Brothers implicated in Jussie Smollett 'hoax' attack sue the 'Empire' actor's lawyers

Abel and Ola Osundairo, the brothers accused of attacking Jussie Smollett in January — then later accused of helping him stage the alleged hate crime hoax — have filed a defamation lawsuit against the "Empire" star's attorneys, Tina Glandian and Mark Geragos, and Geragos' firm, Fox News has learned.

The suit alleges that Geragos and his firm continued to say publicly in widely reported statements that the brothers "led a criminally homophobic, racist and violent attack against Mr. Smollett," even though they allegedly knew that wasn't true.

Glandian also told "Good Morning America" that the Osundairos lied about their participation in the alleged hoax attack.

Schmidt previously told Fox News of the Osundairo brothers' role in the alleged hoax, "What they did, and I'll say have they tremendous regret over their role and their participation in this, but what they did was accept payment for training that also encompassed doing a favor for this person. It's not an easy narrative to say, 'Oh, OK, let's just take $3,500 for this."

Schmidt insisted at the time that Smollett took advantage of the brothers, adding, "They are remorseful for their involvement. That's without a doubt. I was there to witness their realization process, to see that this was something that was going to effect tremendous people across the board, have an enormous impact on minority populations — I was there to see that realization process, and they are remorseful for that."


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