A Chicago Jury has found American actor, Jussie Smollett guilty of lying to the police about a racist and homophobic attack against him in 2019. The 39-year old actor, popularly known for his role on hit series, Empire has been sentenced to nearly 3 years for claiming two Trump supporters attacked and beat him up, tying a noose around his neck and dousing him bleach in January 2019.
According to Smollett, the attackers wore masks and yelled racist and homophobic slurs at him while declaring their support for Donald Trump.
However, in February, the actor was arrested for hiring two Nigerian brothers, Abimbola and Olabinjo Osundairo to stage the assault, where he faced a 6-count charge including disorderly conduct.
In their testimony, the brothers said the actor paid them $3,500 to stage the assault to gain sympathy and boost his acting career, adding that he gave them lines to yell like "MAGA Country" referencing Trump's "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan.
Though Smollett maintained his innocence, saying the money he paid the brothers was payment for dietary and workout plans.
Defense attorney, Nenye Uche said the conviction will be appealed and the actor's name will be cleared.
Meanwhile, Presiding Judge James Linn has set a post-trial hearing for January 27, 2022, also noting that he would schedule Smollett's sentencing to a later date.
