Star paid muscle bros $3.5K, with $500 more due: report
“Empire” star Jussie Smollett allegedly gave two bodybuilding brothers a $3,500 down payment to stage the racist and homophobic assault on him — and the trio even rehearsed the stunt beforehand, according to a new report.
The latest accusations in the sensational case surfaced Sunday, the day after police revealed that their interviews with siblings Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo “shifted the trajectory” of the investigation into the purported attack.
The embattled “Empire” star allegedly paid the sum to his pals before they left for their native Nigeria the day of the Jan. 29 incident — and promised them another $500 upon their return to the United States, sources told CBS Chicago.
Smollett, 36, even allegedly coughed up the cash for the rope his “assailants” used. It was purchased from a hardware store in the city’s Ravenswood neighborhood the weekend of Jan. 25, according to the report.
The brothers told cops that the skirmish was supposed to happen earlier — and that the three of them had practiced it in the days before it went down, the report said.
Adding to the suspicion of Smollett’s involvement was the fact that he originally made it clear to police that he’d sign complaints against his assailants — but once the Osundairos were arrested, he said he knew them and felt bad for them and refused to press charges, sources told TMZ.
We have some information that needs to be corroborated and verified with Mr. Smollett.
— Chicago Police spokesman
Smollett’s case will go before a grand jury this week, according to TMZ, citing law-enforcement sources — although it still isn’t clear who is facing indictment or what the charges might be.
A Chicago Police Department spokesman said Sunday that Smollett is not classified as a suspect in the case — but wouldn’t say if he’s still considered a victim.
“We have some information that needs to be corroborated and verified with Mr. Smollett before I can answer this question,” said the spokesman, Anthony Guglielmi.
Chicago cops want to question Smollett, but the actor has not made himself available “in a timely fashion,” a well-placed law enforcement source told Deadline, describing “a sense of frustration with the response by Smollett and his lawyers.”
Smollett first told cops last month that he was assaulted by two black-masked men who spewed racist and homophobic slurs. Smollett said the attackers also shouted, “This is MAGA country,” doused him in a “chemical substance” and wrapped a rope around his neck.
Police arrested the Osundairos as suspects Wednesday and raided their home — seizing bleach, a “black face-mask hat’’ and other items.
Also found in the brothers’ home were magazines with pages torn out, and cops are investigating if the publications are connected to a threatening letter sent to Smollett a week before the incident, with cut-out letters reading, “You will die black f-g,” according to TMZ.
The buff brothers were re- leased Friday without charges and are now said to be cooperating in the investigation. They are reportedly holed up in Chicago under the eye of cops to make sure no one, especially Smollett, contacts them.
Police first began to suspect the actor’s story when he brought them to the scene of the incident and pointed out an “obscure’’ camera nearby, noting that the whole attack was caught on video, TMZ said. Cops found it odd that Smollett even knew where the out-of-the-way camera was, sources said.
It turned out the device wasn’t facing the right way to capture anything.
Police were also suspicious of claims the attackers yelled, “This is MAGA country” — because, “Not a single Trump supporter watches ‘Empire,’ ” one source told TMZ.
Cops have said the pair has a “relationship” with Smollett and worked with him on the hit Fox show.
Smollett denies playing any role in the attack, and his lawyers said over the weekend that he is “angered and devastated” by claims to the contrary.
The lawyers added that one of the brothers was the actor’s personal trainer and that the star finds it “impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime against Jussie or would falsely claim Jussie’s complicity.”
But it appears that the duo could have been in need of some extra cash.
Newly unearthed court documents show they both filed for bankruptcy in Illinois in September 2016 — with each declaring large students loans and very little income at the time.
Abimbola reported being $161,481 in debt, including $85,475 in student loans, while making only $160 a month.
Olabinjo claimed to have $72,771 in liabilities, including $39,114 in student loans, and made just $142 a month.
Both reported being part-owners of a party-supply store, but said it was operating at a loss.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), one of several politicians to denounce the attack, on Sunday refused to weigh in on the latest developments as he campaigned for president in New Hampshire.
“I’m going to withhold until all the information actually comes out from on-the-record sources,” he said.