Chicago police are seeking the public’s help to identify and interview two people in connection with a reported homophobic and racist attack against Jussie Smollett, an actor who has starred in titles such as TV show Empire and movies Alien: Covenant and The Mighty Ducks.
In a news release issued Wednesday, the Chicago Police Department sought the public’s help identifying two subjects who were walking on New Street near Illinois Street between 1:30 a.m. and 1:45 a.m.
WATCH: Celebrities react to Jussie Smollett attack
The release didn’t name Smollett, but it described an incident in which a victim reported that he was returning to his home in the 300-block of East Lower North Water Street when two men attacked him, striking him several times and knocking him to the ground.
The victim also reported that the subjects “placed a rope around his neck and poured an unknown liquid substance on him.”
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READ MORE: Jussie Smollett, ‘Empire’ star, hospitalized following possible homophobic, racist attack
Chicago police had previously said they received a report about a possible assault and battery on a 36-year-old cast member of Empire.
Police said two offenders grabbed the victim’s attention by yelling out “racial and homophobic” slurs before they started to “batter the victim with their hands about the face” and poured the liquid on him.
The pair later fled the scene.
WATCH: Jan. 29 — Jussie Smollett, ‘Empire’ star, hospitalized following possible homophobic, racist attack
The victim was later self-transported to Northwestern Hospital, and was in “good condition,” police said.
U.S. Sen. Cory Booker tweeted that the incident was an “attempted modern-day lynching.”
Celebrities poured out sympathies for Smollett after the reported beating: Empire co-star Taraji P. Henson, who plays the mother to Smollett’s character on the Fox show, said on Instagram that she wished “what happened to my baby was just one big bad joke but it wasn’t and we all feel his pain right now.”
Meanwhile, Fox temporarily shut down production on Empire on Wednesday, though it wasn’t directly related to the Smollett incident.
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