A couple of 911 calls from the night of Jussie Smollett’s alleged attack have been released by the city of Chicago.
An unidentified man who claimed to be an employee for the “Empire” star called authorities on Smollett’s behalf on Jan. 29, after the actor alleged that he was targeted in a racial and homophobic attack.
The caller was reluctant to identify Smollett and noted that the actor didn’t want to call the police following the alleged incident.
“I just need the police to come by, I work for an artist. I don’t really want to say his name,” the caller told the 911 operator. “(Smollett) states that … he went to Subway and he was walking by and some guys, they jumped him or something like that. I just want to report it and make sure he’s all right.”
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The caller continued: “They put a noose around his neck. They didn’t do anything with it, but put it around his neck. That’s pretty (expletive) up to me — sorry for saying it like that.”
Smollett’s employee declined medical attention for the star, adding that he was just “startled.” “He was cool, he didn’t want me to call you guys,” the caller said during the three-minute conversation.
When the dispatcher noted that only the victim can file a police report, the caller replied: “He’s definitely gonna make the report. I’m gonna make him make the report.”
In a second 911 call about 16 minutes later, Smollett’s employee complained that the police had not shown up yet. “I thought they’d be here by now,” he said.
Smollett told investigators he was beaten by two masked men who shouted racial and homophobic slurs, wrapped a rope around his neck and poured bleach on him. He also said the assailants yelled, “This is MAGA country,” a reference to President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign slogan.
In February, Smollett was arrested and charged with filing a false police report after authorities said the incident was a hoax staged by the actor. Prosecutors unexpectedly dropped the 16-count indictment against Smollett in March.
The tapes were released one day after “Empire” co-creator Lee Daniels revealed that Smollett would not return for the sixth and final series of the Fox drama.
Source: USA Today.
