Entertainment
Empire’s Jussie Smollett maintains innocence after being re-charged with lying to police about attack
Jussie Smollett was seen arriving in court in Chicago (Picture: Reuters)
Jussie Smollett has returned to court where he maintained his innocence after facing new charges for lying to police about an attack in 2019.
The former Empire actor, 39, was seen entering court in Chicago on Wednesday to face six counts of felony misconduct for allegedly lying to police about a racist and homophobic attack.
Fox News reports that Smollett maintained his innocence on his way in to court, calling the proceedings a ‘dog and pony show’.
Smollett was accused of filing a false police report in February 2020, over a year after the alleged attack in January 2019, when he claimed that two masked men had attacked him as he walked home.
He had alleged that the men had made ‘racist and homophobic remarks’, beaten him and put a noose around his neck before running away, claiming that one of the men had called him the ’N-word’.
Smollett’s friend, Frank Gaston, claimed he had insisted he call police after he returned to his apartment after the attack, but the actor allegedly refused to hand over his phone when asked by police and was checked over in hospital but had no major injuries.
The former Empire star has always maintained his innocence (Picture: Reuters)
The alleged attackers were later identified as Nigerian brothers Abel and Ola Soundairo, who claimed Smollett had paid them $3,500 (£2,500) to jump him in the street in a bid to raise his profile.
More: Empire TV Series
Smollett had faced over 50 years in prison after being hit with a 16-count grand jury indictment, which was dropped last March by State’s Attorney Kim Foxx in exchange for community service and a $10,000 (£7,200) bail forfeiture.
The actor has always maintained his innocence and even countersued the city for malicious prosecution after special prosecutors had sued him, asking him to reimburse all the money they said had been wasted on what they believed were false claims.
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