The murder of Reeva Steenkamp, who was shot by Oscar Pistorius, has surprised the professional sports world. From being a worldwide hero, the South African courts have charged the professional with a charge of murder.
But this is not the end. Revisiting the older professional athletes, the list of sportsmen is very long who have been convicted of crimes in their life. Either being a crime of passion or a premeditated offence, here are the most interesting cases that have grabbed the attention of the entire world.
- Orenthal James Simpson – American football player
1973’s NFL player of the year, O.J Simpson was considered a competent football player who was convicted of murdering his ex-wife and her friend whose bodies were found in 1994. Even though he was acquitted of all the criminal charges in 1995, he was still convicted in the civil courts. In 2008, Simpson was convicted of armed robbery and kidnapping and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
- Rubin Carter – American middleweight boxer
Being a member of the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame and a professional middleweight boxer, Rubin Carter was arrested in 1966 for a number of homicides. He was convicted in 1967 after a witness description of him was found to be true. After allotment of the criminal case to an experienced defense lawyer, he was released from the prison after a judge ruled that he did not receive a fair trial.
- Bruno Souza – Brazilian soccer player
Famous goalkeeper of Flamengo soccer club, Bruno Souza was accused of planning the murder of his former love, Eliza Samudio, who was also a model and mother to his child. According to the investigators, she was beaten brutally by him and her body parts were fed to the dogs. Brazilian media addressed this issue seriously. While his trial continued, he remained in jail early in 2013.
- Eric Naposki – American football player
Veteran who player for Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots is now serving life imprisonment sentence for his major part in a murderous love triangle. He shot an old women six times so that his girlfriend could collect life insurance worth $1 million. The women died in 1994 but it was not until the technological advancements allowed prosecutors to reassess the evidence and charge him with murder. His girlfriend was also considered as an accomplice and was charged with murder as well.
- Hiroshi Ogawa – Japanese baseball player
Convicted of murder in the first degree, Hiroshi is a retired Japanese baseball player. As per the claims of prosecution, the veteran was in debt and demanded money from housekeeper of chairman of an industrial plant. On her refusal, he committed a burglary stealing over $20,000 and killed the housekeeper by drowning her in a nearby lake. This matter was taken to the courts and on 2005, he was convicted for murder and was sentenced to life in prison.
Here were some of the famous sports personalities that were convicted of sports crime.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
