Update: Police Reports From Jussie Smollett Case Released

Zachary Stieber
By Zachary Stieber
March 27, 2019US News
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Update: Police Reports From Jussie Smollett Case Released
Actor Jussie Smollett leaves the Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Chicago on March 26, 2019, after prosecutors dropped all charges against him. (Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

The police reports detailing how investigators came to the conclusion that “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett orchestrated a fake hate crime were released on March 27, a day after prosecutors dropped 16 felony counts against Smollett.

The actor was accused of filing a false police report, paying two Nigerian-American brothers to “pos[e] as persons other than themselves,” detectives wrote in the report.

After a weeklong investigation, the Chicago Police Department re-classified the investigation from aggravated battery to a public peace violation/other violation.

Investigators obtained video surveillance showing Ola and Abel Osundairo, the brothers, buying items at a store, including a face mask, knit caps, gloves, a red hat, and sunglasses. The brothers later told detectives that they’d received a $100 bill from Smollett, which they used to purchase the supplies in addition to some rope.

Jussie Smollett CPD Investi… by on Scribd

Jussie Smollett CPD Investi… by on Scribd

One of the brothers was shown a photograph taken of a hot sauce bottle and he said he filled the bottle with bleach and poured the liquid on Smollett during the attack.

One of the brothers was asked about his training fees. Smollett said that he hired the brothers as his personal trainers. The brother said he likes to get $50 an hour on average but that he has taken as little as $20 an hour and sometimes barters his services. He said that he had 2 clients, including Smollett, prior to traveling to Nigeria the day of the alleged attack, Jan. 29.

He said that at the time of the interview in mid-February he had 11 clients but that he was training all of them on a trial basis for free.

Investigators interviewed the cashier who checked out the brothers at one of the stores, with the help of her daughter since the woman spoke mainly Korean and only a small amount of English. Detectives presented a photo spread that included the Osundairos to the woman. It wasn’t clear if the woman picked them out of the photo lineup.

Abel Osundairo, left, and his brother Ola Osundairo
Abel Osundairo, left, and his brother Ola Osundairo, in a file photo. The Nigerian brothers were arrested in connection with the alleged attack on “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett but were released after reportedly telling detectives Smollett paid them to stage the attack. (Team Abel/Instagram)

In another part of the report, detectives wrote that Smollett “made false reports to police claiming to be a victim of aggravated battery.”

The motivate was listed as “undetermined.” Police officials later said they believe Smollett was dissatisfied with his salary on “Empire” and hoped the alleged fake hate crime would lead to a higher salary.

Detectives at one point applied for a search warrant for an iCloud account controlled by Smollett and sent a copy of the warrant to an FBI analyst.

The release of the documents on Wednesday came as Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel reportedly considered suing Smollett to try to recoup some of the money the city spent on the probe.

emanuel on smollett
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, right, and Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, center, appear at a news conference on March 26, 2019, after prosecutors abruptly dropped all charges against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford)

Smollett forfeited his $10,000 bond in the agreement to have the charges dropped but Emanuel was said to seek close to $150,000.

Emanuel and Chicago Superintendent Eddie Johnson ripped prosecutors for dropping the charges on Tuesday and Emanuel on Wednesday said he wanted to get to the bottom of what happened. The lead district attorney said that the case against Smollett was solid.

“Our priority is violent crimes and the drivers of violence,” Joe Magats, the state attorney, told CBS, explaining why he dropped the charges. “Jussie Smollett is neither one of those.”

Smollett’s attorneys, meanwhile, maintained that their client was innocent. One said the actor could sue the Chicago Police Department.

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