Actor Jussie Smollett arrested after 'filing false police report' - 9news.com.au

Actor Jussie Smollett is under arrest, facing charges of disorderly conduct for allegedly filing a false report claiming he was a victim of a hate crime in Chicago.

Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said on Twitter that the "Empire" start "is under arrest and in custody of detectives."

His bail hearing is scheduled for 1.30 pm local time on Thursday, prosecutors (6.30am Friday AEDT) have said.

Attorneys for Jussie Smollett say they'll "mount an aggressive defence" for the actor.

Jussie Smollett claims he was the victim of a hate crime. (AAP )

The "Empire" star allegedly filed the report with police on January 29, saying he was assaulted by two men, including one who was masked. They allegedly yelled racist and homophobic slurs, tied a rope around his neck and poured an unknown substance on him.

At the time, police said they were treating the attack against the black and gay actor as a hate crime.

But in the weeks since the alleged attack first made headlines, the narrative has unraveled with several twists, transforming him from a victim to a suspect in three weeks.

Jussie Smollett giving his first interview since his alleged attack. (ABC)

Chicago Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi tweeted that the Cook County State's Attorney's Office has approved a felony criminal charge against Smollett for disorderly conduct.

Detectives will contact his legal team to negotiate "a reasonable surrender for his arrest," he said.

Under Illinois law, filing a false police report is disorderly conduct and punishable by one to three years.

The actor has denied playing a role in his attack, according to his lawyers.

"Like any other citizen, Mr Smollett enjoys the presumption of innocence, particularly when there has been an investigation like this one where information, both true and false, has been repeatedly leaked," his attorneys said in a statement.

"Given these circumstances, we intend to conduct a thorough investigation and to mount an aggressive defense."

Outpouring of support turned to doubts

Jussie Smollett has been arrested in Chicago. (Getty)

For weeks, Smollett has stood by his initial claims that he was attacked.

He received an outpouring of support from celebrities and politicians immediately after he reported the alleged attack. But the backlash and doubters grew louder, with social media users questioning his claims of the attack especially after police said they could not find video of the incident from surveillance cameras in the area.

Police now believe Smollett paid two brothers to orchestrate an assault on him, two law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation told CNN this week.

By Wednesday, Chicago police said they were looking into the incident as a possible hoax. The announcement came the same day the Cook County grand jury met to review evidence of the incident.

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