Sports star and actor whose murder trial split America dies of cancer aged 76

OJ Simpson, the former American football star, actor and notorious suspected double murderer, has died of cancer at 76, his family said yesterday.

- Richard Luscombe

His 1995 trial, and controversial acquittal, for the deaths of his exwife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman, provided one of the world's most-watched popular culture events of the last century.

Simpson's death was announced on X, formerly Twitter, in a simple message from his family: "On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace." A statement from the Pro Football Hall of Fame said Simpson, who died in Las Vegas, had been receiving chemotherapy for prostate cancer, which it said he made public two months ago.

David Cook, an attorney for Goldman's family, said that Simpson had "died without penance".

One of the most successful and popular sports stars of his generation, Simpson's career with the San Francisco 49ers and Buffalo Bills, as well as his post-retirement starring roles in movies such as The Naked Gun, was ultimately overshadowed by the 1994 murders and their aftermath.

From a low-speed car chase across Los Angeles, broadcast live, in which Simpson attempted to flee pursuing police officers in a Ford Bronco, to his televised trial that captivated millions of viewers in the US and around the world, the events heralded a blending of celebrity and crime that has become a staple of media ever since.