Justice at last? 13 years after he was cleared of murder, OJ Simpson is back in court accused of kidnap and robbery

For a man widely believed to have 'got away with murder', former American footballing legend OJ Simpson has hardly been keeping a low profile.

Almost 13 years after he was acquitted of the double murder of his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, the sportsman known as 'The Juice' lives a life of luxury in sunny Miami, Florida.

He may have been deemed responsible for the deaths of his ex-wife and her friend in a subsequent civil case, but OJ still lives in style.

Charmed existence: OJ Simpson

Home is a six-bedroom ranch-style villa with a swimming pool. Simpson's black Lincoln Navigator is parked in the imposing driveway.

A guesthouse in the three-acre grounds is occupied by Simpson's eldest son, Jason, from his first marriage, to Marguerite Whitley.

Youngest son Justin, 20, still lives with his father, as does OJ's on-off girlfriend Christie Prody, 33.

With an estimated income of £200,000 a year from his American football pension, Simpson wants for nothing. He doesn't work, but spends most days on the golf course.

In the evenings he is to be found socialising with friends or visiting lap-dancing bars.

Little wonder, then, that he has been heard exclaiming 'I love my life', while tucking into a healthy breakfast of smoked salmon bagels in his favourite deli, Roasters 'n' Toasters.

Now, however, that charmed existence may be about to end.

And in a curious twist of irony, a courtroom may yet prove to be the setting for his undoing.

OJ listens to the not guilty verdicts at his murder trial in 1995

This week in Las Vegas, Simpson is due to stand trial on charges of kidnapping, armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, following an alleged robbery at gunpoint of two sports memorabilia dealers.

If found guilty, he could be imprisoned for life.

The former American football star and his wife Nicole

And while many people across the U.S. and beyond - not least members of Nicole's and Ron Goldman's families - believe this would be a fitting end to a shameful chapter in American legal history, others concede that Simpson has been 'set up'.

Certainly, the circumstances of the heist sound curious. But as four co-defendants have already pleaded guilty and stated that they are prepared to testify against Simpson in return for reduced sentences or immunity, the omens do not look good.

According to attorney Paul DerOhannesian: 'What this case is about as much as anything else is trying to get OJ Simpson in jail for what he did years ago.

'Those who are interested in this trial are interested in a retrial of OJ. The prosecution are cutting every deal they can to get Simpson.'

The dramatic details of his murder trial are well known. But the next instalment of the OJ Simpson show promises to be no less spectacular.

This time, the scene is a court in the all-too-fitting entertainment capital of the Western world: Las Vegas.

And while the media circus which surrounded Simpson's murder trial is not yet in place - local television station Channel 13 plans to send just one crew - it is this verdict, expected in five weeks, which may alter the course of Simpson's life.

On paper it reads like the plot of one of the Naked Gun films Simpson starred in during the Nineties.

The retired footballer and five others are alleged to have entered a Las Vegas hotel room in September 2007 and taken Simpson memorabilia at gunpoint from two dealers.

Simpson admits taking the memorabilia, but claims the items were originally stolen from him. He denies breaking into the room and insists no guns were present.

Nevertheless, the man who set up the meeting between Simpson and the dealers says the footballer's entourage carried at least one gun.

In a 212-page book on the heist, 45-year-old Thomas Riccio, who admits he is 'out to make as much money' as he can from the incident, insists: 'I was standing right next to the guy with the gun.'

Friends say Simpson has become a target for wannabes trying to make a name for themselves on the back of his notoriety.

And it is worth noting that Riccio, who has been granted immunity from prosecution, is selling advertising space on his own body, as he will be followed 24 hours a day by a camera crew throughout proceedings.

Pedro Rosado, a partner in Roasters 'n' Toasters, says the star already has a home full of memorabilia, and insists he has long had 'a bull's-eye on his back'.

'I tell OJ to watch it all the time. I think he was set up.

'The things he was supposed to have demanded back - the memorabilia - it don't make sense. Why would he want one item when he has 30 or 40 similar items at home?'

Certainly, Simpson has little cause to rock the boat. He has an enviable lifestyle in Florida, where he is still greeted like a sporting hero despite his notoriety and is able to raise his two youngest children in peace.

At Gulliver Academy, the prestigious private school attended by his daughter, Sydney, and son, Justin, Simpson was a familiar face among the crowds of cheering parents at events.

Although Sydney, 22, is now studying in Boston, Justin lives at home and attends Florida State University where he is excelling at sport.

Most surprising of all, even Nicole Brown's family - who were vehemently opposed to the man they describe as 'evil' getting custody of Nicole's children - admit he has been a good father.

The Browns see the youngsters twice a year for extended breaks and Nicole's sister Denise, 50, says the pair 'have turned into strong, smart, good-looking kids'.

Their former headteacher concurs, describing the pair as among his 'favourite' ex-pupils.

Astonishingly, Simpson recently admitted he had never discussed Nicole's murder with his children.

It is nothing short of a miracle that the pair have emerged as unscathed as they would so far appear.

Why, then, would Simpson risk losing their respect and disrupting their lives again for the sake of a signed football and other items from his sporting heyday?

It is not the first time Simpson has been on the wrong side of the law since the murder trial.

In 2000, he called police claiming he was the victim of domestic abuse, saying his girlfriend Christie Prody had attacked him. The same year, he was arrested - but ultimately cleared - of road rage.

He has also been charged with speeding in his powerboat and pirating cable television signals.

And last month, Arnelle Simpson, 39, his daughter from his first marriage, called the police from her father's home after she got into a brawl with his girlfriend Christie.

Arnelle is said to have knocked her father to the ground, causing him a head injury, during a dispute about Prody's drinking and Simpson's alleged failure to support Arnelle's mother.

It was the second time one of Simpson's daughters had called the police.

Sydney accused her father of being verbally abusive during a row in 2003. Simpson played down the incident and no action was taken.

Whether or not this proves Simpson has become a target for troublemakers, or has simply now been exposed as the violent, law-breaking thug many believe he is, is a moot point.

Ron Goldman's sister Kim, for one, does not care what Simpson goes down for as long as he ends up behind bars.

'This situation in Vegas has nothing to do with the murder of my brother Ron, but I would like to see him go to jail.'

And today, Kim and the rest of the world will be one step closer to seeing that become a reality as jury selection for his trial begins.

We may never know what happened in that Vegas hotel room, or on the steps of his ex-wife's home, but as long as Simpson ends up behind bars, there will be no shortage of people celebrating.

• Additional reporting from Annette Witheridge in New York.

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