CHICAGO (AP) — A man who worked with Jussie Smollett says the former “Empire” actor recruited him and his brother to fake a homophobic and racist attack.
Abimbola Osundairo testified Wednesday at Smollett’s trial in Chicago.
He said Smollett asked him and his brother “to fake beat him up” and instructed them on how to carry out the hoax.
“I agreed to do it because, most importantly, I felt indebted to him, to Jussie,” Osundairo said, according to Chicago station WGN.
The network reports that Osundairo said he and his brother were close with Smollett, occasionally visiting nightclubs, strip clubs and bathhouses together.
Smollett is accused of lying to police when he reported he was the victim of the January 2019 assault in downtown Chicago.
Smollett's defense attorney says he was a “real victim" and that the brothers' accounts are unreliable.
