Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley says “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett should be “held accountable in the strictest way” for his allegation that he was the victim of a hate crime, which has now been cast in doubt.
“He must be held accountable in the strictest way. He must repay resources used to investigate and serve time for the division he caused. The media should be the most outraged. He played all of them for fools. He knew they would cover it,” Haley tweeted Tuesday.
Thoughts on Jussie Smollett case: He must be held accountable in the strictest way. He must repay resources used to investigate and serve time for the division he caused. The media should be the most outraged. He played all of them for fools. He knew they would cover it.
— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) February 19, 2019
Members of the media, celebrities, and politicians initially reacted with anger and disgust to the alleged attack, but as the incident spun off into a nearly month-long saga with police yet to determine who orchestrated the alleged attack, some are now walking back their statements and are calling for all the facts to come out before making judgment.
Police opened a hate crime investigation Jan. 29 after Smollett, who is black and gay, alleged he was beaten by two men, who poured bleach on him and yelled racial and homophobic slurs, as well as “This is MAGA country.” One of the suspects also tied a rope around his neck, Smollett said.
Police thus far have been unable to find surveillance footage of the attack. The lack of evidence in the case fueled speculation that the attack had been fabricated. But a Chicago Police Department spokesman pushed back on that last week, saying there was no evidence to back up the claims that Smollett was lying.
It was reported over the weekend that brothers Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, the first of whom worked with Smollett on “Empire,” said they had been paid by Smollett to attack him.
Chicago police questioned the bothers and said afterwards that new evidence had “shifted the trajectory of the investigation.” Police also said they wanted to interview Smollett again. A lawyer for Smollett said his client was “angered and devastated” by reports that he knew his alleged attackers.
“While we are not in a position to confirm, deny or comment on the validity of what’s been unofficially released, there are some developments in this investigation and detectives have some follow-ups to complete which include speaking to the individual who reported the incident,” police said in a statement Sunday.
[Related: Jussie Smollett case the latest in long line of hoax racist attacks]
