Orenthal James “O.J.” Simpson, the infamous American football celebrity, has passed away at the age of 76. In an announcement on X, Simpson’s family said that “he was surrounded by his children and grandchildren” when he “succumbed to his battle with cancer” on Wednesday.
The Simpson family asked for “privacy and grace” while they were dealing with Simpson’s passing.
Simpson made headlines in the 1990s after he stood trial for the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. He was acquitted but subsequently found liable for her death by a jury in a civil trial.
Before achieving notoriety, Simpson was best known as a successful gridiron star, playing for the San Francisco 49ers and Buffalo Bills in the 1960s and 1970s. Following his retirement from sport, he pursued a career as an actor, starring in films such as The Naked Gun.
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His downfall began on 12 June 1994, with the deaths of his ex-wife and Goldman, over which he was the chief suspect. Simpson led police on a car chase that was broadcast live on television before giving himself up to the authorities.
In 2007, he was found guilty of kidnapping and armed robbery at a Las Vegas resort, after detaining two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint.
Simpson said he was trying to recover his own property from the dealers and ended up serving 9 out of the 33 years of his sentence before being released on parole in 2017.
One of his former lawyers, Alan Dershowitz, told the Associated Press that Simpson “will leave a mixed legacy. Great athlete. Many people think he was guilty. Some think he was innocent.”
