A still-fuming Rahm Emanuel on Thursday said Empire star Jussie Smollett owes the city of Chicago an apology — and a check.
The Chicago mayor, who for the past three days has been blasting Smollett and the prosecutors who dropped all of the charges against him, said the actor should pay back the money spent on his investigation. Chicago police spent weeks investigating Smollett's claim that he was the victim of a hate crime, only to conclude that he orchestrated the crime himself. Smollett has maintained his innocence, and all charges against him were dropped earlier this week.
Emanuel on Thursday reiterated his belief that Smollett is guilty, saying police are "right now finalizing the cost" of the investigation and that they'd send a letter to his attorneys trying to recoup these costs once finished, per The Hill. Smollett previously forfeited a $10,000 bond.
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"Given that he doesn't feel any sense of contrition and remorse, my recommendation is that when he writes the check, in the memo section, he can put the word, 'I'm accountable for the hoax,'" Emanuel said on Thursday.
Chicago Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi told USA Today that the investigation cost $130,000, and Chicago's legal department has since asked Smollett for that amount, CBS Chicago reports.
Meanwhile, Smollett's team is continuing to push back against Emanuel and the Chicago police, saying in a statement on Thursday that they should apologize for "dragging an innocent man's character through the mud," adding, "Jussie has paid enough." Brendan Morrow
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