‘Chase of the century’ over 100 km… The car OJ Simpson rode is up for auction.

The British daily Guardian reported on the 16th (local time) that the vehicle used by former American football player OJ Simpson, who was indicted on charges of murdering his ex-wife but acquitted, when he fled from the police, is scheduled to be auctioned.

Citing collectibles website Collect, the Guardian reported that the current owner of the white Ford Bronco that Simpson rode in during the police chase in June 1994, former Simpson manager Michael Gilbert, and others recently announced their intention to sell the vehicle. .

Simpson’s ex-wife, Nicole Brown, was found murdered on June 12, 1994. Simpson, who was designated as a murder suspect, did not follow the police’s order to appear and disappeared and was arrested on the 19th of the same month.

At the time of his arrest, Simpson was holding a handgun in the backseat of his friend Al Cowlings’ 1994 Ford Bronco, threatening to commit suicide and engaging in a chase with police. This scene was broadcast live on TV and attracted great attention, with about 95 million people watching at the time.

The Ford vehicle used as evidence in the case was left in a garage for 17 years after Simpson was found not guilty, and was then leased to the Alcatraz East Crime Museum in Pigeon Forge, eastern Tennessee, in 2016.

The current owners reported that they received an offer to sell the car for $750,000 (approximately 1.04 billion won) in the past, but declined, and that this time they hope to sell it for at least twice that amount, $1.5 million (approximately 2.08 billion won).

Simpson was indicted on charges of murdering his ex-wife in 1994, but was acquitted after a lengthy trial. The case itself remains unsolved.

Simpson was the most likely suspect, according to evidence obtained by the prosecution, including Simpson’s DNA being detected on the bloody left glove found at the scene of the crime and the murdered ex-wife’s DNA being found on Simpson’s sock.

However, during the trial, Simpson’s defense team countered that the evidence was manipulated by racist police officers and that the police initially did not secure evidence well. In particular, during the trial, Simpson wore leather gloves that the prosecution claimed he used for the crime, but it was revealed that they were too small to fit his entire hand. This had a decisive influence on the jury’s verdict of not guilty.

Born into a poor family in San Francisco in 1947, Simpson played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), leaving behind several records, including becoming the first running back to run for over 2,000 yards in 1973. Although he was acquitted in the murder of his ex-wife, Simpson had a difficult old age, serving nine years in prison for his involvement in armed robbery. He died at the age of 76 on the 10th after a battle with cancer.

Reporter Lee Ji-an [email protected]

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