Jussie Smollett’s lawyers make ‘Hail Mary’ call to postpone grand jury

“Empire” star Jussie Smollett may end up dodging potential indictment charges thanks to a last-minute phone call his lawyers made to prosecutors, according to a report Wednesday.

The “Hail Mary” call was made Tuesday — just moments before brothers Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo were set to testify before a grand jury in Chicago, a source close to the investigation told CBS News.

It’s not exactly clear what Smollett’s lawyers told prosecutors, but it was enough for the Cook County prosecutors to postpone the proceeding.

The grand jury was supposed to begin hearing evidence that could have resulted in the TV actor being indicted on felony charges of filing a false police report.

The brothers reportedly spilled their guts to police after being arrested last week — telling them that they were hired by Smollett to stage the reported hate attack against him Jan. 29.

They also told cops that Smollett was behind a supposed threatening letter he received at “Empire’s” studios in Chicago a week before the alleged assault, according to ABC News. The claim is now being investigated by the FBI and US postal inspectors.

After the Osundairos agreed to cooperate in the investigation, Smollett’s lawyers told police that the star wouldn’t be doing a follow-up interview, a source told CBS.

Roughly a dozen search warrants have been issued — including for the 36-year-old actor’s financial and phone records.

Smollett has blasted his critics, insisting he was the victim of a violent homophobic and racist attack just steps from his apartment in Chicago.

“At first it was the thing of like, listen, if I tell the truth then that’s it because it’s the truth,” he said in his first and only interview last week. “Then it became a thing of, like, how can you doubt that? How can you not believe that? It’s the truth.”

Everything you need to know about the Jussie Smollett investigation

Source: Read Full Article