Jussie Smollett charged with 16 counts of filing false report

Empire actor Jussie Smollett has been indicted on 16 counts of filing a false police report.

Smollett had previously been charged with a single count of filing a false police report, which carries the possibility of up to three years in prison, but a jury returned a more thorough indictment on Friday.

Smollett told the police that he was assaulted at 2am. by two men who shouted homophobic and racial slurs and put a noose around his neck. In the more detailed account, he claimed that he fought back, and that one of the attackers was white, according to prosecutors.

“Jussie Smollett knew that at the time of this transmission there was no reasonable ground for believing that such an offence had been committed,” the indictment states.

Police have alleged that Smollett paid the two men $3,500 to stage the attack. Officials traced the two attackers using taxi and rideshare records, phone records, and surveillance cameras. They identified the men as Abel and Ola Osundairo, both of whom had worked on Empire. Both agreed to cooperate and testify to a grand jury.

Smollett denies the allegations. He has been written off of the last two episodes of this season of Empire.

A sentencing range could be between one to three years in prison, however experts expect him to receive probation.

Source: Variety