Two men arrested earlier regarding Jussie Smollett incident have been released

Earlier in the week, two "potential suspects" were arrested in Chicago for presumed involvement in the recent assault of actor Jussie Smollett. Now, Chicago Police Department spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi has confirmed that the two have been released from custody. "Due to new evidence as a result of today's interrogations, the individuals questioned by police in the Empire case have now been released without charging," writes Guglielmi. "Detectives have additional investigative work to complete."

News broke of Smollett's attack at the end of last month. His attackers were reported to be two white men who shouted support for "MAGA." The two men arrested this week were of Nigerian descent. Though the case has been subject to some skepticism over social media, Guglielmi maintains that the incident was in no way "a hoax." "While we haven’t found any video documenting the alleged attack, there is no evidence to say that this is a hoax."