Robin Roberts said the police believed Jussie Smollett was credible at the time of the interview

"Good Morning America" ​​co-host Robin Roberts spoke about his exclusive interview with Jussie Smollett on Monday, saying the Chicago police believed that the "Empire" actor was credible at the time of their sit- in.

"When I sat down with Jussie, it was Tuesday night in Chicago, at the time, to give his first report, publicly give his first account of what he said that it's gone, "Roberts said. "At that time, on Tuesday, police said that his account was consistent, credible and that he was cooperating. All this happened before the interview aired on Thursday, then we discovered the existence of the brothers. "

Roberts said, "The police often say something in public" but has other theories behind the scenes.

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Last week, Smollett – who is black and openly gay – sat down with Roberts and stated that he was "pissed off" that people do not believe that he claims that two supporters of Trump have attacked it.

Kristine Marsh, an analyst at the Media Research Center, said Roberts "did not refer to the attack as" presumed "even once" and treated it rather "as if he were a martyr, with phantasmagorical questions ".

"Roberts came to Smollett's defense at one point, telling his peers that his story was" credible, "Marsh wrote.

But over the weekend, several leading news outlets have reported that Smollett's story could be a hoax, and ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams told Roberts that the actor during the interview could be used against him if his story proved to be a fraud. .

"In this interview, [Smollett] Specifically says, "Yes, these two guys on the surveillance video, it's the guys who attacked me," so now it's a little boxed, "said Abrams.

Smollett told the Chicago Police Department that he had been attacked by two men on Jan. 29 while he was walking home. He claimed that the men had instigated racist and homophobic insults, hit him and poured him an "unknown chemical".

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However, after sitting with Roberts, the Chicago police interrogated two Nigerian brothers and released them on Friday without charge. Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the two men had provided the police with information that "changed the trajectory of the investigation".

"Roberts gave Smollett a versatile platform to run his grandiose story less than 24 hours before it was torn to pieces," wrote NewsBusters director Curtis Houck. "They wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt."

Abrams disagreed on "GMA," saying, "I must say, Robin, even in the interview you did, you were talking about skeptics."

Smollett doubled his story during his interview with Roberts last week when he was asked about people questioning his version of the events.

"At first, it was a bit like, listen, if I tell the truth, it's over, because it's the truth," he said. "So, it sounded like, oh, how can you doubt it, like how not to believe that? It's the truth."

Nicole Darrah from Fox News contributed to this report.