He may be a killer, but he's no thief!

[RedGlitter]

September 15, 2007

Sports Memorabilia Dealer Implicates O.J. Simpson in Hotel Room Robbery

By STEVE FRIESS

LAS VEGAS, Sept. 14 — O.J. Simpson, the former football star who was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife, was under investigation Friday in what the police said might have been an armed robbery of sports memorabilia from a room at the Palace Station Hotel-Casino here.

Mr. Simpson denied that any crime had taken place. Instead, he told The Associated Press, he and some people he had met at a cocktail party staged a “sting operation on Thursday night intended to retrieve memorabilia, including Mr. Simpson’s Hall of Fame certificate, from a dealer he said had stolen it.

Capt. James Dillon of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said that Mr. Simpson, 60, was cooperating with investigators and that charges, if any, would not come until at least Monday, after the Clark County district attorney’s office reviewed the case. The investigation “is in its infancy, Captain Dillon said.

Captain Dillon would not describe the items involved other than to characterize them as “sports-related products. Some, he said, were in police custody.

The dealer, Alfred Beardsley of Glendale, Calif., told detectives that Mr. Simpson and four other men, including two with guns, entered his room at the Palace Station around 8 p.m. Thursday and left with a trove of memorabilia including photographs and books signed by Mr. Simpson, lithographs of the San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana and Mr. Beardsley’s cellphone.

“I couldn’t believe it, Mr. Beardsley told TMZ.com. “For him to come and do this sort of thing, I don’t know what’s wrong with O.J.

Mr. Simpson gave a different account. He told The Associated Press that he and his acquaintances from the cocktail party went to Mr. Beardsley’s room pretending to be interested in buying the suit Mr. Simpson wore in court in 1995 when he was acquitted of the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. The group left with Mr. Simpson’s Hall of Fame certificate and a photo of J. Edgar Hoover, former Federal Bureau of Investigation director, among other items, Mr. Simpson said.

“Everybody knows this is stolen stuff, Mr. Simpson was quoted as saying. “Not only wasn’t there a break-in, but Riccio came to the lobby and escorted us up to the room. (The reference was to Tom Riccio, an auction house owner.)

“In any event, Mr. Simpson was quoted as saying, “it’s stolen stuff that’s mine. Nobody was roughed up.

Mr. Simpson said he had traveled to Las Vegas because Mr. Riccio had told him that collectors were selling memorabilia belonging to him.

No travel restrictions had been placed on Mr. Simpson, who two weeks ago told a judge in Miami that he could not be present for a court deposition scheduled for Friday because he had to attend a wedding in Las Vegas. The judge postponed the deposition.

A lawyer for Mr. Goldman’s family, David J. Cook, vowed to go to court early next week in Los Angeles to seize whatever property from the investigation that may belong to Mr. Simpson. In a civil trial in 1997, Mr. Simpson was found liable for the deaths of Ms. Brown and Mr. Goldman and was ordered to pay $38 million to the Goldmans and $24 million to the Brown family. To date, Mr. Cook said, the Goldmans have received less than $10,000.

“If it’s O.J.’s property, it’s ours, Mr. Cook said. “If it’s Beardsley’s property, then it’s his. It either goes back to Beardsley or it goes to L.A. County sheriff to sell to pay down his judgment. Either way, O.J. Simpson is going to walk out empty-handed.

Captain Dillon said Friday that he was “not confident that Mr. Simpson would remain in Las Vegas throughout the investigation. He said Mr. Simpson had expressed “no hesitation on his part to cooperate.

The episode came the same day as the release of “If I Did It, a book Mr. Simpson collaborated on with a ghostwriter that he said was a fictional account of how he might have executed the murders for which he was acquitted. The book, originally to be published by HarperCollins last year before an outcry prompted the company to cancel it, was repackaged by the family of Mr. Goldman to make money to pay down the civil judgment.

The publicity, Mr. Cook said, is sure to improve book sales.

[cinamin]

I cannot even stand him. He's a freak! He really does need to be in jail. I just saw him on the news and I swear he looks as if he loves the media attention. It makes me sick.

[Patsy Warnick]

I've been out of town & was wondering if a thread was started @ this episode of OJ

Guess where I was ??? VEGAS - we arrived Sept. 16 for my 50th Birthday and what a mess - Media everywhere.

So we chose to go to Laughlin for a couple of days and had a great time..

Karma - OJ is a idiot..

Patsy

[minks]

I was in LA when he did his slow burn down the freeway in his attempt to get away or whatever.

Yep I think he is an idiot too.

[Patsy Warnick]

Minks

This time around my husband & I can discuss OJ

1995 - the killing incident - we had to write letters to eachother

My husband played Football with OJ, and thought he knew him???

1995 - I went to Nicole's condo - yellow tape and blood everywhere

OJ's home - "mansion" was covered with media & security - mess.

Now my husband just shakes his head - he's an idiot

I like to look at it as Karma - it does come around..

Congrats to the Goldman & Brown Family.!!!

Patsy

[RedGlitter]

Patsy Warnick;696849 wrote: I've been out of town & was wondering if a thread was started @ this episode of OJ

Guess where I was ??? VEGAS - we arrived Sept. 16 for my 50th Birthday and what a mess - Media everywhere.

So we chose to go to Laughlin for a couple of days and had a great time..

Karma - OJ is a idiot..

Patsy


Hey Patsy! A very happy belated birthday to you!! :-4

You were in Laughlin?! Missy, you were only a hop and skip away from me. I could have been there in 15 minutes! Maybe someday...

The thing that has the most impact for me, is that book. "Here's how I woulda done it if I was the killer." Who the hell would even entertain that idea? I just read that the publisher backed out because of public sentiment but that Goldmans bought the rights to the book and are publishing it themselves- they'll get all the proceeds from sales.

[Sheryl]

Ohh god it's happening again. All the news is covering is OJ OJ OJ!

:-5

[Patsy Warnick]

RED

Regarding the book - Goldmans are releasing it - they make @ .17 cents per copy and proceeds go to Goldmans legal charity work.

I will be contacting them for assistance with my Nephews case.

It's called "Ron Goldman's Foundation for Justice"..

It's difficult to understand why the Goldman's would release this book - I totally understand the release & control..

You can meet us in Laughlin anytime - we're thinking about Christmas in Laughlin.

We had so much fun - great time

Patsy