Thursday, March 28, 2024

Jussie Smollett: Testimony from Brothers in Assault Case Postponed After ‘Hail Mary’ Phone Call

Jussie Smollett - Abel & Ola Osundairo1

*Testimony from the two Nigerian brothers connected to the Jussie Smollett hate-crime case was scrapped after a “Hail Mary” phone call from the actor’s attorneys, CBS News reports.

The last-minute call may have saved the “Empire” star from potentially being indicted for falsifying a police report.

The actor claims he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack last month in Chicago as he walked home in the middle of the night. Two brothers, Ola and Abel Osundairo, have told investigators they were paid by Smollett to stage the assault. But the entertainer and his attorneys vehemently deny this.

OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:  Jussie Smollett’s Siblings Come to His Defense by Blaming the Media & Quoting Malcolm

jussie - instagram

A source close to the investigation tells CBS News the brothers were minutes from testifying in front of a grand jury Tuesday. But those plans were abruptly scrapped after prosecutors got the call from Smollett’s lawyers.

What was said during the call has not been revealed but the Cook County state’s attorney decided to postpone the brothers’ testimony.

Smollett has repeatedly denied staging the attack.

“I’m pissed off. How do you not believe that?  It’s the truth!” he said recently on “Good Morning America.”

On Tuesday, two of Smollett’s siblings posted Instagram messages slamming media coverage of the case.

“It will make the criminal look like he’s the victim and make the victim look like he’s the criminal,” read a quote attributed to Malcolm X.

Two other siblings defended him last week.

Jake Smollett said, “When one is affected, we are all affected. So it definitely was a time we came together. And we are a strong family.”

On Tuesday, in response to reports the singer’s scenes in “Empire” were being scaled back, 20th Century Fox and Fox Entertainment said they are still standing behind their star.

“Jussie Smollett continues to be a consummate professional on set and as we have previously stated, he is not being written out of the show,” Fox said in a new statement on Wednesday.

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