Chicago police detained two brothers for questioning in the investigation into the attack the Empire actor reported, according to reports on Friday, February 15, 2019. The brothers, Abel and Ola, were picked up at Chicago O’Hare International Airport after returning from Nigeria. Police described them as suspects rather than persons of interest, but neither had been charged. Police said they could hold the brothers for a limited time without charges unless prosecutors approved them.
Both brothers are actors, and Ola appeared as an extra on an episode of Empire in 2015. They are acquainted with the actor who reported the attack, who follows them on Instagram and has worked out with them on occasion. Their family said they traveled to Nigeria on January 29, hours after the reported attack.
Unnamed sources told some outlets that investigators suspect the incident was staged. That claim has not been confirmed. The show denied it, and police did not corroborate it. Chicago PD spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, “There is also no evidence to say that this is a hoax.” He added that the actor is cooperating and continues to be treated as the victim, and that the investigation continues.
Guglielmi also said detectives have probable cause that the brothers may have been involved in an alleged crime and are working to corroborate the allegations and the timeline. The brothers’ lawyer insists they were not involved and were not the people who attacked the actor. Public records list the brothers as tenants of a home that police searched, and their names appeared on an evidence list left there. According to TMZ, detectives found the brothers by reviewing ride share records from the night of the attack. A relative who was home during the search said she believes they are being questioned because of their loose Empire connection to the actor and because they left for Nigeria the same day as the attack.
What do you think about the latest turn in this investigation?
