FBI documents link ‘clean-living’ Simpson to ecstasy smuggling ring

Published on Wednesday 15 May 2002 01:00

THE tarnished reputation of OJ Simpson was dragged through the mud again yesterday after it was alleged he uses illegal drugs and visits strip clubs.

FBI documents have surfaced claiming the athlete-turned-murder suspect took cocaine and ecstasy and at one time allegedly had a drug dealer living in the guest house of his Miami home.

The drug trafficker drove Simpson’s two children to and from school while making illegal deals on his mobile phone, according to confidential FBI documents obtained by the Toledo Blade newspaper in Ohio.

Simpson, 54, has been promoting himself as a clean-living father since his acquittal for the unsolved 1994 murder of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman.

However, the documents claim he spends his time taking drugs, entertaining girlfriends and frequenting strip clubs.

Allegations against the former American football player, who moved to Florida two years ago, first arose during a 2001 FBI investigation into an international ecstasy ring.

Most of the accusations levelled at Simpson come from three ring members who have already pleaded guilty in the case: Andrew Anderson, Zenaida "Gigi" Galvez and John Thorburn. His house guest, Anderson, 34, was the ring’s Miami supplier, while Thorburn, 32, a local drug dealer, told the FBI he and Simpson had snorted cocaine together.

Galvez, 36, said she sold cocaine to Simpson, and told agents: "Simpson was using cocaine the entire evening", while they visited Miami strip clubs. She also claims to have been warned about the planned FBI raid of OJ’s home.

Agents said they first heard Simpson’s name in a wiretapped telephone conversation between Anderson and Thorburn last year. Thorburn told Anderson he needed more ecstasy, and Anderson said it was in his car "at OJ’s house".

The conversation led to a search of Simpson’s home in December, during which police found four bags of suspected marijuana, cocaine residue, two drug pipes and a can containing marijuana residue.

Simpson insisted yesterday that the FBI investigation was flawed, claiming: "I raise my kids. I play golf. I don’t do drugs, and no drug dealer has ever stayed in my house."

His lawyer, Yale Galanter, said: "The Feds didn’t find anything of any narcotics-related illegal activity in the house. If OJ was guilty, then he’d be behind bars right now."

The US attorney’s office in Miami refused to confirm if Simpson is under investigation.

Rarely out of the media spotlight, Simpson launched a legal battle last month to overturn a 1997, $33.5 million, wrongful death judgment for the murder of his ex-wife and her friend.

He contended that his civil rights were violated by the judgment on the 1994 killings and that jurors who found against him in a civil action were "inflamed by emotion".

The petition went on to say that the award to the families of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman was so large as to constitute "cruel and unusual punishment", but the California supreme court refused to consider his request for review.

In March, a law firm sued Simpson for more than $200,000, claiming he failed to pay legal fees resulting from his 1996 child custody battle.

The firm of Meserve, Mumper and Hughes represented Simpson while he successfully sought custody of his children by Nicole Brown Simpson, Sydney Brooke Simpson, 17, and Justin Ryan Simpson, 14.

His ex-wife’s parents, Louis and Juditha Brown, who were guardians of the children while Simpson was on trial, were given visitation rights on appeal.

Simpson was acquitted of murder in 1995 after a year in jail. He maintains his innocence but has exhausted all state appeals in the civil case. He has not worked since the wrongful death trial and any money he does earn could be seized to satisfy the largely unpaid judgment.

As of last year, the families had received about $430,000 (300,000).