Chicago police chief claims brothers confirmed Jussie Smollett check was payment for the attack
As questions continue to swirl around Empire‘s Jussie Smollett, Chicago’s police chief Eddie Johnson spoke with GMA today to give an update on the case.
With tears in his eyes, Smollett sat down with Robin Roberts two weeks ago for his first interview about his alleged assault in Chicago.
Smollett surrendered to Chicago police last Thursday morning after he was charged with one count of felony disorderly conduct for filing a false police report in January.
Smollett’s lawyers released a statement: “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. Given these circumstances, we intend to conduct a thorough investigation and to mount an aggressive defense.”
Chief Johnson sat down with Robin Roberts to elaborate on the investigation and defend its notoriously brutal police force.
FULL @ABC NEWS EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Chicago police Superintendent speaks with @RobinRoberts about the Jussie Smollett investigation. https://t.co/G4P92ohuFL pic.twitter.com/QnpgfJ4FQh
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 25, 2019
The Investigation
Smollett had claimed that two masked men attacked him on Jan. 29 while he walking to his apartment. They allegedly hurled racial and homophobic slurs at him, poured bleach on him and tied a noose around his neck.
But Chicago investigators said they found holes in Smollett’s story. They had video of Smollett walking away from the two alleged assailants and also video of him with a rope around his neck but no footage of the actual attack.
The Osundairo brothers, the two men at the center of the investigation into the alleged assault against Smollett, spoke out last Monday for the first time.
“We are not racist. We are not homophobic and we are not anti-Trump,” they said. “We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens.”
