Lawyers for the US actor Jussie Smollett have denied he had any role in an assault last month he alleges was carried out by two white men.
Their statement came after sources told US media that police believed he may have paid two Nigerian brothers to stage the attack on 29 January.
The brothers, who worked as extras on Empire, the show Smollett starred in, have been questioned by Chicago police.
Police have only said the “trajectory of the investigation” has shifted.
“Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with,” a statement from lawyers Todd Pugh and Victor Henderson said.
“He has now been further victimised by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying.”
One of the brothers is Smollett’s personal trainer, and the lawyers said it was “impossible to believe that this person could have played a role in the crime against Jussie or would falsely claim Jussie’s complicity”.
They had questioned the two brothers, Ola and Abel Osundairo, last week but the pair were released on Friday and are said to be still co-operating with the investigation.
The brothers had left the US after the alleged attack and were arrested on their return last Wednesday.
