Chicago police charge ‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett with making false report about racist, homophobic attack
- Jussie Smollett had claimed he was attacked by two masked men who shouted ‘this is MAGA country’ and put a rope around his neck
- Charge that could bring up to three years in prison and force the actor to pay for the cost of the investigation
The whispers about Empire actor Jussie Smollett started with reports that he had not fully cooperated with police after telling authorities he was attacked in Chicago by two men who hurled racist, anti-gay slurs and looped a rope around his neck.
Then detectives in a city bristling with surveillance cameras could not find video of the beating. Later, two brothers were taken into custody for questioning but were released after two days, with police saying they were no longer suspects.
Following three weeks of mounting suspicions, Smollett was charged Wednesday with making a false police report, a charge that could bring up to three years in prison and force the actor, who is black and gay, to pay for the cost of the investigation into his report of a January 29 beating.
In less than a month, the 36-year-old changed from being the seemingly sympathetic victim of a hate crime to being accused of fabricating the entire thing.
“Felony criminal charges have been approved by Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office against Jussie Smollett for Disorderly Conduct / Filing a False Police Report,” Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement.
Smollett reported to police that his assailants also poured bleach on him and yelled “This is MAGA country” - a reference to US President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan.