Chicago PD is launching an internal investigation over the handling of Jussie Smollett’s case, TMZ reports.
On Thursday (March 7), a Chief of Detectives told the site an investigation was necessary after the many leaks that occurred in the media. While the detective told TMZ a lot of the leaks were “inaccurate,” CPD reportedly wants to find out which member(s) inside the force was the culprit. “When there are allegations of information being leaked, an internal investigation has been opened and we are also looking at our vulnerabilities,” a police spokesperson shared.
On the topic of leaks, TMZ also reported the hospital Smollett was treated at for his injuries on the night of his alleged assault incurred its own investigation. According to the site, “dozens” of employees were fired after accessing the “Empire” actor’s medical records without authorization.
The internal investigation report comes just weeks after the FBI disputed Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson. Johnson initially stated Smollett sent himself a letter eight days before staging his own hate crime, but law enforcement officials told TMZ, “I think he [Johnson] went too far. We’re not there yet.” Federal and state law enforcement sources told the site they were still questioning whether or not the two Nigerian brothers, Ola and Abel Osundairo, sent the letter after discovering magazines with missing pages at their home during a raid.
During a press conference last month, Johnson also claimed Smollett paid $3,500 to the Osundairo brothers to help him stage the attack, but it turned out that wasn’t true either. Receipts of the check showed Smollett paid the brothers to help get him in shape for an upcoming music video.
Smollett reportedly hired defense attorney Mark Geragos before his arrest and plans “to mount an aggressive defense.” Geragos spoke out about the leaks on CNN in February saying, “I haven’t seen anything except leaks according to law enforcement sources. To me, that screams out somebody who’s trying to manipulate something.”