THE FBI is probing why all 16 criminal charges against Jussie Smollett were dropped, according to reports.

Prosecutors made the extraordinary decision to dismiss charges against the actor despite admitting they believe he lied about staging a “racist and homophobic” attack.

ABC7 reported that two law enforcement officials confirmed the FBI is now reviewing the decision.

Cops in Chicago have called for a federal probe into the "highly, highly suspicious" conduct of the prosecutor who "intervened" in the Smollett case and even texted the star's family.

They are furious about the shock decision to drop the actor's charges and are demanding Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx be investigated over her handling of the high-profile probe.

It came as police files revealed Smollett was caught on camera driving with one of the two Nigerian brothers he allegedly paid to attack him – just days before the assault.

Smollett was filmed in his Mercedes SUV with one of the Osundairo brothers on January 25 – four days before the alleged attack – and again on January 27, according to the documents.

NEW DETAILS REVEALED

It also states that one of the brothers admitted to filling a hot sauce bottle with bleach and later pouring it on Smollett.

The bottle of El Yucateco hot sauce was found at the scene more than a week after the alleged attack.

Detectives showed a photo of the bottle to one of the brothers, who “stated that it appeared to be the bottle he filled with bleach and poured on Smollett,” according to the files.

The actor was also found to have been messaging the brothers after cops accessed Smollett’s iCloud account, the files state.

The documents also revealed that police collected CCTV footage from inside the actor’s luxury apartment block, as well as from the Sheraton hotel opposite.

The Empire actor did just 16 hours community service with a non-profit organisation before prosecutors dropped all charges against him, it's been reported.

CASE DIVIDED AMERICA

Smollett divided America when he was accused of faking a shocking race attack on the streets of Chicago in January in a bid to "further his career".

Attorney Foxx promptly disqualified herself from the case last month for exchanging text messages with one of Smollett's relatives in the days after the actor told police he was attacked.

Cop union the Fraternal Order of Police slammed the conduct, accusing Foxx of political "interference" on behalf of the Smollett family.

"The conduct of her office from the very beginning of this cases was highly, highly suspicious," Martin Preib, the FOP's vice president, told the Chicago Sun-Times.

"The entire country is outraged by it. The evidence is overwhelming that he was legitimately charged in this case. This decision appears to be utterly arbitrary, capricious and suspicious.

"The country is getting a window into the absurdity of the Chicago political and legal system."

Among those now pressing for answers is Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel who called the shocking deal a "whitewash of justice".

The shocking 'race attack' that never was

Smollett, who is black and openly gay, told police he was attacked while walking home around 2am on January 29.

He claimed two masked men – one wearing a red MAGA-style hat – shouted racist and homophobic slurs as they beat him, put a noose around his neck, and poured bleach on him.

The star claimed they yelled: "This is MAGA country", a reference to Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again' campaign slogan.

It was later claimed Smollett had directed the men  — who were brothers — to buy the noose at a hardware store and the hat and masks at a store in Uptown Chicago.

Police said the pair wore gloves during the staged attack, and did punch Smollett, but the scratches and bruises on Smollett’s face were most likely self-inflicted.

Cops at the time said the attack was a publicity stunt because the actor was upset about his pay on the hit show.

He said Smollett had exploited hate-crime laws meant to protect minorities by turning the laws “inside out, upside down for only one thing – himself”.

With little explanation the authorities abruptly dropped all charges against Smollett, abandoning the criminal case only five weeks after the allegations were first filed.

The dismissal raised questions about why Smollett was not forced to admit what prosecutors said they could prove in court — that the entire episode was a publicity stunt.

In return for the dismissal, Smollett reportedly agreed to do the community work and forfeit the $10,000 he paid to get out of jail.

According to CBS reporter Charlie De Mar, Smollett did community service at Rainbow PUSH "Saturday/Monday for about 16 hours total".

"He worked in bookstores, sold merchandise. Stuffed envelopes. Spoke to students. Talked to musical director about expanding choir. Helped in video dept and offered critique," Mar tweeted.

The news comes after the prosecutor who dropped the charges against the Empire star has admitted even he does not believe he is innocent.

First Assistant State's Attorney Joe Magats revealed he made the extraordinary decision to drop the case because the actor has no criminal background.

He said he thought Smollett, 36, was guilty but that “based on the facts and circumstances of the case”, the decision was made not to pursue charges.

“I do not believe he is innocent,” Mr Magats told CBS on Tuesday afternoon.

Smollett was charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly staging a "phony" street attack and claiming he was the victim of a hate crime to garner sympathetic publicity.

Then in an unexpected development on Tuesday afternoon, all charges were dropped against the actor by prosecutors — in news that rocked America.

But he could reportedly still face federal charges as the FBI and the US Postal Inspection Service are continuing their probe into a threatening letter Smollett might have sent to himself.

Federal investigators are continuing to probe whether Smollett delivered a racially charged letter to the Empire office in Chicago, according to ABC News.

A source told the network that the dismissal of the state’s case has not impacted the federal probe.

The hate-filled letter arrived a week before his alleged hate crime occurred.

Smollett said the letter stated “You will die black f*g” in cutout magazine letters with a crude stick figure drawing hanging from a tree.

“MAGA” was written in red letters across the envelope, which also had a crushed-up white powder in it that was later determined to be aspirin.

Chicago Police Department Central Commander Ed Wodnicki said the dropping of the charges was a "punch in the gut" and and insists he had a "rock solid case".

Meanwhile Superintendent Eddie Johnson said: "At the end of the day, it is Mr Smollett who committed this hoax, period.

"If he wanted to clear his name, the way to do that is in a court of law so everyone can see the evidence. I stand by the facts of what we produced.

Yet the actor's attorneys Tina Glandian and Patricia Brown Holmes said in a statement that their client's record has now "been wiped clean".

Following the announcement, an emotional Smollett said: “I have been truthful and consistent on every single level since day one.

“I would not be my mother’s son if I was capable of one drop of what I had been accused of. This has been an incredibly difficult time – honestly one of the worst of my entire life.

TRUMP BACKLASH

“But I am a man of faith and a man who has knowledge of my history and I would not bring my family our lives or the movement through a fire like this – I just wouldn’t."

Initial reports of the assault led to a huge backlash against Trump supporters in the US with one headline claiming the attack was “far right America’s endgame”.

That theme was echoed by other news outlets and backed up by dozens of editorial pieces about how racist and homophobic America had become.

A furious President Trump was, not surprisingly, then quick to lay into Smollett after Chicago police arrested him over the fake attack allegations.

"@JussieSmollett – what about MAGA and the tens of millions of people you insulted with your racist and dangerous comments!?" the President tweeted, adding the hashtag '#MAGA.'

When news of the attack first emerged days earlier, Smollett was inundated with support across the political divide.

However, as it emerged that Smollett "knew his attackers" and may have even been involved in the staging of the attack, the celebrities and politicians who rushed to support him went quiet.

Smollett was accused of lying to police when he told them two men unleashed a racist and homophobic attack on him in the city.

Each of the 16 counts against him covered various alleged acts that Smollett falsely described to the officers.

Officers at the time said the attack was a publicity stunt because the actor was upset about his pay on the show.

Smollett had denied all the allegations against him and even went on Good Morning America to protest his innocence.

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