10.19.26

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Welcome to the reading of the New York Times for Monday,
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October 19th, 2026. As a reminder, Radio Eye is a
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reading service intended for people who are blind or have
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other disabilities that make it difficult to read printed material.
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Your reader for today is Mary Fullington. As always, we'll
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start today's reading with the Merriam-Webster word of the day,
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which is bon vivant. Bon vivant is a noun spelled,
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first word, B-O-N, second word, V-I-V-A-N-T. A bon vivant is
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a sociable person who has refined tastes, especially with respect
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to food and drink. As an example, she has become
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something of a bon vivant since moving to Paris. going
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out most nights and delighting in the city's many restaurants.
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Here's another example from Phoebe Taplin, writing for the Guardian
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of London on September 12, 2026. Quote, the vineyard is
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named for the exiled French aristocrat Charles de Saint-Avramond, a
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symbol of hedonistic Anglo-French cooperation. The Bon Vivant introduced champagne
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to England, and party-loving Charles II made him governor of
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Duck Island in St. James Park. Did you know that
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in French, Bon Vivant literally means good liver? That is,
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one who lives well. English speakers have used Bon Vivant
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since the late 17th century. to refer specifically to those
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who subscribe to a particular kind of good living, one
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that involves lots of social engagements and the enjoyment of
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fancy food and drink. This puts the term very much
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in the company of some other French words. Gourmet, gourmand,
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and gastronome all refer to those who love a fancy meal.
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though gourmand often carries the connotation of a tendency to overindulge.
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The Merriam-Webster word of the day, bon vivant. Now we
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will read the front page headlines from today's print edition
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of the New York Times. A Day After Huge Riots
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in France, Shock and Recrimination After anti-government protests devolved into chaos,
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leaders from across the political spectrum blamed one another for
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the unrest, even as it largely subsided on Sunday. O.J. Simpson,
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a secret informant and a decades-old mystery. An extremely reliable
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informant told authorities about the missing murder weapon, according to
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newly unsealed records. The informant's brother told the Times his
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sibling was at the crime scene. Zelensky says Trump risks
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historic mistake if he backs Russia. President Volodymyr Zelensky of
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Ukraine pressed Sunday for more information on possible restrictions to Starshield,
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a U.S.-provided satellite internet service used by the Ukrainian military.
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why one of the world's greatest mathematicians is on a, quote,
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war footing. The field's medalist, Terence Tao, is on the
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front lines of a debate about artificial intelligence and the
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future of his field. First article, a day after huge
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riots in France, shock and recrimination. After anti-government protests devolved
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into chaos, leaders from across the political spectrum blamed one
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another for the unrest, even as it largely subsided on Sunday.
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By Catherine Porter and Ségolène Lestradic, reporting from Paris. A
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day after some of France's worst riots in decades, President
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Emmanuel Macron vowed on Sunday to address some of the
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protesters' demands, but offered few specifics. as the violence gave
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way to a furious political debate over who was to blame. Mr.
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Macron said in an evening broadcast interview that he would
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seek to lower gas prices, a key complaint from some
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protesters during a diplomatic trip to the Persian Gulf this week.
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But he offered no concrete concessions and appealed for, quote, order, calm,
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not an escalation. criticizing calls to, quote, take to the
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streets to protest, to create disorder. He also warned that, quote,
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those who looted will have to pay back, and those
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who sought to bring down the republic will be held accountable.
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On Sunday, the violence and protests had largely subsided, apart
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from sporadic skirmishes and looting involving small numbers of rioters
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in Paris. as the unrest gave way to political finger-pointing.
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Politicians from the far left to the far right criticized
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the government for a police response deemed too weak or ill-prepared,
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with some calling for the Interior Minister, Lauren Nunez, to resign. Mr.
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Nunez told journalists on Saturday that the police had not
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been understaffed, but that it was hard to contain rioters.
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when they're scattered in small groups. Saturday's unrest, which led
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to nearly 2,400 arrests, caused widespread damage to several symbols
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of the state. Among them was a 19th century city hall,
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largely destroyed by fire in Limoges, a town in central
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France renowned for its porcelain. Nearly 1,000 police officers were
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injured France's Interior Ministry said on Sunday, including seven suffering
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from serious injuries. Rioters also attacked city halls from Lille
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in northern France to Marseille in the south, where they
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broke into the local government headquarters and tipped over a
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bust of Marianne, a symbol of the French Republic. A
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fire destroyed a tourist office in Lyon. and 1,500 shops
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were damaged or looted nationwide, according to Alexander Bompard, head
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of the French Federation of Commerce and Distribution, who estimated
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that the cost of repairs could run into hundreds of
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millions of dollars. Quote, I've never seen this before. I
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am disgusted, said Sophie Van Popperange, 47, as she gazed
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at ransacked shops on Boulevard Magenta, the road in Paris
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where she has lived for 22 years and which is
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frequently used for demonstrations. More than half a million demonstrators
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marched on Saturday to protest the rising cost of living
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and poor conditions in schools, among other grievances. Many were
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stunned on Sunday at how rioters had used those demonstrations
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as a smokescreen for vandalism. Estelle Grandidier, a nonprofit worker
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who had marched in Paris, said she was shocked to
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see scenes reminiscent of those she has observed in crisis
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zones overseas. But Ms. Grandidier said that a clear distinction
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should be made between the rioters and the protesters who
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came onto the streets to present their demands in a
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completely peaceful manner. Government officials and far-right leaders accused the
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far-left of stirring up the unrest, and left-wing leaders blamed
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the government for budget decisions and heavy-handed policing that they
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said had spurred public anger. Prime Minister Sébastien Le Cornu
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placed the blame for the chaos squarely on a far-left party,
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France Unbowed. The leader of that party, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who
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stands a chance of beating centrists to the runoff in
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next year's presidential election to succeed President Emmanuel Macron. Mr.
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Le Cornu accused France, unbowed, of sowing distrust about the
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police among student protesters all week. He also said that
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the earliest rioters had started attacking riot police and government
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buildings before official protests were set to begin. and were
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members of the ultra-left. Quote, behind all this, there is
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obviously a political battle to wage, Mr. LaCourneau said, adding
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that the country was at, quote, the point of no return.
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It's also time to choose sides, he said. Either you
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are in the camp of the republic, and therefore of
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law enforcement, and of those who protect people and property
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and enforce the laws, or you are on the side
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of the rioters. In response, Mr. Mélenchon blamed the government.
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He said on social media that Mr. LeCourneau was, quote,
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responsible for the chaos due to incompetence or a worst-case
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strategy to create a party of order that would make
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people forget his failure in public finances. Mr. Le Cornu
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did not respond to that accusation, but had earlier urged Mr.
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Mélenchon to call out the perpetrators of looting and violence. Mr.
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Mélenchon had offered a qualified condemnation of the violence, stating that, quote,
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those who share our fight have no place in looting,
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in pillaging. Regardless of the, quote, responsibilities of those in power,
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He said on Saturday night, the left must refuse to
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take part in actions without political meaning and contrary to
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our methods. Marie Le Pen, a far-right leader who leads
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the polls for next year's presidential election, said that, quote,
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legitimate social demands had been hijacked by the far left
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and the rhetoric of Jean-Luc Mélenchon and his colleagues, whom
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she accused of fostering chaos. by legitimizing violence. Protest organizers
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had hoped that the demonstrations on Saturday would lead to
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a convergence between the student demonstrations demanding better school conditions
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that have roiled France since September and a broader social
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movement addressing a wider array of concerns, including the rising
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cost of living. What emerged on Saturday as more than
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half a million people protested nationwide seemed like a split-screen event. Students, farmers, teachers,
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and trade unionists often marched peacefully through one part of
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a city, while groups of black-clad agitators sparred with police
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and caused damage in other areas. Then, as things unraveled,
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opportunist rioters joined in, exploiting the chaos, government officials said. Quote,
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It's sad. People got angry, said Laurie Monlubu, 50, as
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she gazed at the aftermath in Paris near Place de Republic,
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where dozens of shops were looted and cars were burned
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on Saturday. But she, too, emphasized that the anger of
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those who looted was, quote, not to be mixed up
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with that of people peacefully walking in the streets. In Paris,
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the police said they were confronted first by, quote, wildcat
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marches and violent groups of 500 to 1,000 people. The
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situation changed in the late afternoon, the Paris police prefecture
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said in a statement on Sunday morning with, quote, the
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mass arrival of individuals whose sole objective was to commit
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theft and looting, taking advantage of the disorder to act.
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Soren Moraru, 48, the owner of a cleaning company, was
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working on Sunday to restore a bank agency that had
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been attacked in Paris. He said the vandalism was unacceptable.
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The damage, he estimated, would take days for his team
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of six to clean up. The looters, quote, should be
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caught and punished. They should pay, Mr. Moraru said. Quote,
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one can demonstrate, one can express oneself. but not destroy,
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he added. Though the scale of the protests on Saturday
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led some union leaders to consider it a success, the
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movement faced an uncertain future on Sunday as French society
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processed the violence and looting that accompanied the demonstrations. With
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French schools starting a two-week half-term holiday, the high school
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movement is expected to lose steam. though some labor unions,
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including the CGT, one of France's largest, have called for
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another day of mass demonstrations on November 5. Quote, It
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feels like society is spinning out of control, said Henri Parent, 56,
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a tourist from Belgium who was surveying broken storefronts in
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central Paris on Sunday morning. Next article. O.J. Simpson, a
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secret informant and a decades-old mystery. An extremely reliable informant
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told authorities about the missing murder weapon, according to newly
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unsealed records. The informant's brother told the Times his sibling
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was at the crime scene. By Mike Baker and Tim Arango.
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The reporters knocked on the doors of former mobsters in California,
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combed through a dusty storage unit in Florida, and persuaded
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a federal judge to unseal 30-year-old records in New York. O.J.
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Simpson entered a Miami hotel suite in June 2006 and
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sank into a chair. His eyes scanned the room as
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if looking for a way out. his fingers wrapped on
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the armrest. The former NFL superstar, television pitchman, movie star,
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and one-time murder suspect had agreed to this meeting with
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his ghostwriter. Mr. Simpson planned to publish a confession, or
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at least a hypothetical confession. to the murder of his
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ex-wife and her friend. But he seemed to be having
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second thoughts. He leaned in and scooped up a handful
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of nuts. He reached for a water bottle. The ghostwriter
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turned on his audio recorder, signaling the start of a conversation. Mr.
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Simpson paused for a moment, the room draped in silence. Quote,
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You know I couldn't have done this alone. he began.
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In the story Mr. Simpson told that day, later published
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in the book If I Did It, he described a
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version of the 1994 murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and
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Ronald Goldman in which Mr. Simpson had help from a
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friend who got rid of the murder weapon and Mr.
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Simpson's bloody clothes. Prosecutors who had failed to convict Mr.
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Simpson of murder have given little credence to the notion
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of an accomplice. The police, too. Many people considered the
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details of Mr. Simpson's hypothetical confession a fantasy, part of
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a desperate effort to cash in on his waning fame
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and notoriety amid growing money struggles and scrapes with the law.
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But today, more than 30 years after the trial of
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the century... Newly uncovered evidence suggests that Mr. Simpson's account
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should not have been so readily dismissed. A New York
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Times examination based on recently unsealed court files, interviews, and
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other evidence details long-hidden information about the missing murder weapon. Mr.
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Simpson's supposed efforts to cover up the crime, as well
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as the possibility of an accomplice, Together, the findings challenge
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the popular narrative around a case that has been dissected
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in countless books, podcasts, and documentaries. And they stir doubts
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about law enforcement's decision not to do more to pursue
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a promising lead. A decades-old document filed in an unrelated,
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obscure criminal case in New York, recently unsealed at the
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request of the Times, outlines the account of a prized
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informant who came forward with tantalizing information while Mr. Simpson's
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1995 murder trial was proceeding. The informant, a man considered
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extremely reliable by a veteran federal prosecutor and praised heartily
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by a longtime federal judge, was an associate of Mr.
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Simpson and a close friend of Mr. Simpson's confidant, Al Cowlings, Cowlings.
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As part of his sweeping cooperation deal with law enforcement,
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the informant shared information about the supposed location of the
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murder weapon and the efforts to dispose of it. The
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document outlines the broad nature of what the informant offered prosecutors,
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but does not specify what he said or to what
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degree he implicated himself or others. His account was forwarded
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to Los Angeles prosecutors late in Mr. Simpson's murder trial.
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So late that prosecutors had already presented their version of
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events to the jury and rested their case, but had
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yet to offer closing arguments. The documents in the newspaper...
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York case were ordered 30 years ago to be kept secret.
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They have remained so until now. The informant's role in
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the case may go even deeper. Earlier this year, the
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informant's brother told the Times that that the siblings were
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in Los Angeles on the night of the murders, and
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he saw the informant with his hands apparently covered in
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blood after going out to help Mr. Simpson. None of
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the new evidence uncovered by the Times definitively untangles the mystery.
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No one has come forward with new forensic evidence. Even
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the informant's brother has since sought to disavow the explosive
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statements he made to the Times. Taken together, the material
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points in different directions, but veers significantly from the official
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account that has been proffered by the police and prosecutors.
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The double murder prosecution of Mr. Simpson, who was acquitted
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by a jury, remains one of the most scrutinized cases
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in popular culture, spanning endless theories, spawning endless theories. With
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many of the key players now dead, it's possible the
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full truth will never be known. Still, the notion that
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an accomplice participated in the murders has drawn the notice
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of Los Angeles police cold case investigators, who, as recently
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as last winter, were quietly making calls about potential leads. Quote,
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the O.J. Simpson case remains an open and ongoing investigation.
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a spokesman for the LAPD said. Because there was no
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conviction in the murders, quote, the department has an obligation
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to continue to pursue justice in this matter. The spokesman added, quote,
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at a point that new evidence is found, detectives will
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follow those investigatory leads. As part of a reexamination of
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the Simpson case, the Times has unearthed tales of secret audiotapes,
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mafia links, a prison escape, and back-channel communications between state
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and federal prosecutors. The reporting also came across a dramatic
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account from the rapper Fat Joe that bolsters the informant's
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supposed role in the case. Much of the new information
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centers on the informant, a dead drug runner named Joseph Ippolito,
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known as Joey. He was a mafia associate, a serial felon,
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a prison escapee, and a friend of Mr. Simpson. The
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story of the New Jersey native's high-flying life and his
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link to the Simpson case, were they not buttressed by
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police reports, court files, and interviews, might seem too fantastical
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to be true. A mobster escapes prison. Mr. Ippolito was
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raised in the mob underworld of New Jersey, where his
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father was part of the DeCavalcanti crime family. As a
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young man, he went on to receive acclaim in Florida
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as a professional cigarette boat racer. He built a network
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of high-profile and well-heeled friends, such as the actor James Caan,
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and he built a reputation as a guy who embraced
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danger and took risks. Those risks included running drugs up
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the East Coast. He was eventually caught in 1981 in
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a drug bust so large that it appeared on the
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front page of the Times. He served three years in
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prison for helping traffic 20 tons of marijuana from Columbia
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to Long Island. In the late 1980s, fresh from prison, Mr.
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Ippolito moved to Los Angeles to start a new life.
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He began managing an Italian restaurant, PCH Bar and Grill,
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which occupied a prime location near the Santa Monica beachfront.
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It offered sunset views across the Pacific Coast Highway, luring
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some of the city's rich and famous. Among the people
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he hung out with, Al Cowlings, a former football star
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00:24:31.670 --> 00:24:38.220
turned fledgling Hollywood actor. Mr. Cowlings was also best friends
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with Mr. Simpson. They had been teammates in high school, college,
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and the NFL. Mr. Cowlings and Mr. Ippolito became fast friends.
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They went on hikes and took walks along the beach.
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They were so close, Mr. Cowlings later credited Mr. Ippolito
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for helping him kick his cocaine habit. Quote, my situation
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00:25:04.430 --> 00:25:08.180
was getting so dismal. that I know that if it
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were not for Joe, I probably would have died, Mr.
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Cowlings wrote in a letter to a judge while requesting
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leniency for Mr. Ippolito. But while he helped Mr. Cowlings
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avoid cocaine, Mr. Ippolito was funneling it to others. Authorities
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00:25:29.349 --> 00:25:32.349
found that Mr. Ippolito was trading on his proximity to
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Hollywood's power brokers to move drugs. A major federal sting
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00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:43.200
involving secret recordings and an undercover mob informant led to
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00:25:43.240 --> 00:25:48.200
his arrest in Los Angeles in 1992. A jury found
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him guilty the following year. Family and friends rushed to
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support Mr. Ippolito, lobbying the judge and attesting to his character.
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One friend, Julie Mijares, offered to house Mr. Ippolito in
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00:26:03.829 --> 00:26:07.470
Los Angeles on if he were released on bail. Quote,
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I love Joe like a brother, wrote Ms. Mejarez, who
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met him more than a decade earlier in Florida. A
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00:26:16.549 --> 00:26:21.630
stylist to stars such as the pop group TLC, Ms.
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00:26:21.710 --> 00:26:25.930
Mejarez managed two retail shops of the Hollywood boutique Fred
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00:26:25.990 --> 00:26:30.519
Siegel in the 1990s. She was a regular at Mr.
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00:26:30.619 --> 00:26:38.529
Ippolito's restaurant. Mr. Ippolito's brother, Sam, one of nine siblings
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in the Ippolito family, told the court that his brother
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had kept the family together after the father died and
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served as the family's figurehead. Quote, Joseph has worked hard
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00:26:52.589 --> 00:26:55.210
his whole life, not for himself, but for his family,
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00:26:55.829 --> 00:27:00.579
and would not do anything to hurt them. Sam wrote, Mr.
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00:27:00.640 --> 00:27:04.480
Ippolito said, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and
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sent to a minimum security facility in Florida. But prison
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00:27:10.359 --> 00:27:15.910
couldn't slow him. In May 1994, eight months after his sentencing,
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00:27:16.789 --> 00:27:20.390
he escaped by leaving a work duty before the 4 p.m. count.
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He stepped into a car he had called and got
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a ride to Panama City, Florida. His lawyer would later
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00:27:28.380 --> 00:27:31.960
say in court it was the only known prison escape
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00:27:32.019 --> 00:27:36.819
by way of private limousine. His brother, Sam, said in
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00:27:36.859 --> 00:27:39.339
an interview this year that he picked up Mr. Ippolito
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00:27:39.400 --> 00:27:43.660
in Florida, began driving westward, and eventually reached Los Angeles.
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He said they stayed in an apartment that belonged to Ms. Mejarez,
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a stylist friend who had previously offered Joey refuge amid
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00:27:52.009 --> 00:27:58.740
his legal troubles. Records show... that she once had an
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00:27:58.799 --> 00:28:03.960
address in West Hollywood in a four-star complex on Doheny Drive,
333
00:28:04.519 --> 00:28:12.049
just off Sunset Boulevard. Then one night, June 12th, 1994,
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Sam Ippolito recalled that his brother left the apartment. He
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said he needed to help a friend. A double murder
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in Los Angeles. The authorities contended that on that night, Mr.
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00:28:27.089 --> 00:28:31.230
Simpson drove to his ex-wife's condo. The former couple, who
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00:28:31.269 --> 00:28:35.400
shared two children, had a volatile relationship, and he had
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a history of domestic violence. Prosecutors said he stabbed her
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00:28:41.259 --> 00:28:47.039
to death outside the home and fatally slashed Mr. Goldman nearby.
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At the crime scene, investigators found Mr. Simpson's blood. along
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00:28:52.700 --> 00:28:56.400
with footprints that matched both the style and size of
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his rare Bruno Magli shoes. They also found a single
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00:29:01.200 --> 00:29:06.009
leather glove that matched the type Ms. Brown Simpson had
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00:29:06.160 --> 00:29:12.289
once purchased for Mr. Simpson. Investigators also recovered a cap
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00:29:13.049 --> 00:29:17.650
that contained hair consistent with Mr. Simpson's hairs and another
347
00:29:17.710 --> 00:29:22.640
hair on Mr. Goldman's shirt. also consistent with Mr. Simpson.
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00:29:24.200 --> 00:29:28.480
Another glove was found at Mr. Simpson's home with blood
349
00:29:28.539 --> 00:29:33.589
from both victims. Mr. Simpson had a cut on his hand.
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00:29:35.390 --> 00:29:39.589
The mountain of evidence against Mr. Simpson appeared clear-cut. The
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00:29:39.630 --> 00:29:45.410
trial would be anything but. When the authorities issued an
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arrest warrant for him five days after the killings, Mr.
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00:29:49.349 --> 00:29:54.470
Simpson fled. The nation was transfixed as a white Ford
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00:29:54.549 --> 00:29:58.799
Bronco driven by Mr. Cowlings, with Mr. Simpson in the
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00:29:58.839 --> 00:30:03.759
back seat. led the police on a slow-speed chase through
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00:30:03.799 --> 00:30:09.490
the Los Angeles metro area. Mr. Simpson eventually surrendered after
357
00:30:09.589 --> 00:30:15.869
returning to his home. The chase not only captivated the country,
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00:30:16.049 --> 00:30:18.950
it also drew the attention of authorities who were trying
359
00:30:18.990 --> 00:30:24.720
to track down Mr. Ippolito. U.S. Marshals knew Mr. Ippolito
360
00:30:24.819 --> 00:30:28.720
and Mr. Cowlings were friends, and the authorities knew the
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00:30:28.759 --> 00:30:33.539
men were in close contact. When Mr. Cowlings was briefly
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00:30:33.700 --> 00:30:38.259
detained after the Bronco chase, the police found in his
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00:30:38.319 --> 00:30:41.349
wallet the phone number to a mess hall where Mr.
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00:30:41.420 --> 00:30:46.670
Ippolito worked while he was incarcerated, said John Cuff, one
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of the marshals tasked with finding Mr. Ippolito. In the Bronco,
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00:30:52.049 --> 00:30:55.890
detectives also found photos of one of Mr. Ippolito's girlfriends.
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along with her phone number. The hunt for Mr. Ippolito
368
00:31:02.410 --> 00:31:07.210
grew more urgent, and the authorities began looking coast to coast.
369
00:31:07.890 --> 00:31:14.630
Their pursuit persisted for months. They conducted stakeouts and developed sources,
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00:31:15.450 --> 00:31:19.269
at times believing they were on his tracks, only for Mr.
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00:31:19.329 --> 00:31:25.019
Ippolito to slip through their fingers. Then, As Mr. Cuff
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00:31:25.279 --> 00:31:30.220
assessed a network of pager activity, he identified one likely
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00:31:30.279 --> 00:31:34.930
belonging to Mr. Ippolito. Marshals made plans to apprehend him
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00:31:35.009 --> 00:31:37.109
when he went to get the pager serviced at a
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00:31:37.190 --> 00:31:40.509
store in New York's Little Italy. They staked out the
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00:31:40.549 --> 00:31:42.730
store for days until they saw a man who looked
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00:31:42.750 --> 00:31:47.029
like Joey. Instead of a balding head, however, the man
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00:31:47.089 --> 00:31:54.759
had flowing hair. Still, they closed in. Joke. Mr. Cuff
379
00:31:54.779 --> 00:32:00.619
said to the man. What do you mean? Who? The
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00:32:00.660 --> 00:32:06.599
man replied. What's this? Mr. Cuff said, snatching at the
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00:32:06.640 --> 00:32:11.349
man's hair and pulling off Mr. Ippolito's toupee. The escapee
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00:32:11.410 --> 00:32:16.769
simply smiled, Mr. Cuff recalled, as he was brought back
383
00:32:16.829 --> 00:32:25.779
into custody. The Snitch of the Century Mr. Ippolito knew
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00:32:25.839 --> 00:32:28.420
trouble and how to get out of it, but options
385
00:32:28.460 --> 00:32:31.960
were limited for the repeat felon and recent prison escapee.
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00:32:32.700 --> 00:32:36.460
While Mr. Ippolito settled back behind bars in custody in
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00:32:36.519 --> 00:32:41.099
New York, Mr. Simpson was on trial for murder, the
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00:32:41.140 --> 00:32:46.750
proceedings playing out on television before a global audience. Each
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00:32:46.809 --> 00:32:50.890
man was fighting for his freedom, but Mr. Ippolito didn't
390
00:32:51.049 --> 00:32:54.980
want to go to trial or back to prison. So
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00:32:55.180 --> 00:33:01.799
he turned snitch. Drawing on his connections as a coast-to-coast
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00:33:01.819 --> 00:33:05.220
drug trafficker, he quickly worked from behind bars to help
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00:33:05.339 --> 00:33:10.859
undercover agents buy narcotics from high-priority targets. Records show he
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00:33:10.900 --> 00:33:14.519
began to provide key information that helped federal agents piece
395
00:33:14.539 --> 00:33:19.500
together the racketeering activities of major mafia figures. Law enforcement
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00:33:19.539 --> 00:33:22.859
officials said that Mr. Ippolito put himself, quote, at great
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00:33:22.940 --> 00:33:29.369
risk to help them. His extraordinary assistance was later outlined
398
00:33:29.470 --> 00:33:33.269
in a sealed 5K letter, a legal document filed by
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00:33:33.309 --> 00:33:38.410
federal prosecutors to reward a defendant's service. The letter, filed
400
00:33:38.470 --> 00:33:44.650
in court in December 1996, detailed Mr. Ippolito's cooperation almost
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00:33:44.690 --> 00:33:51.049
immediately after his arrest in August 1995. Quote, from the outset,
402
00:33:51.190 --> 00:33:55.869
Ippolito was completely forthright in our debriefings. during which we
403
00:33:55.910 --> 00:33:59.329
found Ippolito to be a remarkable source of information. The
404
00:33:59.369 --> 00:34:04.549
letter reads, quote, this information has proven valuable as both
405
00:34:04.650 --> 00:34:09.769
investigative leads and to buttress several cases under indictment and
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00:34:09.829 --> 00:34:13.539
is likely to result in significant prosecutions at which Ippolito,
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00:34:13.659 --> 00:34:18.039
if called, should prove to be a valuable witness. The
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00:34:18.059 --> 00:34:25.719
first example cited, the O.J. Simpson case, While trafficking drugs
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00:34:25.800 --> 00:34:30.639
in California, the letter stated, Ippolito became close to several
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00:34:30.699 --> 00:34:35.500
individuals at the center of the Simpson-Goldman murder case. Through
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00:34:35.539 --> 00:34:41.219
his close personal relationships with Al Cowlings, Simpson's confidant, and
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00:34:41.380 --> 00:34:45.429
others involved in the cases, including OJ and Nicole Simpson,
413
00:34:46.219 --> 00:34:49.769
Ippolito had become privy to many facts relevant to the case,
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00:34:50.590 --> 00:34:58.070
including Simpson's alleged domestic violence. the Simpsons' narcotics usage, Simpsons'
415
00:34:58.170 --> 00:35:06.099
attempted flight from justice, and his disposal of the murder weapon. Mr.
416
00:35:06.159 --> 00:35:10.219
Ippolito's claims may have seemed outlandish, the type of storytelling
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00:35:10.679 --> 00:35:16.510
that spouts from inmates desperate for leniency, except Mr. Ippolito
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00:35:16.550 --> 00:35:20.769
had been a, quote, tremendous resource to authorities while the
419
00:35:20.789 --> 00:35:26.719
Simpson case was playing out in California. Federal prosecutors in
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00:35:26.739 --> 00:35:30.679
New York began quietly sharing information to local prosecutors in
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00:35:30.719 --> 00:35:35.579
Los Angeles. Mr. Ippolito made himself available to the authorities,
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00:35:35.659 --> 00:35:39.110
and his information was provided to prosecutors, quote, during the
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murder trial, which was at that time important to their case,
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00:35:44.809 --> 00:35:50.030
particularly Simpson's flight and his remark to Cowlings concerning a
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00:35:50.260 --> 00:35:58.670
murder weapon, the cooperation letter stated. While Ippolito ultimately was
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00:35:58.769 --> 00:36:01.909
not called as a witness, he was arrested and began
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00:36:01.969 --> 00:36:05.690
to cooperate as that trial drew to a close. My
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00:36:05.750 --> 00:36:10.289
conversations with the Los Angeles authorities indicate that Ippolito's information was,
429
00:36:10.429 --> 00:36:14.659
at the very least, very helpful to their case. The letter,
430
00:36:14.739 --> 00:36:21.239
written by then-Federal Prosecutor David Kelly, said, Reached recently, Mr.
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00:36:21.280 --> 00:36:24.519
Kelly said that he remembered Mr. Ippolito speaking about a knife.
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00:36:25.139 --> 00:36:29.829
concealed around Mr. Simpson's property, and that Mr. Ippolito had
433
00:36:29.889 --> 00:36:33.590
learned of the information from a close associate of Mr. Simpson.
434
00:36:35.510 --> 00:36:39.110
He declined to name the person, though the cooperation letter
435
00:36:39.150 --> 00:36:45.500
he wrote years earlier suggested Mr. Cowling's was the conduit. Mr.
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00:36:45.539 --> 00:36:48.340
Kelly added that he did not believe Mr. Ippolito was
437
00:36:48.420 --> 00:36:53.659
involved in the killings. Mr. Cowlings did not respond to
438
00:36:53.719 --> 00:36:58.480
text messages, phone calls, or a letter sent to his home. Mr.
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00:36:58.519 --> 00:37:00.960
Kelly said in an interview that he recalled having a
440
00:37:01.019 --> 00:37:04.860
series of conversations with the prosecution team in Los Angeles,
441
00:37:05.500 --> 00:37:10.460
including the lead prosecutors Marsha Clark and Christopher Darden. Mr.
442
00:37:10.500 --> 00:37:16.039
Darden declined to comment. Ms. Clark, in a recent message,
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00:37:16.820 --> 00:37:20.860
said she had no knowledge of Mr. Ippolito. Quote, She said,
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00:37:20.880 --> 00:37:23.239
But others said there was significant back and forth between
445
00:37:23.260 --> 00:37:46.800
the agencies. One Los Angeles law enforcement official who was
446
00:37:46.860 --> 00:37:49.969
involved in the prosecution recalled receiving a call in the
447
00:37:50.030 --> 00:37:53.730
summer of 1995, in the middle of the murder trial,
448
00:37:54.510 --> 00:37:57.730
from a federal official in New York who said that Mr.
449
00:37:57.769 --> 00:38:00.929
Ippolito had information about the case and was willing to talk.
450
00:38:02.489 --> 00:38:05.670
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due
451
00:38:05.690 --> 00:38:09.739
to the sensitivity around the case, recalled that Mr. Ippolito
452
00:38:09.800 --> 00:38:13.400
was later reluctant about, quote, being the snitch of the
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00:38:13.460 --> 00:38:19.320
century in the trial of the century. With the prosecution
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00:38:19.360 --> 00:38:24.280
of Mr. Simpson underway and the LAPD and the district
455
00:38:24.320 --> 00:38:28.840
attorney's office being inundated with tips, the official in Los
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00:38:28.940 --> 00:38:34.199
Angeles said they didn't press the matter. Mr. Kelly, the
457
00:38:34.260 --> 00:38:39.030
former federal prosecutor, said he did not recall Mr. Ippolito
458
00:38:39.090 --> 00:38:43.469
being unwilling to help local authorities and that any such
459
00:38:43.550 --> 00:38:49.449
reluctance would have violated his cooperation agreement. Mr. Ippolito was
460
00:38:49.530 --> 00:38:54.179
on the radar of LAPD investigators and prosecutors well before
461
00:38:54.260 --> 00:38:58.340
the murder trial, according to case files reviewed by the Times.
462
00:39:01.579 --> 00:39:10.449
Police detectives. With Mr. Darden, the prosecutor, present, interviewed Marcus Allen,
463
00:39:10.630 --> 00:39:14.480
an NFL star and friend of Mr. Simpson, on September 22, 1994,
464
00:39:14.480 --> 00:39:20.519
in Kansas City, according to investigative files. The interview took
465
00:39:20.559 --> 00:39:24.650
place months after the killings and while Mr. Ippolito was
466
00:39:24.769 --> 00:39:29.710
on the lam. In the interview, investigators asked Mr. Allen
467
00:39:30.260 --> 00:39:34.280
whether he knew about Mr. Simpson's friends and associates, including Joey.
468
00:39:35.500 --> 00:39:39.590
The report noted that Mr. Allen said he, quote, did
469
00:39:39.670 --> 00:39:45.329
not know a Mr. Joey Ippolito, an apparent misspelling of Mr.
470
00:39:45.610 --> 00:39:52.590
Ippolito's name. Around this time, Mr. Simpson's defense lawyers also
471
00:39:52.670 --> 00:39:56.289
took interest in the drug runner with mafia ties. The
472
00:39:56.329 --> 00:39:59.820
group investigated whether Mr. Ippolito was linked to the murders
473
00:40:00.760 --> 00:40:04.300
and at one point mulled whether he could be considered
474
00:40:04.340 --> 00:40:08.659
a suspect, according to Patrick J. McKenna, a private investigator
475
00:40:08.699 --> 00:40:13.690
from Florida who worked for the defense team. Mr. McKenna said,
476
00:40:14.110 --> 00:40:17.820
said the team had another investigator, Jack McNally, a former
477
00:40:17.860 --> 00:40:21.500
New York Police Department detective with contacts in the city's underworld,
478
00:40:22.059 --> 00:40:27.030
pursue this angle. Mr. McKenna recalled that Mr. McNally spoke
479
00:40:27.070 --> 00:40:30.590
to contacts in, quote, the highest of the five families
480
00:40:31.409 --> 00:40:35.489
in New York and reported back to the defense team, saying, quote,
481
00:40:35.670 --> 00:40:40.000
I don't think he's got any involvement. Mr. McNally died
482
00:40:40.099 --> 00:40:47.280
in 2023. Mr. Ippolito was never called by the defense
483
00:40:47.360 --> 00:40:50.550
or the prosecution to testify as a witness in the
484
00:40:50.570 --> 00:40:54.769
murder case. One of the complicating factors, as suggested in
485
00:40:54.829 --> 00:41:01.880
his cooperation letter, centered on timing. At the time of Mr.
486
00:41:02.219 --> 00:41:07.400
Ippolito's arrest in August 1995, the trial against Mr. Simpson
487
00:41:07.440 --> 00:41:11.719
had been underway for eight months. The prosecution had already
488
00:41:11.800 --> 00:41:18.809
rested its case. Closing arguments were approaching. A jury acquitted Mr.
489
00:41:18.849 --> 00:41:23.809
Simpson in October 1995. The prosecution was marred by the
490
00:41:23.829 --> 00:41:27.989
police department's history of racism and questions about the handling
491
00:41:28.030 --> 00:41:31.969
of key evidence. A jury in a civil case later
492
00:41:32.030 --> 00:41:37.449
held Mr. Simpson liable for the deaths. At the time
493
00:41:37.530 --> 00:41:42.610
of Mr. Ippolito's own sentencing in late 1996, Federal prosecutors
494
00:41:42.789 --> 00:41:46.050
and a district judge heaped praise on him for his cooperation.
495
00:41:47.409 --> 00:41:52.309
In addition to having him inform on mob associates, federal
496
00:41:52.349 --> 00:41:55.389
law enforcement placed him in a federal detention center in
497
00:41:55.440 --> 00:42:02.239
Brooklyn to spy on high-profile inmates, most notably suspects detained
498
00:42:02.320 --> 00:42:05.239
for their alleged roles in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
499
00:42:08.519 --> 00:42:11.539
according to two people who were close to Mr. Ippolito.
500
00:42:14.679 --> 00:42:19.760
In a 1996 hearing closed to the public, Judge Kimba M.
501
00:42:19.980 --> 00:42:23.500
Wood said the government wrote on Mr. Ippolito's behalf, quote,
502
00:42:23.639 --> 00:42:27.059
one of the strongest letters I have ever received, possibly
503
00:42:27.119 --> 00:42:31.699
the strongest. Judge Wood said she was inclined to do
504
00:42:31.739 --> 00:42:34.199
whatever she could to make sure he received the credit
505
00:42:34.239 --> 00:42:38.159
he deserves for his cooperation. according to a transcript of
506
00:42:38.179 --> 00:42:42.820
the hearing. She issued the most lenient sentence she could
507
00:42:42.900 --> 00:42:47.559
under law. For his prison escape, Mr. Ippolito was sentenced
508
00:42:47.659 --> 00:42:51.800
to time served. The government also agreed not to prosecute
509
00:42:51.840 --> 00:42:55.559
him for distributing drugs in California for the five years
510
00:42:55.719 --> 00:43:00.199
up until his arrest. Records indicate that Mr. Ippolito was
511
00:43:00.280 --> 00:43:06.769
released from custody in 1998. He died in 2006. His
512
00:43:06.849 --> 00:43:12.989
obituary vastly understated his colorful life, describing him as, quote,
513
00:43:13.610 --> 00:43:20.110
a self-employed restaurateur in the Florida area. The new information
514
00:43:20.179 --> 00:43:24.579
collected by the Times suggests that Mr. Ippolito's role may
515
00:43:24.619 --> 00:43:30.519
have extended beyond what he told authorities. Mr. Ippolito's brother, Sam,
516
00:43:31.639 --> 00:43:36.210
said Joey was at the scene of the killings. Sam
517
00:43:36.269 --> 00:43:38.869
Ippolito said that on the evening of the murders, Joey
518
00:43:38.929 --> 00:43:43.610
left the apartment around 6 p.m. Hours later, around midnight,
519
00:43:43.929 --> 00:43:47.340
his brother returned to their apartment carrying a bag with
520
00:43:47.380 --> 00:43:50.219
a heavy object inside, and he appeared to have blood
521
00:43:50.280 --> 00:43:57.260
on his hands. Sam Ippolito said, Next, Joey undressed and
522
00:43:57.340 --> 00:44:00.920
stuffed his own clothes in the bag. He then asked
523
00:44:01.000 --> 00:44:05.130
Sam to get rid of it while he showered. Sam
524
00:44:05.230 --> 00:44:08.969
also said he saw Joey call Mr. Cowlings from the
525
00:44:09.030 --> 00:44:14.230
apartment and heard his brother say that he had just been, quote,
526
00:44:14.630 --> 00:44:21.510
helping Mr. Simpson. Sam Ippolito told the Times he didn't
527
00:44:21.610 --> 00:44:26.849
ask questions. He went outside and found a dumpster along
528
00:44:26.909 --> 00:44:31.610
Doheny Drive near a construction site. He tossed the bag in.
529
00:44:33.369 --> 00:44:36.050
Soon after, Sam said, he and his brother left Los
530
00:44:36.170 --> 00:44:39.489
Angeles and headed back to the East Coast. Sam brought
531
00:44:39.530 --> 00:44:43.670
up Mr. Sinsom during the brothers' trip. Sam said Joey
532
00:44:43.730 --> 00:44:47.550
refused to answer specific questions about what had transpired except
533
00:44:47.590 --> 00:44:50.519
to say that he, quote, went to go help OJ
534
00:44:50.900 --> 00:44:56.639
that night. An attorney for Ms. Meharis released a statement
535
00:44:56.719 --> 00:45:00.920
denying Sam Ippolito's claim about Joey's bloody appearance at her apartment,
536
00:45:01.039 --> 00:45:04.949
calling it absurd, quote, She has known Joey since she
537
00:45:04.989 --> 00:45:08.530
was a teenager, the statement read. She cannot be expected
538
00:45:08.570 --> 00:45:11.489
to remember every time they were together, especially events from
539
00:45:11.489 --> 00:45:18.139
30 years ago. Ms. Maharas did not address questions about
540
00:45:18.159 --> 00:45:23.639
whether the Ippolitos stayed at her home in June 1994.
541
00:45:24.139 --> 00:45:27.320
Sam Ippolito said in an interview that he was 100%
542
00:45:27.320 --> 00:45:31.980
sure that Joey was with Mr. Simpson at the scene
543
00:45:32.019 --> 00:45:34.989
of the murders. He said he should have disclosed this
544
00:45:35.070 --> 00:45:46.559
information long ago. But revealing secrets can have consequences. In 1997,
545
00:45:46.559 --> 00:45:49.840
two years after Joey became a federal informant, a mafia
546
00:45:49.880 --> 00:45:53.860
gunman shot Sam repeatedly and ran him over with a vehicle.
547
00:45:54.840 --> 00:45:59.460
Authorities called it retaliation for Joey's cooperation with the government.
548
00:46:01.219 --> 00:46:04.780
The gunman was later convicted of attempted murder and witness tampering.
549
00:46:06.460 --> 00:46:10.179
In his conversations with a reporter earlier this year, Sam
550
00:46:10.260 --> 00:46:15.789
Ippolito maintained for months the story about his brother's involvement. Then,
551
00:46:15.949 --> 00:46:20.829
in a follow-up exchange this past summer, Sam Ippolito asked
552
00:46:20.869 --> 00:46:24.750
for compensation. He said he had been, quote, offered a
553
00:46:24.789 --> 00:46:28.730
ton of money and was under contract to tell his
554
00:46:28.769 --> 00:46:33.440
story elsewhere. And now he wanted to recant what he
555
00:46:33.519 --> 00:46:41.559
previously told the Times, saying he previously could not differentiate
556
00:46:41.639 --> 00:46:45.800
what was real and what was not. Peacock has announced
557
00:46:45.860 --> 00:46:50.489
that it is airing a documentary, O.J. 's Accomplice, later
558
00:46:50.530 --> 00:46:58.340
this year about theories in the Simpson case. Friends and
559
00:46:58.440 --> 00:47:02.320
some family members of Joey Ippolito have rejected any suggestion
560
00:47:02.880 --> 00:47:04.880
that he was involved on the night of the murders.
561
00:47:05.699 --> 00:47:08.360
They said that Sam Ippolito could not be trusted and
562
00:47:08.420 --> 00:47:13.579
might be trying to win attention and compensation. Over the years,
563
00:47:13.699 --> 00:47:17.500
many have wondered about the case's unexplained mysteries, such as
564
00:47:17.539 --> 00:47:21.360
where the murder weapon might have gone. Some have posited
565
00:47:21.420 --> 00:47:24.659
the brutal, efficient nature of the killings meant it likely
566
00:47:24.699 --> 00:47:28.510
that more than one person was involved. Under the timeline
567
00:47:28.550 --> 00:47:32.250
presented by prosecutors, Mr. Simpson was in a hurry on
568
00:47:32.289 --> 00:47:34.869
the night of the murders, rushing home to catch a
569
00:47:34.889 --> 00:47:38.480
limousine that would take him to a previously scheduled flight.
570
00:47:39.719 --> 00:47:43.420
Detectives hunted the route for the knife in the woods, dumpsters,
571
00:47:43.480 --> 00:47:47.179
and even the bowels of an airport waste tank that
572
00:47:47.239 --> 00:47:52.769
could have held the discharge from the airplane. None was
573
00:47:52.849 --> 00:47:57.309
ever found. Tom Lange, who was the lead detective in
574
00:47:57.329 --> 00:48:00.719
the Simpson case and is now retired from the LAPD,
575
00:48:01.400 --> 00:48:05.139
said he has never believed Mr. Simpson had help and
576
00:48:05.219 --> 00:48:07.639
said if there was any evidence to support that theory,
577
00:48:07.679 --> 00:48:12.460
it would have been disclosed by now. Mr. Lange recalled Mr.
578
00:48:12.519 --> 00:48:15.739
Ippolito's name coming up during the investigation of the murders,
579
00:48:16.409 --> 00:48:21.670
but that he, quote, never really became an issue for investigators.
580
00:48:21.929 --> 00:48:24.489
He said they received hundreds of tips during his time
581
00:48:24.570 --> 00:48:27.309
on the case and that only a handful were related
582
00:48:27.369 --> 00:48:31.869
to Mr. Ippolito. During the criminal trial, Mr. Simpson's defense
583
00:48:31.909 --> 00:48:34.639
team suggested there was evidence two people had been at
584
00:48:34.659 --> 00:48:41.179
the crime scene, an idea that prosecutors rejected. Robert Blazier,
585
00:48:41.659 --> 00:48:44.199
a lawyer who was part of Mr. Simpson's defense team
586
00:48:44.239 --> 00:48:47.920
for both the criminal and civil trials, and lived with
587
00:48:47.960 --> 00:48:50.489
him at his Brent Hood home during the civil case,
588
00:48:51.989 --> 00:48:57.869
said Mr. Simpson had also maintained his innocence in private conversations. Still, Mr.
589
00:48:57.909 --> 00:49:02.710
Blazier believes the theories about having an accomplice could be true. Quote,
590
00:49:03.230 --> 00:49:06.590
my take is that these other theories are certainly possible,
591
00:49:07.050 --> 00:49:10.300
he said, but none of them amount to proof beyond
592
00:49:10.340 --> 00:49:15.559
a reasonable doubt. Over the years, Mr. Ippolito told people
593
00:49:15.599 --> 00:49:19.820
varying stories about his role in the case. Cough, cough, cough.
594
00:49:20.659 --> 00:49:24.880
Eddie Trotta, a longtime friend of Joey, said Mr. Ippolito
595
00:49:24.940 --> 00:49:28.010
phoned him, talking about how he was telling law enforcement
596
00:49:28.030 --> 00:49:30.570
that Mr. Cowlings was the one who hid the knife,
597
00:49:31.449 --> 00:49:34.989
and that Mr. Cowlings ultimately discarded the weapon. Mr. Trotta
598
00:49:35.170 --> 00:49:37.170
said it seemed to him that Mr. Cowlings was the
599
00:49:37.190 --> 00:49:40.309
one who hid the knife. Mr. Ippolito was inventing tales.
600
00:49:41.639 --> 00:49:46.480
Rob Brisolari, a former Drug Enforcement Administration agent who regularly
601
00:49:46.599 --> 00:49:51.260
spoke with Joey Ippolito, was skeptical that Mr. Ippolito was
602
00:49:51.320 --> 00:49:54.840
involved in the murders. He believed Mr. Ippolito had no
603
00:49:54.900 --> 00:49:59.159
motive to do so. Still, Mr. Brisolari did not rule
604
00:49:59.300 --> 00:50:03.639
out the possibility. Quote, it seems a little far-fetched to me,
605
00:50:03.760 --> 00:50:06.369
but that doesn't mean it didn't happen, he said in
606
00:50:06.409 --> 00:50:12.210
an interview. Mr. Brizolari remembered that Mr. Ippolito did disclose
607
00:50:12.250 --> 00:50:14.449
to him that he had received a call from Mr.
608
00:50:14.530 --> 00:50:18.980
Cowlings after the murders, seeking help to get Mr. Simpson
609
00:50:19.119 --> 00:50:23.380
out of the area. Mr. Ippolito reported to Mr. Brizolari
610
00:50:23.440 --> 00:50:25.579
that he told Mr. Cowlings that it would be difficult
611
00:50:25.619 --> 00:50:29.320
to do so. Mr. Ippolito himself was on the run
612
00:50:29.360 --> 00:50:34.880
from the authorities. That request for assistance was in line
613
00:50:34.920 --> 00:50:38.719
with yet another tale that has emerged about Mr. Ippolito.
614
00:50:39.599 --> 00:50:42.539
The rapper Fat Joe, the man behind the hit song
615
00:50:42.739 --> 00:50:47.460
What's Love, told a seemingly random story on his podcast
616
00:50:47.539 --> 00:50:51.360
about a friend named Joe and OJ Simpson. He said
617
00:50:51.409 --> 00:50:55.369
this deceased friend in Miami went by the name Joe Bentley,
618
00:50:56.010 --> 00:50:58.269
a name used by Mr. Ippolito because of the many
619
00:50:58.349 --> 00:51:03.289
Bentleys he owned. On the podcast, Fat Joe said that Joey,
620
00:51:03.329 --> 00:51:07.530
who was released from federal custody in 1998, confided to
621
00:51:07.570 --> 00:51:10.289
him that when Mr. Cowlings and Mr. Simpson were in
622
00:51:10.329 --> 00:51:15.530
the Bronco chase, Joey had been at an airport waiting
623
00:51:15.570 --> 00:51:19.909
with a private jet to help them escape. Investigators did
624
00:51:19.989 --> 00:51:23.380
find in the infamous white Bronco a travel bag with
625
00:51:23.400 --> 00:51:28.719
a passport and a disguise kit. Fat Joe said he
626
00:51:28.860 --> 00:51:32.920
once went to Joey's home for the birthday of Joey's wife. Mr.
627
00:51:32.960 --> 00:51:36.199
Simpson was there. When it came time to cut the cake,
628
00:51:36.260 --> 00:51:39.860
Joey handed a machete to Mr. Simpson and declared, quote,
629
00:51:40.300 --> 00:51:44.179
You did it! Mr. Simpson then chased Joey around with
630
00:51:44.219 --> 00:51:50.059
the weapon, apparently all in jest. Reached recently, a spokesperson
631
00:51:50.119 --> 00:51:54.480
for Fat Joe said the rapper declined to comment. Mr.
632
00:51:54.559 --> 00:52:00.429
Ippolito's widow declined to comment. The tale meant that there
633
00:52:00.469 --> 00:52:04.190
were at least three versions of Mr. Ippolito's link to
634
00:52:04.210 --> 00:52:07.960
the murders. In one told to federal prosecutors, he shared
635
00:52:08.000 --> 00:52:13.019
information from Mr. Cowlings, including about the supposed location of
636
00:52:13.039 --> 00:52:17.449
the murder weapon. In another version, as told by his brother, Mr.
637
00:52:18.070 --> 00:52:20.429
Ippolito was at the scene of the killings and had
638
00:52:20.469 --> 00:52:24.789
apparent blood on his hands. In another version, as told
639
00:52:24.829 --> 00:52:28.760
to Fat Joe... Mr. Ippolito was ready to help Mr.
640
00:52:28.800 --> 00:52:35.690
Simpson escape. Mr. Simpson, who died in 2024, was coy
641
00:52:35.730 --> 00:52:40.150
about the truth through the years. He vacillated between professing
642
00:52:40.210 --> 00:52:45.760
innocence and admitting guilt in a hypothetical confession. In his
643
00:52:45.820 --> 00:52:51.960
hypothetical account of the night of June 12, 1994, Mr.
644
00:52:52.000 --> 00:52:55.139
Simpson told a ghostwriter that a friend of his, identified
645
00:52:55.159 --> 00:52:58.469
by the name Charlie, had come to his home that night,
646
00:52:59.349 --> 00:53:04.170
and their conversation triggered Mr. Simpson's anger. The two hopped
647
00:53:04.329 --> 00:53:08.210
into Mr. Simpson's white Ford Bronco and drove to Miss
648
00:53:08.250 --> 00:53:12.969
Brown Simpson's home to scare her. He described Charlie as
649
00:53:13.030 --> 00:53:19.800
a horrified observer to the bloodshed that ensued. Quote, Jesus Christ, O.J.,
650
00:53:19.860 --> 00:53:23.639
what have you done? He quoted Charlie as saying as
651
00:53:23.699 --> 00:53:26.809
they looked over the scene of the two bodies. crumpled
652
00:53:26.929 --> 00:53:30.230
on the ground. But after they arrived back in Mr.
653
00:53:30.269 --> 00:53:34.610
Simpson's neighborhood, Mr. Simpson said he had handed Charlie a
654
00:53:34.639 --> 00:53:38.639
bundle of bloody clothes and the murder weapon. Charlie warily
655
00:53:38.699 --> 00:53:42.880
agreed to get rid of it. But there's yet another
656
00:53:42.960 --> 00:53:46.920
wrinkle to the Charlie story. A man whose real name
657
00:53:47.000 --> 00:53:51.530
is Charlie once suggested that he was the hypothetical accomplice.
658
00:53:52.699 --> 00:53:57.179
Charlie Ehrlich was charged alongside Mr. Simpson during a robbery
659
00:53:57.219 --> 00:54:03.239
case in Las Vegas in 2007. Mr. Ehrlich said in
660
00:54:03.300 --> 00:54:06.739
an interview that before the If I Did It book
661
00:54:06.840 --> 00:54:10.260
was published, Mr. Simpson told him over dinner that he
662
00:54:10.300 --> 00:54:13.440
had used his name as part of his hypothetical account.
663
00:54:14.800 --> 00:54:17.860
Several years ago, Mr. Ehrlich went on to work with
664
00:54:17.920 --> 00:54:21.969
a producer, Eric Labe, to tell his life story. the
665
00:54:22.010 --> 00:54:26.849
pair envisioned a film. In hours of audio tapes never
666
00:54:26.909 --> 00:54:30.369
made public but reviewed by the Times, Mr. Labe and Mr.
667
00:54:30.489 --> 00:54:33.210
Ehrlich do not directly confront the question of whether the
668
00:54:33.329 --> 00:54:38.710
Charlie in Mr. Simpson's book was a reflection of Mr. Ehrlich. Mr.
669
00:54:38.789 --> 00:54:40.889
Ehrlich said on the tapes that he had met Mr.
670
00:54:40.929 --> 00:54:45.150
Simpson before the murders. Mr. Labe at one point brings
671
00:54:45.230 --> 00:54:49.710
up that Mr. Simpson's hypothetical account had used the name. Quote,
672
00:54:50.130 --> 00:54:56.769
regarding that, Use your imagination, Mr. Ehrlich said. I'll leave
673
00:54:56.789 --> 00:55:00.969
it at that. Mr. Ehrlich suggested at another point that
674
00:55:01.010 --> 00:55:04.269
he had insights into Mr. Simpson's mindset on the night
675
00:55:04.289 --> 00:55:08.309
of the murders. Those tapes fueled the theory that Mr.
676
00:55:08.409 --> 00:55:13.429
Ehrlich was the accomplice. In a recent interview, Mr. Ehrlich
677
00:55:13.650 --> 00:55:15.530
said it was all a lie. He said he had
678
00:55:15.590 --> 00:55:18.250
played along with the idea that he was the hypothetical
679
00:55:18.289 --> 00:55:21.619
accomplice as part of an effort to cash in on
680
00:55:21.639 --> 00:55:28.389
the infamy. Mr. Simpson's ghostwriter, Pablo Fenvez, said he recalled
681
00:55:28.429 --> 00:55:32.090
being the one to propose Charlie as the pseudonym of Mr.
682
00:55:32.130 --> 00:55:37.789
Simpson's supposed accomplice. Mr. Ehrlich said he didn't meet Mr.
683
00:55:37.829 --> 00:55:41.139
Simpson until Mr. Simpson moved to Florida in the years
684
00:55:41.260 --> 00:55:45.619
after his trial, well after the killings. Mr. Ehrlich recalled
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that Mr. Simpson was impressed. He had done seven years
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in prison, kept his mouth shut, and never ratted nobody out. Quote, O.J.
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loved that about me, Mr. Ehrlich said. Unspoken was that
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the man who introduced them was himself a superstar snitch.
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His name? Joey Ippolito. This concludes the reading of the
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New York Times for today. Your reader for today has
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been Mary Fullington. If you have any questions, comments, or
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suggestions concerning this program, please feel free to call us
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at 859-422-6390. Thank you for listening, and now please stay
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tuned for continued programming on Radio Eye.