CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Police say the two men being questioned in the attack on "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett are considered suspects.
Department spokesman Anthony Guglielimi said Friday that the men are in custody and have been arrested based on probable cause that they may have been involved in a crime. But he says they have not charged in the Jan. 29 attack.
Police have identified the men only as two Nigerian brothers. Police have been questioning them since they were picked up by officers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on Wednesday after returning to the city from Nigeria. On Thursday, police served a search warrant at their home.
Guglielmi says at least one of the men worked on "Empire," but he does not know in what capacity.
Smollett told ABC News in an interview that aired Thursday that the men are the ones who hurled racial and homophobic slurs at him, beat him and looped a rope around his neck.
Police say local media reports that allege the attack against "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett was a hoax are unconfirmed.
The reports surfaced late Thursday as detectives were questioning two "persons of interest" who were captured on surveillance cameras in the area of downtown Chicago where Smollett said he was attacked last month.
Photos of people of interest who were in area of the alleged assault & battery of Empire cast member. While video does not capture an encounter, detectives are taking this development seriously & wish to question individuals as more cameras are being reviewed pic.twitter.com/xJDDygtocr
— Anthony Guglielmi (@AJGuglielmi) January 31, 2019The two men aren't considered suspects but may have been in the area when Smollett says he was attacked, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said earlier Thursday. Smollett said two masked men shouted racial and homophobic slurs before attacking him and putting a rope around his neck early on Jan. 29.
Media reports anout the Empire incident being a hoax are unconfirmed by case detectives. Supt Eddie Johnson has contacted @ABC7Chicago to state on the record that we have no evidence to support their reporting and their supposed CPD sources are uninformed and inaccurate. pic.twitter.com/iSO5YFv452
— Anthony Guglielmi (@AJGuglielmi) February 15, 2019Guglielmi said Thursday night that Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson contacted at least one Chicago news outlet to say investigators have no evidence to support their reporting. The spokesman added that Johnson said the "supposed CPD sources are uninformed and inaccurate."
Producers of the television drama also disputed media reports that Smollett's character, Jamal Lyon, was being written off the show, calling the idea "patently ridiculous."
"(Smollett) remains a core player on this very successful series and we continue to stand behind him," 20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment said in a statement late Thursday.
Smollett, who is black and openly gay, told ABC News in an interview that aired Thursday morning that he believes the people of interest were the ones who attacked him.
"I don't have any doubt in my mind that that's them," he told the network. "Never did."
No arrests have been made in the case. Police said they have not found surveillance video that shows the attack, but that the investigation is ongoing .
Smollett also told Robin Roberts of ABC News that people who question his narrative of the attack were "ridiculous" to think he would lie. Smollett has said he was attacked while out getting food at a Subway restaurant.
"I've heard that it was a date gone bad, which I also resent that narrative," he said. "I'm not gonna go out and get a tuna sandwich and a salad to meet somebody. That's ridiculous. And it's offensive."
The singer and actor said the attackers yelled "this is MAGA country," referencing President Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan. Smollett said earlier reports from some outlets that his attackers were wearing "MAGA" hats were inaccurate.
"I didn't need to add anything like that," he said. "I don't need some MAGA hat as the cherry on top of some racist sundae."
Smollett said he didn't want to call police at first, but that his friend and creative director, Frank Gatson, called on his behalf. Smollett said he didn't remove a rope from around his neck before police arrived "because I wanted them to see."
He also said he didn't initially want to give police his cellphone because the device contained private content and phone numbers.
Smollett later gave detectives heavily redacted phone records that police have said are insufficient for a criminal investigation .
TOP SOURCE: "... indicators point to Smollett orchestrating the event ...." @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/t3T5kQmeko
— Brad Edwards (@tvbrad) February 15, 2019BREAKING:Police raided the home of two persons of interest in Jussie Smollett case last night. Both men are of Nigerian decent and have appeared as extras on the show. Police took bleach, shoes electronics and more.Officers asked family if they knew #Jussiesmollett. @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/PDSFtf5jwb
— Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) February 14, 2019
