Actor Jussie Smollett appears to have\u00a0concocted a hate-crime hoax because he was upset that a racist letter sent to the\u00a0Empire<\/em>\u00a0studio didn’t get a “bigger reaction,” reports\u00a0CBS 2 Chicago<\/em><\/a>. As a result, Smollett allegedly paid two men $3,500 each to rehearse and then attack him a week later in an attempt to frame Trump supporters as violent racists.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the letter didn\u2019t get enough attention, he concocted the staged attack<\/strong>,\u201d a source told CBS 2 Investigator Brad Edwards. Other sources corroborated that information.<\/p>\n The blockbuster revelation into at least part of Smollett\u2019s potential motive comes two days after CBS 2\u2019s Charlie De Mar reported Smollett and two brothers \u2014 Ola and Abel Osundairo \u2014 staged the attack on Jan. 29 in Streeterville. –CBS 2 Chicago<\/em><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n CBS 2<\/em>\u00a0reporter\u00a0Charlie De Mar spoke on the phone with the Osundario brothers Monday afternoon, who said in a joint statement: “We are not racist. We are not homophobic, and we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens.<\/strong>”<\/p>\n I just spoke to Ola and Abel Osundairo on the phone. It was brief but they stressed the following. <\/p>\n \u201cWe are not racist. We are not homophobic. And we are not anti-Trump. We were born and raised in Chicago and are American citizens.\u201dhttps:\/\/t.co\/0TtYH1awDE<\/a><\/p>\n — Charlie De Mar (@CharlieDeMar) February 18, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/zh-prod-1cc738ca-7d3b-4a72-b792-20bd8d8fa069.storage.googleapis.com\/s3fs-public\/inline-images\/smollett%20nigerians%201_0.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\n\n