Trump says Justice Department to review Jussie Smollett case

[March 28, 2019]    (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the Department of Justice will "review" the case of actor Jussie Smollett, who was charged with staging a fake hate crime in Chicago before prosecutors abruptly dropped the case this week.

Actor Jussie Smollett leaves court after charges against him were dropped by state prosecutors in Chicago, Illinois, U.S. March 26, 2019. REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski

Smollett, who is black and gay, said two men attacked him at night in January, making homophobic and racist remarks and putting a noose around his neck while shouting support for Trump.

Investigators later charged Smollett with paying the two men to pretend to attack him in order to garner public sympathy for himself. Prosecutors dropped the charges on Tuesday, saying they stood by the accusation but that an agreement by Smollett to forfeit his $10,000 bond was a just outcome.

"FBI & DOJ to review the outrageous Jussie Smollett case in Chicago," Trump wrote on Twitter, referring to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice. "It is an embarrassment to our Nation!"

Smollett says he is innocent and did not stage the attack.

(Reporting by Jonathan Allen; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

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