Empire star Jussie Smollett was hospitalized early Tuesday after what police are investigating as a possible hate crime in Chicago.
The incident happened around 2 a.m. after the actor arrived in Chicago from New York City. TMZ reported, citing sources, that Smollett was walking to a Subway for a late night snack when someone shouted racial and homophobic slurs at him. The outlet reported that two men in ski masks then attacked him, fractured a rib, put a noose around his neck, poured what sources described as bleach on him, and yelled “This is MAGA country” before running off.
Smollett was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for treatment. Police said the matter is being investigated as a battery and a possible hate crime.
ThatGrapeJuice reported that eight days earlier, a threatening letter was sent to the show’s studio in Chicago. Whether the two incidents are connected had not been established at the time of this report.
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