DRUG PROBE SPOTLIGHTS THE SECRET LIFE OF O.J.

MIAMI - Bloodied by a custody battle and stripped of his wealth, O.J.
Simpson left his native California two years ago with his children to seek
refuge on the forgiving shores of South Florida.

The single parent vowed he just wanted to be a doting father, play golf,
and live quietly in an unpretentious home amidst the cookie-cutter
neighborhoods of suburban Miami.

But since his arrival, his life has been anything but tranquil.

The 54-year-old former football great has been living a self-indulgent
lifestyle of cocaine binges, strip club rendezvous, and late-night visits
to the home of a Miami dealer to buy illegal drugs, defendants in a drug
case have told the FBI.

So close has been Mr. Simpson to the Miami drug scene that a dealer in an
international narcotics ring stayed in Mr. Simpson's guest home - and drove
the Simpson children to and from school at the same time he was
orchestrating drug transactions, according to the statements in
confidential FBI documents obtained by The Blade.

The admitted dealer, Andrew Anderson, 34, allegedly was supplying the
former athlete and his girlfriends with the illegal drug Ecstasy - a
hallucinogenic substance that's popular in many Miami Beach clubs.

Throughout his first two years in Florida - as Mr. Simpson was trying to
restore his image through hospital visits and media interviews - he was
indulging in cocaine and Ecstasy, records state.

Shortly after his acquittal in his now famous road rage case on Oct. 24, he
visited the home of drug dealer Zenaida Galvez, 36, to buy cocaine to
celebrate with girlfriends, the dealer told the FBI this year.

"Simpson stated that he knew he was going to win," her statement says.

Informed of The Blade's story, Mr. Simpson said the allegations aren't
true. "I live a simple lifestyle," he told the Associated Press yesterday.
"I raise my kids. I play golf. I don't do drugs, and no drug dealer has
ever stayed in my house."

The public has become familiar with Mr. Simpson's sometimes topsy-turvy
life in South Florida, including public spats with former girlfriend
Christie Prody.

But now, for the first time, the FBI records reflect events, places, and in
some cases, times in which the onetime actor is alleged to have taken part
in drug parties.

Though he was never the target of a narcotics probe - and has not been
charged - federal agents stumbled across his name in the course of
investigating an international Ecstasy ring, FBI records show.

More than 200 pages of documents covering a period of late 1999 to
November, 2001 - including transcripts of FBI wire taps - were reviewed by
The Blade. About a dozen of those records relate to Mr. Simpson.

The reports - including FBI agents' records of witness statements and
surveillance of his ranch-style home - paint a vastly different picture of
the man who moved to the Miami suburb of Kendall to keep a low profile and
be a soccer dad.

His lawyer, Yale Galanter, said on Friday his client was not involved in
drugs, nor did he ever allow a dealer to live at his home, located 15 miles
southwest of Miami. "There is no link between them."

To be sure, the allegations against Mr. Simpson are coming largely from
three key members of a drug ring that imported hundreds of thousands of
Ecstasy pills from Holland.

The three suspects, Anderson, Galvez, and John Thorburn, 32, have pleaded
guilty to their roles in the case that led to the high-profile search of
Mr. Simpson's beige, Spanish ranch-style home on Dec. 4.

Though agents said they did not find Ecstasy in the home, police inventory
records show that four bags of suspected marijuana, cocaine residue, two
drug pipes, and a can with marijuana residue were turned up by agents.

During a six-hour search, agents seized several pieces of satellite-dish
equipment from the home.

Part of the FBI investigation touched on the illegal sale of counterfeit
dish cards that allow viewers to steal signals, but agents did not say
whether they found those cards in the Simpson home.

Seven years after he was acquitted in the killing of former wife Nicole
Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman - the so-called trial of the
century - Mr. Simpson is under the scrutiny of law enforcement again.

The U.S. attorney's office in Miami refuses to comment. "We just don't
confirm investigations," said Barry Sabin, the chief assistant U.S.
attorney in Miami.

Most of the defendants in the drug ring - a total of nine - have pleaded
guilty to drug conspiracy charges and will be sentenced on May 20 and June
4 by U.S. District Judge Paul Huck. One suspect is believed to be in Brazil.

One former defendant, Toledo developer Mark Nowakowski, was acquitted by a
federal jury in Miami on March 14 - with people on both sides of the case
now saying there's no evidence the developer was selling drugs.

But ironically, it was his cell phone - used by a friend - that helped lead
authorities to O.J. Simpson, according to federal wire-tap records.

Initially, the Hall of Fame running back was not part of the federal
investigation into Ecstasy.

In fact, when the Drug Enforcement Administration and FBI began their probe
in 1999 - now known as Operation X - Mr. Simpson was still living in
California.

But several months after the former athlete bought his home in the Miami
suburb in September, 2000, FBI agents heard his name in telephone wiretaps,
according to interviews and records.

By February, 2001, plainclothes investigators were watching his
4,343-square-foot home, and later, eavesdropping on cell phone
conversations between Mr. Simpson and Anderson.

In several instances, the 6-foot-2-inch former actor was seen with Anderson
at the Simpson home, and making trips to the popular South Beach.

Mr. Simpson's lawyer says his client is being depicted as a drug user by
people who don't even know him. He said Mr. Simpson barely knew Anderson,
and it was only because his client went to a massage parlor owned by the
drug dealer.

Mr. Simpson is just trying to raise his children, Sydney, 16, and Justin,
13, without the distractions that he experienced in California.

"It's as normal as life could possibly be for someone with the name O.J.
Simpson," says the Fort Lauderdale attorney

Football hero and the Ohio developer

Orenthal James Simpson never met developer Mark Nowakowski, court testimony
shows. The men come from vastly different backgrounds.

The 44-year-old Mr. Nowakowski was building custom homes in northwest Ohio
when Mr. Simpson was standing trial with a dream team of lawyers.

But a call from the developer's cell phone on Feb. 24, 2001 - combined with
other events - would thrust both men into the middle of one of Florida's
most publicized Ecstasy investigations.

According to FBI records, Mr. Nowakowski, who was spending the winter in
South Beach, was sleeping on a chaise lounge when an acquaintance used the
developer's cell phone to call a local drug dealer, John Thorburn.

The reason: to buy the club drug Ecstasy - a substance that carries similar
criminal penalties as cocaine.

Unbeknownst to the people on both ends of the phone call, federal agents
were listening on a wiretap.

During the conversation, Thorburn said he'd get the drugs, and then called
his supplier: Andrew Anderson.

Thorburn needed more Ecstasy for his customers.

"OK, well, listen here, you ... bring the package for me, you know," said
Thorburn to his supplier.

"Oh, Lord, that's in my car," Anderson answered.

"Where's your car? Down south?" asked Thorburn.

"Yeah," answered Anderson. "Over at O.J.'s house."

Within an hour, task force agent Antonio Marciante and four others were
secretly watching Mr. Simpson's home. Parked in his driveway was Anderson's
car.

Later, Thorburn called Anderson again to see if he had the drugs, but
Anderson said he had not yet retrieved them from his car in O.J. Simpson's
driveway, records state. He said he was actually walking along Ocean Drive
in Miami Beach with Mr. Simpson and his son, Justin, then 12.

During the phone call, Anderson commented that women were walking up to Mr.
Simpson to get his picture while complimenting his son on how "beautiful"
he looked to them.

Later that evening, drug task force agents noted that Mr. Simpson drove
into his driveway in his black Lincoln Navigator with Anderson inside.

Anderson climbed into his car and left.

The Holland connection

For six months, agents not only watched Anderson, but tapped his phone.

Records show they soon learned that he was a companion to Mr. Simpson, as
well as a dealer in an Ecstasy ring.

Others would smuggle the drug into the country from Holland - 200,000 pills
in 2001 - and Anderson would help sell it.

Also known as Adrian Burke, he was wanted in Mississippi on marijuana
trafficking charges when he moved to Miami.

The muscular, 5-foot, 10-inch Jamaican national with a goatee became a
known figure in the South Beach clubs, witnesses told agents.

Several years ago, he opened a Kendall massage parlor called Euphoria,
which was later suspected by FBI agents as a front for prostitution.

Though Anderson sometimes stayed at O.J. Simpson's guest house - next to
the main house and pool - he actually met the former actor when Mr. Simpson
was visiting the area and looking for a home in 1999, records state.

Another person who met Mr. Simpson around the same time was Zenaida Galvez,
also known as Gigi.

She told FBI agents during extensive interviews on Jan. 11 and Jan. 14 that
she was introduced to the former football player by Anderson at a sushi
restaurant in the fall of 1999.

Later, at Anderson's behest, she began selling cocaine regularly to Mr.
Simpson and his onetime girlfriend, Christie Prody, the dealer told agents.

By early 2000, Miss Prody was living in Miami, and Mr. Simpson would stay
with her until he bought his house. At the time, he was steeped in a
custody battle in California with the relatives of his slain former wife -
a dispute he won.

"When Simpson visited Miami, both Prody and Simpson called Galvez for
cocaine, and would visit Galvez at her apartment to pick up cocaine," her
FBI interview states. Galvez even showed agents that she had Mr. Simpson's
number logged in her cell phone memory.

Galvez went on to tell agents that during the course of her friendship with
Mr. Simpson, he offered to get her a "counterfeit" satellite dish card.

When Galvez gave birth to her daughter in January, 2001, Mr. Simpson
brought her a stuffed panda, she said.

For a time, Mr. Simpson and his girlfriend were popping into her life at
all hours - much to her dismay, reports said.

"Simpson and Prody arrived at Galvez' house approximately three to four
times during the early morning hours to buy cocaine from Galvez," her
statement reads. "Galvez did not let them in the house due to the odd hours
and the fact that Simpson and Prody were already high on drugs."

Problems arose in October, 1999, when Mr. Simpson called police to complain
that Miss Prody was "on a cocaine binge" with a former Los Angeles Dodgers
player, and was not at home, according to a police report.

Later, he said it was all a misunderstanding: He was talking about another
person - not Miss Prody.

Two months later, Mr. Simpson was invited to a party thrown by Thorburn at
his fashionable high-rise apartment in Miami Beach.

Another known figure on the South Beach club scene, Thorburn told FBI
agents early this year that he and the former actor snorted cocaine through
the evening with two other guests. "The cocaine was taken in Thorburn's
bedroom," according to the dealer's statements.

The move to Florida

After winning his custody case, Mr. Simpson was mired in debt when he moved
to Miami in May, 2000.

His $10 million fortune was eroded by his legal fees from his 1995 murder
trial, and two years later, he was found liable for the deaths of his
former wife and Ronald Goldman.

Ordered by the California court to pay $33.5 million to the surviving
relatives, his lawyers said he was broke.

However, while he lost his accumulated wealth, he still had a source of
income: a $20,000-a-month pension from his NFL playing days - money that
can't be touched by the courts.

To further protect his assets, Mr. Simpson said he moved to Florida because
of a state law that forbids the seizure of a person's home to pay a civil
penalty, according to published interviews.

But it was a rough start. At first, he was involved in public spats with
Miss Prody, whom he met in California.

In May, 2000, security guards at a Miami hotel called police to a
late-night dispute between the couple - where Miss Prody allegedly kicked
and slapped the former actor. He refused to press charges.

In September - the same month he purchased his home for $575,000 in Kendall
- - he was accused by his girlfriend of breaking into her Miami home, erasing
a message on her answering machine, and stealing a letter, a police report
states. She did not press charges.

That fall, Mr. Simpson enrolled his two children in the Gulliver Academy,
one of the oldest private schools in the area. During an impromptu press
conference near the school, he asked reporters to respect his children's
privacy.

"We just want to go about our normal lives," he said.

But according to FBI reports, life was anything but normal.

Galvez, the cocaine dealer, was becoming frustrated with Mr. Simpson and
his girlfriend. They were knocking at her door at all hours, she told agents.

Eventually, Galvez said she told Mr. Simpson he was welcome at her home -
but not Miss Prody.

"Prody frequently arrived at Galvez' house unannounced for cocaine," her
statement reads. "Prody called Galvez so much that Galvez changed her
cellular telephone number."

On Dec. 4, Mr. Simpson ran into his own problems that would spill over into
the courts.

In a dispute with another motorist in Kendall, he was accused of exiting
his vehicle, reaching into the open window of the other vehicle and
grabbing the driver's $300 sunglasses, while scratching the man's temple.

Mr. Simpson was charged with a felony and misdemeanor in what became known
as the O.J. Road Rage case.

Several local defense lawyers weighed in, saying it was a case of overkill.
Mr. Simpson called a press conference, saying he was being singled out
unfairly because of the controversy surrounding his double murder acquittal.

"I want to test this case [in court] to show people what kind of life I
live," he said.

Around the same time of his arrest, he met Galvez, Anderson, and two others
for dinner at the Bahama Breeze, Galvez told agents.

Later that night, Mr. Simpson began snorting cocaine - and continued
through the early morning, she said.

From the restaurant, they went to the Pink Pony strip club, and later, to
other strip clubs: Stir Crazy and Tootsie's. "Galvez advised that the group
received VIP treatment at every club, including free drinks and free
entertainment," the report says. "Simpson was using cocaine the entire
evening ..."

Eight months later, Mr. Simpson took his road rage case to trial in
Miami-Dade County Circuit Court and was acquitted of all charges on Oct.
24. As the verdict was read, he closed his eyes and bowed his head,
mouthing the words, "thank you," to the jury.

Galvez told agents that after the trial, Mr. Simpson called her looking to
get drugs to entertain several girlfriends.

She said Mr. Simpson came to her apartment and gave her a $100 bill. She
went out and bought 21/2 grams of cocaine - with Mr. Simpson waiting at her
home - and she returned to give him the drug.

The former actor then "called the girls he was to meet on his cellular
telephone and agreed to meet them at Bahama Breeze," her report states.
"Simpson bragged about how good-looking the girls were" before leaving.

Galvez' last recollection of her alleged dealings with Mr. Simpson was not
about drugs. In November, 2001, she asked him to adopt a Rottweiler that a
friend was giving away. He agreed.

The search of O.J.'s home On the morning of Dec. 4, O.J. Simpson was
getting his children ready for school when he answered the doorbell in his
bathrobe.

He was greeted by federal agents with a search warrant.

After more than two years, Operation X - the investigation into Ecstasy and
the sale of illegal satellite-dish cards - was nearly over.

With a television helicopter hovering overhead and news reporters standing
by, 15 agents spent the next six hours combing through Mr. Simpson's home.

While the search was under way, other agents fanned out across the Miami
area, arresting eight people, including Galvez, Anderson, Thorburn, and
Mark Nowakowski. All were charged with conspiracy with intent to distribute
Ecstasy.

Mr. Simpson's lawyer, Yale Galanter, showed up at his client's home and
talked to reporters, casting doubts on whether his client knew the other
suspects.

He said Mr. Simpson's only connection to the case is that his name was
mentioned in a phone conversation between two suspects. In a recent
interview with The Blade, he said "there is no link at all" between his
client and the others.

"This was two guys bullshitting about their alleged contacts with a
celebrity," he said.

Mr. Galanter said federal agents carted away satellite-TV equipment, but
that Mr. Simpson had purchase receipts for the goods.

According to FBI documents, Galvez, who said she watched TV at the Simpson
home, said the former athlete told her he had counterfeit cards.

After the search and the arrests of the other suspects, prosecutors were
alarmed to learn that some of the people taken into custody confessed they
knew the federal agents were coming.

Turns out, a member of the grand jury hearing the case knew the boyfriend
of Galvez - and tipped him off. The juror, John Ocosta, 31, admitted he
called Galvez' boyfriend, who in turn told Galvez.

After her arrest, Galvez admitted she called Anderson to warn him. It's not
known whether Anderson then called Mr. Simpson.

So far, nearly all of the defendants have pleaded guilty, except for Mr.
Nowakowski, who refused to accept a plea deal.

After nearly four days of trial, he was found not guilty by a federal jury
in Miami. He took the stand and admitted he purchased small amounts of
Ecstasy for personal use, but never sold it.

"It was the most asinine thing I ever did," the Toledo developer said
recently. "But I never, ever sold it. Nor was I ever part of any conspiracy."

He said he did not know any of the defendants except for Thorburn, whom he
met at a South Beach party.

The divorced developer said his arrest occurred during a mid-life crisis
filled with excess partying in South Beach, once even getting arrested in a
barroom brawl. But it was a brief period - one that he regrets, he says.

Considered by local planners as an innovative developer, the St. Francis de
Sales High School graduate is back in Toledo trying to restart his life -
and repair his image.

His two lawyers, Jeffrey Zilba and Ed O'Donnell, said they believe the sole
reason Mr. Nowakowski was arrested was because his cell phone was used to
start a series of calls that led investigators to O.J. Simpson.

The person who used the Toledo man's phone was identified in court as his
acquaintance, Thomas Barone of Miami, who was never arrested.

"Mark should have never been charged. His reputation was hurt for something
he never did. And that, to me, is outrageous," says Mr. O'Donnell, a
longtime Miami criminal defense lawyer.

"In all my years, I never saw anything like it. This was not about
Operation X. This was Operation O.J."

Authorities hold items

Five months after the search of Mr. Simpson's home, prosecutors have not
returned the items seized from the house.

Questions abound over whether anyone else will be charged, or whether the
case will end with the sentencing of four defendants, including Anderson
and Thorburn, on June 4. They face up to 20 years on the conspiracy charges.

Mr. Simpson's lawyer says he has been dutifully watching the activities of
prosecutors in this case. "I am in the very fortunate position that my
client has not been arrested," Mr. Galanter said in an interview last month.

"Not only has my client not been arrested, but it is clear now, many months
after Dec. 4 [the search of the Simpson home], that the feds didn't find
anything of any narcotics-related illegal activity in the house."

Prosecutors refuse to talk about the inventory list, which states that
marijuana and other suspected drugs were found on the property, or if they
have found counterfeit satellite-dish cards - a federal offense that
carries a penalty of up to five years in jail.

Mr. Galanter counters that any marijuana found on the property does not
belong to his client and amounted to only trace amounts.

More than 250 phone calls to and from Anderson's phone were recorded by
federal agents last year on a 60-day wire-tap order, including numerous
conversations with Mr. Simpson, say people familiar with the matter.

But for now, the information that led to the search of the former football
player's home is sealed under a court order.

Mr. O'Donnell, a former Miami assistant state attorney, said he believes
O.J. Simpson and the Ecstasy dealer, Andrew Anderson, were more than just
passing acquaintances. After spending weeks pouring over FBI surveillance
documents, witness accounts, and wire taps, he said he is convinced they
knew each other well."

"I think there is enough information to establish that," he said.

Mr. O'Donnell said he believes prosecutors tried, but fell short, of
pulling the former running back into the heart of the investigation.

"It's not like they set out to get him, but once they saw his name pop up,
they tried to put him in the middle of this thing," he said.

Mr. Simpson said yesterday that he believes his name emerged in the drug
investigation "because it's a non-story if I'm not in it."

"I don't sell drugs. I don't buy drugs," he said.

Over the past year, Mr. Simpson has been appearing at concerts and events,
and making visits to patients in Miami hospitals.

He kicked off a rap concert in Cincinnati's Music Hall on March 2, where he
beckoned the crowd "not to give the media anything to write about ... rap
is getting a bad name, and I know about bad raps."

Like other retirees in Florida, he hobbles around on arthritic knees, plays
golf at mostly public courses, and retreats to his tree-shrouded home set
on a half acre of former scrub land.

His lawyer insists his client has been well received in the Miami area, and
"absolutely loves it down here." Others agree.

"He's a star down here," says Mr. O'Donnell. "People want to play golf with
him. He's invited to parties."

But Mr. Simpson does run into people who remind him of his double murder
acquittal.

At O'Casey's Pub, a popular lounge near his home, a customer recently made
a remark to the former athlete about the stabbing death of his former wife.

"I haven't seen O.J. in here since then," said a bartender. "And he used to
come in here and have lunch all the time. He'd even bring his kids."

Though South Florida has traditionally been a place where people could move
to drop out, that would be difficult for Mr. Simpson.

"He's a well-known figure who happened to be the defendant in one of the
most watched trials in American history," says Dr. Don Nance, a
psychologist who studies sports heroes. "People all have an opinion on his
guilt or his innocence - and he's going to run into all those people down
there."

Given the divided feelings about Mr. Simpson, controversy will follow him
in South Florida as long as he lives there, says Mr. O'Donnell, who has
practiced law 32 years in the area.

"If you're someone like O.J., you've got to be careful of your associations
down here," said Mr. O'Donnell, referring to the intense media and police
presence in the area. "Prosecutors will look at him and say, 'He may have
gotten off in California, but he's not going to get off here.'''