The strange saga of Jussie Smollett began back in January when the former Empire star alleged that he was assaulted by two white men in what appeared to be a racially-motivated hate crime.
Smollett was initially applauded for his courage in coming forward, but it wasn’t long before his story began to unravel.
An investigation eventually uncovered indications that Smollett had staged the attack.
Police found that not only were Smollett’s alleged assailants black, they were also colleagues of the actor, having worked as extras on Empire.
Illinois state’s attorney Kim Foxx stunned the law enforcement world when she dismissed all charges against Smollett before his case even went to trial.
Chicago’s chief of police and then-mayor both railed against the decision, but for a time it looked as though the case against Jussie was officially dead.
Last week, however, a Chicago judge appointed a special prosecutor to investigate claims that the case was dropped due to political pressure.
While prosecutors are the focus of the investigation, the judge made it clear in his decision that Smollett could potentially face new charges.
The investigation is already underway — and it’s already yielding some interesting results.
Body cam footage released last week shows Smollett reacting to the noose around his neck and informing police that he had been doused in bleach.
And now, the Chicago CBS affiliate has published the internet use records obtained by the Chicago Police Department that show Smollett googled his own name more than 50 times in the days immediately following the attack:
“Chicago Police released Jussie Smollett’s search history in the days following the reported attack,” journalist Charlie De Mar tweeted, along with a photo of the records.
“He googled ‘Jussie Smollett’ at least 50+ times.”
De Mar goes on to note that Smollett seemed to pay particularly close attention to press coverage of the incident as outlets began to notice the holes on his story.
“As the case began to turn on Jussie Smollett and police were putting their case together, Smollett was following along with several media outlets,” De Mar tweeted.
Obviously, this is not an indicator of guilt.
After all, it makes sense that a public figure like Smollett would take an interest in how his story was being perceived by the media.
However, it is another sign of aberrant behavior from a man who has consistently tried and failed to convince both police and the public that aside from his celebrity status, he’s just like any other hate crime victim.
Jussie Smollett: This is How He Staged His Alleged AssaultStart Gallery
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