Wednesday, 15 November 2006

• Prev
• Next

OJ Simpson to open up about murders

Acquitted football star to describe 'how he would have killed his wife'

The murder case that captured the country's full attention 12 years ago is about to be reopened by one of its leading figures: O.J. Simpson.

In a stunning announcement, FOX TV says it plans to interview the 59-year-old former football star and actor about "how he would have committed" the slayings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, for which he was acquitted in a criminal trial. (In a 1997 civil case, Simpson was found liable for the two deaths.)

The two-part, "unrestricted" interview, to be conducted by book publisher Judith Regan and called O.J. Simpson: If I Did It, Here's How It Happened, will air Nov. 27 and Nov. 29, says FOX, the Associated Press reports.

On Nov. 30, Simpson's book, titled If I Did It, which Regan is publishing, goes on sale. Its text "hypothetically describes how the murders would have been committed," according to a press release.

"This is an interview that no one thought would ever happen," FOX executive Mike Darnel tells the New York Post, which, like FOX TV and Judith Regan's imprint at HarperCollins, is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.

The Post says that Simpson was reputedly paid $3.5 million for the book.

"O.J. Simpson, in his own words, tells for the first time how he would have committed the murders if he were the one responsible for the crimes," the network said in a statement. "In the two-part event, Simpson describes how he would have carried out the murders he has vehemently denied committing for over a decade."