Judge Says No Bail For O.J. Simpson

After Arrest In Vegas Sunday For Alleged Armed Robbery Of Sports Memorabilia

(CBS/AP)  Police arrested O.J. Simpson on Sunday, saying he was part of an armed group who burst into a Las Vegas hotel room and snatched memorabilia that documented his own sports career, long ago eclipsed by scandal.

The arrest starts a new legal odyssey for the fallen football star who more than a decade ago was acquitted of the slayings of his ex-wife and a friend, and opens the possibility that he could spend decades behind bars.

Simpson was taken away from The Palms casino-hotel by plainclothes officers a day after the arrest of a golfing buddy who police say accompanied him with a gun in the Thursday night holdup. Handcuffed and wearing a golf shirt and jeans, Simpson was placed in an SUV.

"He was very cooperative, there were no issues," Capt. James Dillon said.

Simpson was being booked on two counts of robbery with a deadly weapon, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit burglary and burglary with a firearm, police said. The district attorney, meanwhile, said he expects Simpson to ultimately be charged with seven felonies and one gross misdemeanor.

An audio recording of the alleged robbery released by TMZ.com identifies an agitated Simpson uttering obscenities to an unknown person. "You think you can steal my (expletive) and sell it"? the voice identified as Simpson says.

A judge ordered Simpson held without bail, police said. If convicted of the charges on which he was to be booked, Simpson would face up to 30 years in state prison on each robbery count alone.

"He is facing a lot of time," said Clark County District Attorney David Roger.

Simpson, 60, has said he and other people were retrieving items that belonged to him. Simpson has said there were no guns involved and that he went to the room at the casino only to get stolen mementos that included his Hall of Fame certificate and a picture of the running back with J. Edgar Hoover.

Police said Sunday that they are searching for four people in connection with the alleged armed robbery that occurred in a room inside the Palace Station casino-hotel on Thursday.

Police Lt. Clint Nichols said Simpson invoked his right to an attorney immediately after being arrested.

Simpson, 60, has said he and other people with him were retrieving items that belonged to him. Simpson has said there were no guns involved and that he went to the room at the casino only to get stolen mementos that included his Hall of Fame certificate and a picture of the running back with J. Edgar Hoover.

Simpson told The Associated Press on Saturday that he did not call the police to help reclaim the items because he has found the police unresponsive to him ever since his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, were killed in 1994.

"The police, since my trouble, have not worked out for me," he said, noting that whenever he has called the police "It just becomes a story about O.J."

The Heisman Trophy winner, ex-NFL star and actor lives near Miami and has been a tabloid staple since his ex-wife and Goldman were killed in 1994. Simpson was acquitted of murder charges, but a jury later held him liable for the killings in a wrongful death lawsuit.

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Photos: O.J. Once More

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Police said two firearms and other evidence were seized at a private residence early Sunday.

Walter Alexander, 46, of Arizona, was arrested Saturday night on two counts of robbery with a deadly weapon, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit robbery and burglary with a deadly weapon.

He was released without bail on Saturday night, Dillon said.

Besides the two firearms, police said they seized other evidence during early morning searches of two residences, Lt. Clint Nichols said.

"It was evidence of a crime that was committed," Nichols said. "And I believe we recovered some clothing that the individual was wearing in the commission of the robbery."

2Simpson said auction house owner Tom Riccio called him several weeks ago to say some collectors were selling some of his items. Riccio set up a meeting with collectors under the guise that he had a private collector interested in buying Simpson's items.

Simpson said he was accompanied by several men he met at a wedding cocktail party, and they took the collectibles.

Alfred Beardsley, one of the sports memorabilia collectors involved in the alleged robbery, has said he wants the case dropped and that he's "on O.J.'s side."

Nichols said police had a responsibility to investigate how the collectibles were taken, regardless of who they belong to.

"We don't believe that anybody was roughed up, but there were firearms involved in the commission of the robbery," he said.

Simpson's arrest came just days after the Goldman family published a book that Simpson had written under the title, "If I Did It," about how he would have committed the killings of his ex-wife and Goldman had he actually done it.

After a deal for Simpson to publish it fell through, a federal bankruptcy judge awarded the book's rights to the Goldman family, who retitled it "If I Did It: The Confessions of the Killer." On Sunday, the book was the hottest seller in the country, hitting No. 1 on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com.

[likeitis5050]

Thank goodness OJ finally did something to take the attention away from Brittney and Paris. It won''t last, of course, but it''s a nice diversion. OJ will skate. He already has lawyers needing a leg up lining up to represent him for nothing. OJ will continue to cheese for cameras and do the probation thing and be on the golf course before the end of the month. Judges in this country are totally for sale.

[misssuzq]

We''ll see if this sticks.

[olebd]

I have to admit, he looks very good for somebody who has had to live with so much guilt and shame all these years.

This latest debacle sounds like he maybe could get off with a temporary insanity pleas :)

[fizzal-2009]

We may be nearing an end of the long investigation of the theft of some stadiumm equipment.

[marrofkane]

Huh, we are labeled racists when we want justice against a non-white. Good strategy. Although you may not know my race. It seems our justice system is racist. Against white people. Look at all the illegal immigrants getting by with breaking the laws that would send a white person to prison. And the whites cannot play the race card, and it will work. Teflon O.J. will get off. Count on it.

[thgdriver]

cmp271 at 05:02 PM

Correct!! The opening story on channel 6 at 5 o''clock just now, was about this mess. You can;t get away from it. If this was some poor schmo from Kokomo we would never have heard a word.

But who am I to call the kettle black?

[cmp271]

OJ needs some anger management lessons. I still don''t see how he is liable for their deaths in a civil suit when he wasn''t convicted of doing the murders??? I believe he is guilty too, however, I can appreciate how he feels about his football stuff. He should have been allowed to keep that stuff and ordered to never sell it. The Goldman''s are never going to have a life either if they can''t realize he will never be punished and go on with their lives. This constant persuit of OJ is almost harassment. The court didn''t convict him. The civil court should be overturned. If the news doesn''t report on him, it doesn''t matter what he does.

[susanhelit]

Doesn''t matter if this stuff was stolen (and all in all, I don''t tend to consider OJ a truthful person) - you don''t run in with guns to take it back. You call the police - always, period! And this was a guy OJ knew - he could have just asked. Not burst in with guns blazing. That''s called vigilante justice, and it kills and hurts many innocent people. A man was recently sentenced to 12 years for killing his neighbor because he believed his wifes lies that the neighbor was molesting their daughter. This was proven not to be true.


Glad bail was denied - he''s an obvious flight risk.

[sevenveils]

How come we can comment on this no news item yet have no ability to comment on Jeffs and the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints leader''s trial?

Now that trial is controversy and the beliefs of the group should be talked about

[robertkjjj]

Every single day since 1994 this piece of human garbage should have been on Death Row. Instead, thanks to a mindless group of jurors in 1995, he%u2019s been out and around, mouthing off, mocking the system and the victims, playing golf, lying habitually, and living like the total classic narcissist. If these charges stick, I hope he''s convicted on all of them, the judge throws the maximum sentences at him, he gets thrown in state prison, and he''s raped daily by large bodybuilders. And then he rots until he dies.