When the bodies of Ronald Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson were found on June 13, 1994, the latter's former husband OJ Simpson was swiftly identified as the prime suspect.
Simpson, an ex-professional American football player who later became a sports commentator and actor, had interested the Los Angeles Police Department ever since bloodstains matching his blood type were found at the murder scene in Brentwood.
Four days after the investigation had begun, the LAPD believed that they had enough evidence to charge San Francisco-born Simpson with the homicide of Brown Simpson and her lover.
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However, when they arrived at the home of his friend Robert Kardashian, they found that Simpson had escaped through the back door with his former Buffalo Bills teammate Al Cowlings. The tracing of Simpson's phone located him to a white Ford Bronco on the Interstate-405 in Los Angeles and so started a police chase that had the nation gripped.
Reports claimed that the number 32 was in the back of the vehicle, holding a gun to his head. With news helicopters following the pursuit from above, millions of Americans sat down in front of their television screens to watch the drama unfold.
The hour-long ordeal eventually ended when the Bronco pulled into Simpson's Brentwood home. He then emerged from the car, when he was arrested and charged with the two murders.
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Despite seemingly having the evidence stacked against him, in October 1995 Simpson was acquitted by a jury of both offences. Two years later, though, a separate civil trial found him liable for the deaths and ordered him to pay an estimated £30m in damages to the Brown and Goldman families.
Having been found not guilty of those charges, Simpson did end up behind bars in 2008. He was handed a 33-year sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping, among other offences.
Serving his time in Lovelock Correctional Centre in Nevada, Simpson is illegible for parole until 2017.
Liam Apicella
