'Jussie was a victim of a homophobic hate crime!' Empire star's family calls for justice after the star was brutally attacked and left to walk home with a noose still around his neck
- Smollett's family called the attack on the Empire star a 'homophobic hate crime'
- They also shut down people suggesting he was anything but honest with police
- Smollett told police that he was attacked by two ski-mask wearing men Tuesday
- He said the attackers yelled homophobic slurs and said he was in 'MAGA country'
- The actor also told police that the men threw a substance on him before fleeing
- Chicago PD released two images of 'persons of interest' in attack on Wednesday
- Authorities are still reviewing footage in the area where the attack occurred
Jussie Smollett's family are calling the attack on the black and gay Empire star in downtown Chicago this week was a 'hate crime'.
Smollett's family issued a statement through a spokesman Thursday and shut down people who suggested that Smollett was anything but honest with the police.
The family said they believe he was the victim of an unprovoked 'racial and homophobic hate crime' and that he has been forthright with the police, who are still searching for surveillance video of the attack.
'Jussie has told the police everything from the very beginning. His story has never changed, and we are hopeful they will find these men and bring them to justice,' the family said.
They thanked the public 'for their prayers' and said they are 'so grateful that God saw him through this cowardly attack alive'.
Smollett told police that two masked men jumped him on his walk home at around 2am Tuesday. He said they punched him, subjected him to racist and homophobic insults, threw an 'unknown chemical substance' on him and put a thin rope around his neck before fleeing
Detectives have recovered more surveillance footage of Smollett walking home from a Subway restaurant that morning, including video of him arriving at his apartment building with a noose still around his neck, said police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.
Jussie Smollett's family (pictured) said Thursday that the attack on the black and gay Empire star in downtown Chicago this week was a 'homophobic hate crime'
Smollett's family (pictured) issued a statement through a spokesman Thursday and shut down people who suggested that Smollett was anything but honest with the police
'We want people to understand these targeted hate crimes are happening to our sisters, brothers and our gender non-conforming siblings, many who reside within the intersection of multiple identities, on a monthly, weekly, and sometimes even daily basis all across our country,' the family said.
'Oftentimes ending fatally, these are inhumane acts of domestic terrorism and they should be treated as such.'
They said such incidents will continue to happen until people are held accountable.
Smollett, who plays the gay character Jamal Lyon on the hit Fox television show, hasn't spoken publicly about the early Tuesday attack, though his representative said Wednesday that Smollett was recovering at home.
Smollett's manager called police about 40 minutes after he got home, Guglielmi said.
Smollett (pictured in hospital afterwards FaceTiming with Lee Daniels, Empire's creator) told police that two masked men jumped him on his walk home at around 2am Tuesday. He said they hit him, yelled racist and homophobic insults and threw a 'chemical substance' on him
This image provided by the Chicago Police Department and taken from surveillance video shows two people of interest in an attack on Smollett walking along a street in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago
The photos show two men walking on North New Street (depicted above) near East Illinois Street around 1.45am on Tuesday. Smollett told police that he was walking alone down East North Water Street in the 300-block around 2am when the two men approached him
The attack took place here, in the street, outside the apartment building where Smollett stays while he is in Chicago filming. It is in between two luxury apartment buildings and two hotels but police say they have not yet recovered surveillance footage of it
When officers arrived, the actor had cuts and scrapes on his face and the rope around his neck.
Smollett later went to a hospital for treatment.
Detectives, who are investigating the case as a possible hate crime, have watched hundreds of hours of footage from private and public surveillance cameras, but gaps remain and they still haven't seen video of the attack or men who match Smollett's description of his assailants, Guglielmi said.
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The area is home to many high-end hotels and restaurants and has hundreds of cameras, so there are still many more videos for investigators to collect and go through as they try to get a complete picture of Smollett's walk home, Guglielmi added.
Chicago has one of the nation's most sophisticated and extensive video surveillance systems, including thousands of cameras on street poles, skyscrapers, buses and in train tunnels.
It is tedious work that is made more difficult because the time stamps on various cameras may not be in sync, meaning detectives have to figure out the exact times of events, he said.
Smollett and his manager Brandon Z. Moore both told police they were on the phone when the attack happened. Moore said he heard the attackers yell 'this is MAGA country'
The attacks are believed to be premeditated as Smollett received a cut out letter, that appears to be dated from January 18, stating: 'You will die black f*g'. Fox Studio received the letter on the 22nd and cops said it was laced with powder Tylenol
'It's like putting together a puzzle,' he said.
Guglielmi said Smollett and his manager told detectives they were talking on the phone at the time of the attack, but that the 36-year-old actor declined to turn over his phone records to the detectives, who routinely ask for such information during criminal investigations.
Police are hoping to identify and talk to two people who were walking in the area at the time of the attack and whose grainy image the department released.
Guglielmi stressed that the people are not considered suspects and that police want to question them because they were in the vicinity and might have useful information.
Reports of the attack drew a flood of outrage and support for Smollett on social media.
Some of the outrage stemmed from Smollett's account to detectives that his attackers yelled that he was in 'MAGA country,' an apparent reference to the Trump campaign's 'Make America Great Again' slogan that some critics of the president have decried as racist and discriminatory.
President Donald Trump, expressed sympathy for Smollett on Thursday.
'That I can tell you is horrible. It doesn't get worse,' the president told reporters when asked about the matter.
President Donald Trump, expressed sympathy for Smollett on Thursday. 'That I can tell you is horrible. It doesn't get worse,' the president told reporters when asked about the matter
The drama Empire follows an African-American family as they navigate the ups and downs of the record industry. Smollett's character is the middle son of Empire Entertainment founder Lucious Lyon and Cookie Lyon, played by Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson (all pictured)
The spot where Smollett says he was attacked isn't far from the Trump International Hotel & Tower.
The FBI is also investigating a threatening letter targeting Smollett that was sent last week to the Fox studio in Chicago where Empire is filmed, Guglielmi said.
The FBI has declined to comment on the investigation.
In addition to his acting career, Smollett has a music career and is a noted activist, particularly on LBGTQ issues.
Smollett's representative said his concert scheduled for Saturday in Los Angeles will go on as planned.
Now in its fifth season, the hourlong drama Empire follows an African-American family as they navigate the ups and downs of the record industry.
Smollett's character is the middle son of Empire Entertainment founder Lucious Lyon and Cookie Lyon, played by Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson, respectively.
