By Jennifer Smith
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Smollett gave an interview to ABC’s Robin Roberts that will air on Thursday
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In a brief promo video for the interview, he welled up after being asked if he feared for his life
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The actor was walking home from a Subway on January 29 when he was attacked
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It was 2am when the attackers beat him, poured bleach on him and put a noose around his neck
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He arrived home and his friend, Frank Gatson, 60, insisted they call the police
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Since then, no footage of the incident has been found and police have no leads
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They have also been at odds with the star over his cooperation with their probe
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Smollett did not hand over his phone records to prove that he was on a call to his manager at the time of the attack for two weeks
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The records he supplied were redacted and police described them as ‘insufficient’
Chicago Police Department launched a frantic hunt for his attackers who he said shouted ‘This is MAGA country!’ after punching his ribs, pouring bleach on him and tying a noose around his necks.
In the weeks that followed, details of the incident have been picked over forensically.
Despite finding video of Smollett before and after the attack, police have not been able to uncover any surveillance footage of the actual incident and they have not been able to identify the suspects.
They released an initial image of two men walking near Smollett on the night of the incident at around the same time but that led to nothing.
They have also pointed out repeatedly that Smollett did not immediately turn over his phone records or his phone to prove that he was on a call with his manager, Brandon Z. Moore, when the attack took place as claimed.
It carries special significance because Moore claims to have heard the attackers calling Smollett ‘Empire f****t n****r’ and shouting: ‘This is MAGA country!’
Within the first few days of the attack, he gave an interview to Variety saying he had heard the slurs but he has not spoken about it since.
On Monday, Smollett finally did hand over his records but they were redacted.
Chicago Police Department described them as ‘insufficient proof’ of the call.
The actor angrily responded that via a representative that he was never told as much and that they were redacted to protect ‘personal contacts or high-profile individuals not relevant to the attack.’
In a statement to DailyMail.com on Tuesday night, a spokesman for the actor said: ‘Jussie is the victim here, which has been stated by the Superintendent of Police.
‘Jussie has voluntarily provided his phone records from within an hour of the attack and given multiple statements to police. Chicago PD has repeatedly informed us that they find Jussie’s account of what happened that night consistent and credible. Superintendent Johnson has been clear from day one that Jussie is a victim.
‘We are continuing to work closely with the Chicago PD and remain confident that they will find Jussie’s attackers and bring them to justice.
‘Any redacted information was intended to protect the privacy of personal contacts or high-profile individuals not relevant to the attack.
‘Chicago Police have not told us that they are rejecting any records, nor have they expressed concerns about the records to us.
‘Therefore, we don’t feel compelled to be bated (sic) into responding to uncorroborated press reports.
‘We are dealing directly with the Chicago Police Department.’
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