The statement came after detectives reviewed hundreds of hours of video over a day and a half as they tried to solve what they were calling a possible hate crime. A police spokesman, Howard Ludwig, said that the department had also received calls on its tip line, but that it was too early to tell whether they were credible. The men also put a rope around his neck, he told the police, and poured a chemical substance on him. When the police arrived at the apartment where Smollett was staying, a “thin, light rope” was still around his neck, Guglielmi said. At police urging, Smollett was taken to a hospital for lacerations on his face and neck, and was treated and released.

Source: New York Times January 30, 2019 23:57 UTC