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Former manager says O.J. Simpson confessed
Former football star O.J. Simpson was acquitted in the deaths of his ex-wife and her friend.
A memorabilia dealer who profited from O.J. Simpson for many years is the latest former crony to write a tell-all book, this one alleging that a groggy Simpson, high on marijuana, confessed to killing his ex-wife after he was acquitted.
Mike Gilbert also claims that he helped his former friend wiggle out of the murder charges by suggesting how to bloat his hands so they wouldn't fit the notorious bloody gloves.
Gilbert's book, "How I Helped O.J. Get Away With Murder: The Shocking Inside Story of Violence, Loyalty, Regret and Remorse," is due in stores Monday. It was released to The Associated Press in advance.
He said Simpson had smoked pot and taken a sleeping pill and was drinking beer when he confided at his home in Los Angeles' Brentwood area weeks after his trial what happened the night of June 12, 1994.
Simpson said he went to his ex-wife's condominium but did not bring a knife with him. Simpson told him Nicole Brown Simpson had one in her hand when she opened the door.
In a soft mumble, Simpson told him: "If she hadn't opened that door with a knife in her hand ... she'd still be alive."
"Nothing more needed to be said," Gilbert writes. "O.J. had confessed to me. There's no doubt in my mind."
Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were stabbed to death at the entrance to her condominium. The knife was never found.
Simpson's current lawyer Yale Galanter said that none of Gilbert's claims are true and that Gilbert is "a delusional drug addict who needs money. He's fallen on very hard times. He is in trouble with the IRS."
"I've talked to O.J. about it," said Galanter, who refused to allow Simpson to comment directly because of his upcoming robbery trial in Las Vegas, Nevada. "This stuff not only didn't occur, but it's not factually supported by the evidence."
The name-calling and accusations on both sides showed that deep wounds persist.
Gilbert, 53, called Galanter "an ambulance chaser and an enabler and denier for O.J. I know. I used to do the same thing. I understand the game."
He acknowledged that he has IRS problems, which he says were caused by Simpson, but said, "I could take a drug test and pass it. I highly doubt that O.J. could."
Gilbert is the second sports memorabilia dealer to write a Simpson book this year. Thomas Riccio, who arranged a Las Vegas memorabilia sale that led to Simpson's armed robbery arrest, penned "Busted" last month.
Simpson himself participated in the controversial book "If I Did It," which he claimed was not a confession. It was withdrawn by the publisher and eventually released last year by the Goldman family to help satisfy a $33.5 million wrongful death judgment.
Gilbert said he continued to represent Simpson for another decade after the alleged confession, hawking items with his autograph, hiding the profits and helping Simpson shield his possessions so they could not be seized by the Goldman family.
Gilbert also claims that he counseled the jailed Simpson during his murder trial to stop taking his arthritis medicine so his hands would swell up and not fit the bloody gloves in court. He offers no proof that Simpson followed his advice or that he was taking any medicine, but the drama that played out in court when the gloves didn't fit was central to Simpson's defense.
The prosecutors in Simpson's murder trial, Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden, could not be reached for comment on Gilbert's claims.
Former Gilbert partner Bruce Fromong, who was involved in the Las Vegas incident, said Gilbert is known for spinning tall tales.
"Mike makes up a lot of great stories," Fromong said. "Mike Gilbert has a ton of skeletons in his closet. He's as dirty as anyone."
Gilbert said he broke with Simpson two years ago because he felt cheated, didn't approve of his lifestyle and was repulsed by "If I Did It." He writes that he was guided to do his own the book by dreams in which he saw the ghosts of his dead grandmother and of Nicole Brown Simpson.
He refers to himself in the book as a Judas and says he is betraying Simpson because he's ashamed of what he did and wants to soothe his conscience. He responded to Fromong's criticism by saying he's made mistakes and isn't trying to clean up his image with the book.
He writes that he was not alone in helping Simpson beat the murder charges, but "I hope to be the first to finally confess."
Gilbert said he funneled money from autograph signing appearances to Simpson under the table so the Goldman family could not get it. Gilbert said he paid Simpson 80 percent and kept 20 percent but had to pay taxes on the whole amount. He said Simpson repeatedly told him they'd settle up later.
But they never did, and when pushed, Simpson reminded him of the Goldman debt: "Hey, at least you don't owe $33.5 million."
"Yeah, I didn't kill anybody either," Gilbert replied. Simpson scowled.
He offers apologies to the dead Nicole Simpson, whom he said he never liked, and to the Goldman family.
"He offers an apology for money laundering?" Goldman attorney David Cook asked. "I don't think we want the apology. I think we need the money. Send us a check, not an 'I'm sorry.' "
He said he plans to use the book as a treasure map to Simpson's hidden assets.
Source: CNN.com