Empire Star Jussie Smollet Allegedly Stages his Own Attack

Empire star Jussie Smollett, 36, has been charged with felony disorderly conduct after falsely reporting an alleged hate crime. Smollett actually staged the whole ordeal simply to gain publicity in order to get a raise in his salary. The following is a brief timeline of the events leading up to today.

• 22 January 2019: A letter threatening Smollett arrives at the Fox studio where Empire is filmed. It contained a homophobic death threat spelled out in cut-up letters from newspapers.
• 29 January: Chicago police open a hate crime investigation after Smollett claims he was attacked near his apartment. He said two men in black ski masks approached him at 2:00 a.m. and shouted racial and homophobic slurs, poured an unknown chemical substance on him, and wrapped a noose around his neck. They allegedly yelled, “This is MAGA country!” along with calling him names like “Empire fa****” and “Empire ni****”.
• 30 January: Chicago police release a photo of two “persons of interest” captured on surveillance footage.
• 1 February: Despite skepticism, Smollett maintains his story, saying it was “100% factual and consistent on every level.”
• 14 February: Smollett appears on Good Morning America and tears up during his interview. He continues to defend his story.
• 15 February: Chicago police say they are questioning the two suspects, but later that day, they are released.
• 16 February: It is released that two Nigerian brothers, Ola and Abel Osundario, said they were paid $3,500 to stage the attack.
• 20 February: A felony disorderly conduct charge is brought against Smollett.
• 21 February: Smollett turns himself in to Chicago police. Bond is set at $100,000, and he had to surrender his passport. He is now free awaiting trial.