[ad_1]
CHICAGO – Chicago police are trying to bring the case of "Empire" star Jussie Smollett to a grand jury, police sources told Fox News.
Smollett reported that on January 29, he was attacked by two masked men while he was returning home from a Subway restaurant. He claimed that the men had shouted racist and anti-gay insults, poured him a chemical, passed a rope around his neck and shouted, "This is the country of MAGA!"
Two brothers – Ola and Abel Osundairo – were arrested and released without charge because of the incident. They had to see their testimony "locked" before a grand jury, which means it would be officially documented. But Smollett's legal team presented prosecutors with information that delayed the brothers' testimony, the sources said.
"The two brothers involved in this incident were at a Chicago courthouse meeting with detectives and prosecutors, and they did not sit in front of a grand jury," the Chicago police department said in a statement Tuesday.
JUSTICE SMOLLETT, A STAR OF THE EMPIRE, REPORTS ATTACK ALLENALITY WHILE THE POLICE IDENTIFIES PEOPLE OF INTEREST
Chicago police admitted to Fox News that the ministry could continue its action by presenting the Smollett case to a grand jury or prosecutors. They say they give Smollett a "responsible" time to respond to the ministry's request for a follow-up interview.
CELEBRITY JUSSIE SMOLLETT SUPPORTERS GRAPPLE WITH HOAX CLAIMS
A Smollett representative told Fox News that Smollett had not spoken to the Chicago police on Monday or Tuesday.
The police had previously stated that the "trajectory of the investigation" had changed and that she wanted to conduct another interview with Smollett about the so-called hate crime last month. Police released the two brothers who had been arrested for questioning about the alleged attack. They were released Friday night without charge.
"We are not racist. We are not homophobic and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and we are US citizens, "the brothers said in a statement to CBS News.
POLITICIANS WHO HAVE JUMPED ON JUSTICE SMOLLETT'S CLAIMS IN AN AWKWARD PLACE
The two men were arrested on Wednesday night after the investigators followed their move with the help of surveillance cameras in the area where Smollett had said the attack had occurred.
Police said they were investigating the attack as a possible hate crime and initially considered Smollett a victim. A Chicago police spokesman said on Saturday that Smollett was no longer considered a victim in this case.
POLICE: AN INVESTIGATION ON THE ATTACK OF JUSTICE SMOLLETT HAS BEEN "DESTROYED & # 39;
Smollett's lawyers, Todd S. Pugh and Victor P. Henderson, vehemently denied that the assault was a hoax, telling reporters: "As a victim of a hate crime that cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angry and devastated by the recent reports that the perpetrators are people with whom he is familiar.He has now been the victim of allegations attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack Nothing is further from the truth and anyone who claims otherwise is lying. "
KAMALA HARRIS GIVES A DIFFICULT RESPONSE WHEN IT HAS BEEN ASKED FOR THE ALLEGED JUSSIE SMOLLETT HATE ATTACK HOAX
"One of those suspects was Jussie's personal trainer, whom he had hired to physically prepare him for a clip." It's impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime. committed against Jussie or falsely claiming Jussie's complicity "statement continued.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
"Jussie and her lawyers are waiting for the Chicago Police Department to re-inform the state of progress of the investigation and will continue to cooperate," Henderson and Pugh concluded. "At present, Jussie and her lawyers have no intention of responding to" anonymous "sources within the investigation, but will continue discussions through official channels."
Louis Casiano and Michael Tobin of Fox News contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link