Former Empire actor, Jussie Smollett on Monday pleaded not guilty to new charges brought by a special prosecutor, alleging that he staged a racist and homophobic attack on himself last year.
Smollet appeared at the Cook County courthouse with his lawyer Tina Glandian, who entered the not guilty plea to each of the six counts.
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The Source reports that his lawyer also urged Judge James B. Linn to stop the case.
Smollett was charged for a second time in the ongoing case on February 11, on six counts of disorderly conduct.
Smollett, who is black and gay had reported to the police that two masked men attacked him as he was walking home in January 2019.
According to the actor, two men made harsh racist and homophobic insults at him and beat him up, noting that at least one of his attackers was a white man who told him he was in “MAGA country”.
Few weeks after reporting to the police, Smollett was accused of allegedly paying two Nigerian brothers, Ola and Abel Osundairo $3,500 to stage the attack.
The Special Prosecutor, Dan Webb said: “making four separate false reports to Chicago Police Department officers related to his false claims that he was the victim of a hate crime, knowing that he was not the victim of a crime,”
Abel and Ola Osundairo, the two Nigerian brothers who claimed he paid them to attack him were also in court with their attorney on Monday.
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