Sources Claim Big Twist in Jussie Smollett Investigation

They say police are looking into whether the actor orchestrated the attack
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 17, 2019 5:44 AM CST
Sources Claim Big Twist in Jussie Smollett Investigation
In this Monday, May 14, 2018 file photo, actor and singer Jussie Smollett attends the Fox Networks Group 2018 programming presentation after party at Wollman Rink in Central Park in New York.   (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

"Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying," said lawyers for Empire actor Jussie Smollett in reference to reports credited to unnamed sources that police are investigating whether the actor orchestrated the Jan. 29 attack on himself. That's what CNN, NBC News, the Chicago Tribune, and USA Today are reporting by way of their sources. CNN reports via two police sources that Chicago police suspect Smollett paid the two Nigerian brothers who were arrested Wednesday and released Friday to stage the assault. Upon the men's release, Chicago Police rep Anthony Guglielmi on Friday said the men were freed "due to new evidence as a result of today's investigations," and that one of the men had been on Empire.

NBC News has a new statement from Guglielmi made Saturday night: "We can confirm that the information received from the individuals questioned by police earlier in the Empire case has in fact shifted the trajectory of the investigation. We've reached out to the Empire cast member's attorney to request a follow-up interview." USA Today's source says that police discovered a receipt for rope bought from a hardware store in the home of one of the brothers. The Tribune notes the statement released by Smollett's lawyers Saturday for the first time verifies that he knew at least one of the men. It reads in part, "One of these purported suspects was Jussie’s personal trainer who he hired to ready him physically for a music video. It is impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime against Jussie or would falsely claim Jussie’s complicity." (More Jussie Smollett stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X