Once again, the question is whether or not O.J. did it.
The Las Vegas Police Department has confirmed that O.J. Simpson has been interrogated in connection with a break-in that took place at Las Vegas' Palace Station casino hotel Thursday night, but stopped short of declaring the disgraced former footballer and actor an official suspect.
According to investigators, the break-in involved the theft of what they would only call "sports-related products" from one of the hotel's guest rooms. Various reports claim that some of the collectibles are from Simpson's early athletic career.
"We have some allegations of a theft that took place that does involve Mr. Simpson," LVPD spokesperson Jose Montoya told E! News. "Our detectives have interviewed the victim and Mr. Simpson. The investigation is ongoing. We don't have a warrant, so we don't have [Simpson] as a suspect right now."
At a press conference Friday afternoon, Las Vegas Metro Police Captain James Dillon confirmed that the victim named Simpson as one of a group of men who broke into his room just before 8 p.m. Thursday.
Dillon said the investigation "is being conducted as we speak" and that police hoped to wrap up initial questioning by Saturday, as they were still "getting conflicting stories from the two sides." Among the disputed details: Who exactly owned the collectibles. Per Montoya, when Simpson was first questioned by authorities, he "made the comment that he believed the memorabilia was his."
Indeed, Simpson has confirmed to the Associated Press that he went to the room to reclaim memorabilia he says belonged to him and had been stolen from his late mother's storage room. However, he insisted he did not force his way in. Instead, Simpson told the wire service he was conducting his own "sting operation." (After all, the self-styled crime-fighter's hunt for the real killers went so well.)
"Everybody knows this is stolen stuff," Simpson said, claiming auction house owner Tom Riccio tipped him off to the goods' existence several weeks ago. "Not only wasn't there a break-in, but Riccio came to the lobby and escorted us up to the room. In any event, it's stolen stuff that's mine. Nobody was roughed up."
At the press conference, Dillon refused to comment on whether Simpson had also relayed similar sentiments to the investigating officers, stressing that as they were dealing with an infamous public figure, they "want to be very careful on the release of information as we proceed."
Police released Simpson after he and several associates were questioned. Dillon said his department did not believe Simpson would be difficult to track down if further questioning was warranted.
"We know from our communications with his he is willing to meet with Las Vegas Police detectives," he said. "There was no hesitation on his part to cooperate and immediately meet with police."
Investigators in the case are expected to deliver a report to prosecutors. So far, no arrests have been made and no charges have been filed.
Police did say they were currently on the search for the additional suspects who were reported to be with Simpson at the hotel at the time of the alleged incident. However, the police declined to name names.
One thing Dillon did confirm was that some of the items have been recovered. It's been reported that a photograph of Simpson with J. Edgar Hoover and the suit Simpson wore when he was acquitted of murder charges were among the swiped goods.
Dillon said police have not yet determined whether any type of firearm was used during the incident. He did, however, confirm that video surveillance tapes and still images from the Palace Station hotel had been recovered, but that it was "too early to comment" on what they captured.
While the police haven't yet released the identity of the purported victims of the break-in, the Associated Press and TMZ report that at least two memorabilia dealers were in the room: Bruce Fromong, who testified in Simpson's civil trial, and Alfred Beardsley, who has previously claimed to have in his possession the suit worn by Simpson the day he was acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman.
The men told TMZ he had arranged to meet with one of Simpson's associates to discuss the possible sale of the items, but claimed that Simpson and an armed entourage appeared at his hotel room instead at approximately 7:15 p.m.
Beardsley claims two of the men said they were police officers and ordered those in the room to turn over their cell phones before roughing them up and making off with the memorabilia mother lode.
"Him and some of his guys come busting through the door," Fromong told the site. "They came in with guns, hollering and screaming."
While the police don't seem too keen on talking about the incident, which they say is still in its "infancy," two other players in the Simpson saga have shown no such reticence.
"It's consistent with who he is," Kim Goldman, the sister of the late Ron Goldman, told Extra of Simpson's alleged role in the break-in.
"Absolutely, consistent to who he is," Fred Goldman, Ron's father, chimed in. "He has indicated so far, with his kind of arrogance, that he had a right to do it."
Simpson "is proving over and over and over again that he thinkgs he can do anything and get away with it," Goldman added to the AP.
As for whether Simpson might face criminal charges, Ron Goldman said, "I hope so...I've been waiting 13 years."
The Simpson-related break-in marks the second time in as many days that he has been an integral part of the news cycle. His hypothetical memoir, If I Did It, was released Thursday by the Goldman family, which have recast the book as a confessional. The book's merits were also the subject of a heated debate on Thursday's Oprah Winfrey Show.
Proceeds from the book will go toward satisfying the more than $30 million still owed in the wrongful-death judgment awarded against Simpson in 1997.
The Goldmans lawyer, David Cook, said he would go to court in Las Vegas next week seeking an order to have any of the recovered Simpson memorabilia turned over to help settle the debt.