, released a statement this week, saying in part, "Smollett's attorneys will keep an active dialogue going with Chicago police on his behalf."
The police sources said that the brothers are cooperating with law enforcement and said that records show they purchased the rope found around Smollett's neck at a hardware store in Chicago.
Olabinjo Osundairo also was released without being charged.
Actor told police he was attacked near entrance of a Loews hotel
Smollett's attorneys, Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson, issued a statement Saturday describing their client as angry about allegations he orchestrated the attack.
"As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with," the statement said.
"He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying."
Smollett is openly gay and since 2015 has played the gay character of Jamal on the Fox TV drama "Empire."
The actor told detectives two men attacked him near the lower entrance of a Loews hotel in Chicago, according to Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. Police were told the two men yelled, " 'Empire' fa***t" and "'Empire' n***er,' " while striking him.
In a supplemental interview with authorities, Smollett confirmed media reports that one of the attackers also shouted, "This is MAGA country," a reference to President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan.
The day after last month's incident, police released surveillance images showing two silhouetted individuals walking down a sidewalk, and police said they were wanted for questioning.
Police late last week said the men were being viewed as "potential suspects." But by Friday night they had been released, Guglielmi said.
One of the men has appeared on "Empire," Guglielmi said. A police source also told CNN on Friday night that the men had a previous affiliation with Smollett but did not provide additional details.
Smollett expressed frustration about not being believed
Smollett gave his first detailed account last week of what he says was a hate crime against him, and the aftermath, in an interview with ABC's "Good Morning America."
"It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim or a Mexican or someone black I feel like the doubters would have supported me a lot much more," Smollett said. "And that says a lot about the place where we are as a country right now."
Smollett said that one of the attackers shouted, "This is MAGA country," before punching him in the face. But he denied reports that said he told police the attackers wore "Make America Great Again" hats.
"I never said that," he told ABC's Robin Roberts in an interview that aired February 14. "I didn't need to add anything like that. They called me a f****t, they called me a n****r. There's no which way you cut it. I don't need some MAGA hat as the cherry on some racist sundae."
The answer is a big fat No!!!!
Like he's gonna find out he's a nigga first and foremost. And then got on stage bragging about it? Stupid ass fruitcake man
I folks like this,this dude went on national television doing all this crying and told what happened but wont cooperate with the police...Not only,he didn't cooperate,he changed his story many times...
If,he was truly a victim, he should have cooperated from the beginning but he didn't...
What's funny,these gay rights activists would do the reverse,if a straight black man tried to defend himself from allegations of lying....
very interesting point...
how would women react if someone posted that Malcolm X quote concerning a #metoo case.
Toxic Homosexuality
He also briefly unified a nation.
EVERYONE regardless of race, gender, age, social status, and sexual preference all agree that this motherfuck is DUMB.
*two cents*
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Lol damn
*two cents*