Listen Live
St Jude banner
CLOSE
Jussie Smollett Performs At The Troubadour - West Hollywood, CA

Source: Scott Dudelson / Getty

A pair of Black men who worked as extras on the set of Empire were arrested Friday in connection to the attack on Jussie Smollett. Cast members say that brothers Ola and Abel Osundairo were actually friendly with Smollett and are pro-LGBTQ and anti-Trump.

TMZ reports:

We’ve spoken with “Empire” cast and crew, and they say Ola and Abel Osundairo do not fit the profile of racists and homophobes — not even close. As we reported, both men have been extras on “Empire” for years and both are friendly with Jussie, and Abel is especially close to him. We’re told Jussie would frequently approach the brothers on set and chat about health and fitness.

The folks we’ve spoken with say they find it impossible to believe Ola and Abel have the DNA of criminals who would carry out the acts that Jussie describes — and obviously cops now believe that as well.

Police arrested the brothers for battery Friday after cops raided their home Wednesday and seized a long list of items, including several bottles of bleach. However, late Friday Chicago PD released the brothers due to “new evidence” gathered from their interrogation … and said they’re no longer suspects.

Smollett has stated that his attackers were white, thus the arrest of the brothers may have just been a formality to eliminate them as suspects.

Photo: Getty

Chicago Police Arrest 2 Black Men Suspected In Jussie Smollett Attack  was originally published on hiphopwired.com