Empire star, Jussie Smollett, has been ordered to pay Police
$130,000 to cover the cost of the investigation for the alleged street attack
authorities said was staged to promote his career.
A letter from the city’s legal department to Smollett and
his attorneys said that rhe figure covers overtime worked by more than two
dozen detectives and officers who spent weeks looking into Smollett’s claim,
including reviewing video and physical evidence and conducting interviews.
Those resources, the letter said, “could have been used for
other investigations.”
If Smollett fails to pay, officials could charge him with
violating a city ordinance and seek fines, damages and court costs, the letter
stated.
Letter from City to Jussie Smollett titled
“Demand Letter-Smollett False Statement”
This comes after President Donald Trump tweeted that the FBI
and the Department of Justice would review the “outrageous” case, calling it an
“embarrassment” to the country after city prosecutors abruptly dropped 16
felony counts that accused Smollett of making a false police report about being
the target of a racist, anti-gay attack in January.
He was accused of filing a false police report stating that
he was the target of a racist, homophobic attack in Chicago in January. But
Smollett maintained his innocence and insisted that the attack was real.
