Actor Jussie Smollett has been arrested after he was charged with filing a false police report when he claimed he was attacked and beaten by two masked men shouting racist and homophobic slurs.
Key points:
- Jussie Smollett told police masked men beat him and shouted slurs
- But he was charged on Wednesday with filing a false police report
- Smollett turned himself in and is due to appear in court today
Chicago police released a statement on Twitter on Thursday, announcing that Smollett was under arrest and in custody of detectives.
Smollett, a 36-year-old black, openly gay actor on the hip-hop TV drama Empire, ignited a firestorm on social media by telling police that two apparent supporters of US President Donald Trump had struck him, put a noose around his neck and poured bleach over him.
Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for the Chicago Police Department, told the Associated Press that Smollett turned himself in and was expected to appear in court later on Thursday (local time).
The Cook County State's Attorney's Office approved felony criminal charges against Smollett for disorderly conduct and filing a false police report, Mr Guglielmi tweeted on Wednesday.
In a statement, attorneys Todd Pugh and Victor Henderson said 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".
The charges could bring up to three years in prison. It could also force the actor to pay for the cost of the investigation into his report of a January 29 beating as he walked home from a sandwich shop.
He said the masked men beat him, made derogatory comments and yelled "This is MAGA country" — an apparent reference to President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again" — before fleeing.
The whispers about Smollett started with reports that he had not fully cooperated with police after telling authorities he was attacked.
Then detectives in a city bristling with surveillance cameras could not find video of the beating.
Later, two brothers, who were identified by their attorney as Abimbola "Abel" and Olabinjo "Ola" Osundairo, 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 on Wednesday with making a false police report.
The felony disorderly conduct charge emerged on the same day detectives and the two brothers testified before a grand jury.
Police said one of the men had appeared on "Empire," and Smollett's attorneys said one of the men was the actor's personal trainer, whom he hired to help get him physically ready for a music video.
Speaking outside the courthouse where the grand jury met, the brothers' attorney said the two men testified for about two-and-a-half hours.
"There was a point where this story needed to be told, and they manned up and they said we're going to correct this," Gloria Schmidt said.
She said her clients did not care about a plea deal or immunity.
"You don't need immunity when you have the truth," she said.
She also said her clients received money from Smollett, but she did not elaborate.
Smollett has a record — one that concerns giving false information to police when he was pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence.
According to records, he was also charged with false impersonation and driving without a licence. He later pleaded no contest to a reduced charge and took an alcohol education and treatment program.
AP
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