■UNITED STATES
O.J. Simpson faces trial
Thirteen years after his acquittal in one of the most publicized murder cases in US history, former football great O.J. Simpson was due to return to court yesterday for jury selection in a robbery and kidnapping case. Legal experts say the outcome of the case is far from clear as Simpson, 61, faces a dozen felonies that stem from a confrontation in a hotel room last September in which he and a gang of gun-toting cohorts departed the scene with pillow cases stuffed full of sports memorabilia. The charges against Simpson and one of those men, Clarence “C.J.” Stewart, includes kidnapping and armed robbery, both of which carry potential life sentences in the state of Nevada. Simpson and his group allegedly stormed the room at the Palace Station Hotel-Casino to retrieve memorabilia largely related to the football star’s career that he has insisted was stolen from him. It was in the possession of two collectibles dealers, Bruce Fromong and Alfred Beardsley. Simpson later insisted he did not know that two of the men with him would be carrying guns and did not see them brandish their weapons. Four of the gang, including the two who carried weapons, have struck plea agreements for reduced sentences in exchange for testifying against Simpson.
■UNITED STATES
Sausage used in burglary
Authorities say they’ve arrested a man who broke into the home of two California farmworkers, stole money, rubbed one of the men with spices and whacked the other with a sausage before fleeing. Fresno County sheriff’s Lieutenant Ian Burrimond says 22-year-old Antonio Vasquez was found hiding in a field wearing only a T-shirt, boxers and socks after the Saturday morning attack. He says deputies arrested Vasquez after finding a wallet containing his ID in the ransacked house. The farmworkers told deputies the suspect woke them on Saturday morning by rubbing spices on one of them and smacking the other with a 20cm-long sausage.
■VENEZUELA
Alleged drug lord seized
A suspected Colombian drug lord wanted by the US Drug Enforcement Administration has been captured in the west of the country, the state news service reported on Sunday. Marcos Jose Orozco Wilches was detained on Saturday in Zulia state, near the border with Colombia, the Bolivarian News Agency said. Cooperation between Interpol and the National Anti-Drug Agency, coupled with intelligence gathered by security forces, reportedly led to the arrest. Orozco Wilches is the second major Colombian drug suspect arrested in Venezuela this year. Hermagoras Gonzalez Polanco — one of the US government’s most-wanted drug trafficking suspects — was captured in Zulia in March. US officials have accused President Hugo Chavez’s government of lax anti-drug efforts. Chavez accuses Washington of unfairly labeling his country a drug haven for political reasons.
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