Jussie Smollett, Ex-Star Of ‘Empire,’ Indicted With Six New Criminal Charges

After many fans and celebrities learned of Jussie Smollett‘s ‘attack’ last year, the ex-Empire star was showered with support on social media websites like Twitter. The attack was given national media attention after Smollett told media outlets that two attackers shouted racial slurs, and assaulted Smollett with bleach and a rope that resembled a noose.

Investigative journalists and other individuals began to discover inconsistencies in Smollett’s account of the incident. The two individuals that “attacked” Smollett, were both brothers from Nigeria. Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo were discovered to be the two culprits behind the hoax. In fact, Abimbola was Smollett’s personal trainer, and he even appeared on an episode of the television show.

Originally, all 16 charges against Smollett were dropped by prosecutors, even after Illinois’ State Attorney acknowledged and confirmed that the actor’s story was fabricated and falsified. As of yesterday however, six new charges were brought against the former television star, which include four counts of creating false reports for Chicago’s police department.

This is not Smollett’s first encounter with the law, nor is it his first time lying to law enforcement officials. In 2007, Smollett was arrested for giving false information to police officers, and for driving under the influence in Los Angeles.

It’s believed that Smollett tried to create the hoax in order to gain more attention to his show, as well as receive a pay-raise for the recurring role of Jamal Lyon. A role he played for years, before being written off of the show after the scandal.