President Donald Trump has said he will ask the FBI to investigate the Jussie Smollett case after US prosecutors dropped all charges against the Empire actor this week.
The 36-year-old was arrested back in February after being charged with felony disorderly conduct for making a false police report.
The actor had told police he was attacked by two masked men who put a noose around his neck and yelled "This is MAGA country," as he was walking home from a sandwich shop in Chicago, in the early hours of January 29.
President Trump said he will now ask US federal law enforcement agencies to investigate the case. Taking to twitter, he said: ‘FBI & DOJ to review the outrageous Jussie Smollett case in Chicago. It is an embarrassment to our Nation!’
The Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel called the decision to drop the charges a ‘whitewash of justice’ earlier this week. He said: “My job as a police officer is to investigate an incident, gather evidence, gather the facts and present them to the State’s Attorney. That’s what we did. I stand behind the detective’s investigation.”
The Mayor added that dropping the charges would be to the detriment of “gay men and women who will come forward and one day will say they were a victim of a hate crime and now will be doubted.
“People of faith, Muslim or any other faith, who will be a victim of hate crime; people of all walks of life, background, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, now this casts a shadow of whether they’re telling the truth."
Meanwhile Chicago city’s corporation counsel has demanded $130,106.15 in the next seven days from actor to cover the cost of the investigation.
Jussie Smollett speaks with members of the media after his court appearance at Leighton Courthouse on March 26 where it was announced that all charges against the actor were dropped. (Photo by Nuccio DiNuzzo/Getty Images)Vilified
Smollett’s legal team maintain the actor did nothing wrong and say comments made by Chicago police at the time of his arrest exacerbated the situation.
In a statement, they said: “Jussie was attacked by two people he was unable to identify on January 29.
"He was a victim who was vilified and made to appear as a perpetrator as a result of false and inappropriate remarks made to the public causing an inappropriate rush to judgement.
“Jussie and many others were hurt by these unfair and unwarranted actions.”
