“I honestly do not believe that he had anything to do with it whatsoever.”
Jussie Smollett’s attorney Mark Geragos, defended his client’s version of events in a podcast interview with Adam Carolla on Wednesday.
Asked by Carolla why the Cook County State Attorney’s office dropped the charges against Smollett, Geragos said he did not believe Smollett had “anything to do with it whatsoever.”
“I think they came to the realization that this thing was cooked up while two people were in custody,” Geragos said. “I honestly do not believe that he had anything to do with it whatsoever.”
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Carolla then asked Geragos if he believes brothers Abel and Ola Osundairo, acquaintances of Smollett accused of conspiring with him to stage a fake hate crime, acted on their own.
“It’s your understanding that the two brothers did this on their own, and that’s why they dropped it?” Carolla asked
“Correct,” Geragos replied.
In response, a skeptical Carolla broke out into laughter before suggesting the story is hard to believe.
“Now, I don’t know if we’re going to be able to convince most of America that that’s how it worked,” the former “Man Show” host said.
WATCH HERE:
Carolla questioned what would motivate the Osundairo brothers, who are both black men, to attack their acquaintance in an apparently racially motivated crime.
“So what is in it for the two brothers then,” Carolla asks. “Were they just thugs roaming the streets with bleach and a noose?”
Geragos said he has a theory about the motive he will be unveiling later this week.
While Geragos’ answers may have been met with skepticism from Carolla, they echo the the line pushed by one of the other members of Smollett’s legal team, Tina Glandian, in a recent appearance on “Today”.
In that interview, Glandian said Smollett was shocked to learn authorities had the two brothers in custody. Admitting that her client had claimed his attackers had “pale skin,” Glandian theorized that perhaps the brothers were wearing white makeup on their faces.
The Osundairos claim Smollett paid them to carry out the attack.
Smollett, 36, black and gay former star of Fox’s “Empire” TV show, reported to the Chicago Police Department on Jan. 29 that he was assaulted by two masked men who called him racist and homophobic slurs and shouted “This is ‘MAGA’ country!” He said his assailants poured what he believed was bleach on him and put a noose around his neck.
After initially investigating the incident as a hate crime, authorities quickly became suspicious the attack was staged by Smollett.
In February, Smollett was arrested and charged with staging the crime in an apparent effort to garner attention and sympathy. Fox would cut ties with the actor shortly after, removing him from the final two episodes of the season.
Charges against Smollett were dropped at a Tuesday court hearing in an unexpected move by prosecutors.
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