Actor Jassie Smollet has been jailed for assault

A Chicago court on Thursday sentenced American actor Jesse Smolett to nearly five months in prison in January 2019 for racist and gay assault, which sparked outrage in the United States at the time. .

The 39-year-old African-American and gay comedian was convicted in December of paying $ 3,500 to two Nigerian brothers for “planning” a fake attack and repeatedly lying to police.

“You wanted attention, you wanted to be more famous,” Judge James Lynn agreed.

He accused the defendant of being “arrogant, selfish and narcissistic”, saying that the “most anticipated” lie would ultimately have the opposite effect.

“You ruined your life” and “you harmed the real victims of racist crimes,” he explained.

Jesse Smolet, who faces up to Thursday evening in prison, faces up to 150 days in prison and a total of 30 months in probation. He will have to pay back $ 120,106 for a portion of the costs of the Chicago police investigation.

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“I did not do that, I’m innocent,” Jesse Smolt said after the verdict, raising his fist before leaving the courtroom.

Lawyers and family members of Jesse Smolt have previously sought Justice Lynn’s apology and sought an alternative sentence to imprisonment.

Fallen star of the hit television series “Empire”, Jesse Smolet has always maintained his innocence.

He claims that at midnight on January 29, 2019, two masked men attacked a street in Chicago, claiming to be supporters of President Donald Trump. They beat him with racist and homosexual insults and trapped him in the neck.

According to his lawyers, Jesse Smolet was attacked by two brothers, Abimbola and Olabinzo Osundairo, whom he met on the “Empire” set, who were motivated by money and one of them committed homosexuality.

But for the accusation, the actor devised an attack to further his career by gaining his notoriety.

The case has come as a shock to a country that is still strongly marked by racial and sexual discrimination. The actor immediately received the support of many celebrities from the political and cultural world.