A man who was with O.J. Simpson during an armed confrontation over sports memorabilia
in a Las Vegas hotel room told a court the former star athlete told him to bring a gun.
Walter Alexander, testifying against Simpson as part of a
plea deal with prosecutors, said the onetime football star who
was acquitted in 1995 of killing his wife and another man,
raised the issue of bringing weapons during a meeting at the
Palms hotel earlier on Sept. 13, the day of the incident.
"He asked if we could bring some heat in case something
goes wrong," Alexander said on the third day of a Las Vegas
court hearing to determine whether Simpson and two other men
should face trial on 12 criminal charges in what prosecutors
call an armed robbery.
"He (Simpson) said, 'It shouldn't be any problem but in
case there are any problems, can you bring some guns?"
Alexander said.
Simpson, 60, is accused of plotting and leading the armed
robbery of his own memorabilia from a pair of collectors,
Alfred Beardsley and Bruce Fromong, at the Palace Station Hotel
and Casino.
Simpson is charged along with Clarence Stewart and Charles
Erlich with conspiracy, kidnapping, armed robbery and burglary.
All three could face life in prison if convicted.Alexander and Charles Cashmore have pleaded guilty to
lesser charges in exchange for their cooperation. Michael
McClinton, who is accused of waving a gun in the hotel room,
has agreed to plead guilty.
Another man who was with Simpson during the incident,
Thomas Riccio, testified last week that the former star running
back made no mention of guns while helping plan the incident
and was bent on retrieving his own stolen property.
Simpson, who parlayed his fame as an athlete into a career
in Hollywood, was acquitted of the June 12, 1994, murders of
his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman
after the sensational trial that transfixed much of the world.
A civil court jury later found Simpson liable for the
deaths and ordered him to pay $33.5 million in damages to the
victims' families, a judgment that remains largely unpaid.