In the failed murder prosecution of O.J. Simpson in 1995, the government professed that he alone had killed his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.
在1995年对O·J·辛普森谋杀案起诉失败的那起案件中，政府声称是他独自杀害了前妻妮可·布朗·辛普森和她的朋友罗纳德·戈德曼。
Among the issues that hampered the case: the lack of a murder weapon, which has never been found. Its absence has long stoked speculation about whether the killer had assistance.
阻碍本案调查的问题之一是凶器的缺失，而且凶器至今从未被找到。凶器缺失长期以来引发了关于凶手是否曾获他人协助的猜测。
Now, records unsealed after 30 years at the request of The New York Times show that a prized government informant had told law enforcement key information about the killings, including the supposed location of the murder weapon and details about Mr. Simpson’s efforts to evade prosecution. Together, the findings challenge the popular narrative around the case.
如今，应《纽约时报》请求解封的尘封30年记录显示，一名政府重点线人曾向执法部门提供关于这起杀人案的关键信息，包括凶器据称所在的位置，以及辛普森为逃避起诉所采取的行动细节。这些发现共同挑战了围绕此案的普遍说法。
This year, the informant’s brother told The Times that his sibling’s role in the case went much deeper. And the brother said he actually helped discard a bag, containing a heavy object, in the hours after the murders.
今年，这名线人的兄弟告诉《纽约时报》，其兄弟在此案中的角色远比外界所知更为深远。这名兄弟还表示，他本人在谋杀案发生后的几小时内曾协助丢弃了一个内装重物的袋子。
An ‘extremely reliable’ informant offered information about O.J. Simpson.
一名“极其可靠”的线人提供了关于O.J.辛普森的信息。
Joseph Ippolito, known as Joey, a convicted drug trafficker and mafia associate, escaped from a Florida prison a month before the 1994 murders.
约瑟夫·伊波利托（人称乔伊）是一名被定罪的毒贩和黑手党成员，在1994年谋杀案发生前一个月从佛罗里达一所监狱逃脱。
Mr. Ippolito’s brother said the siblings went west after the escape to Los Angeles. Before his incarceration, Mr. Ippolito had operated a popular restaurant there and was a close friend of Al Cowlings, the longtime confidant of Mr. Simpson.
伊波利托的兄弟说，逃脱后，兄弟俩向西前往洛杉矶。入狱前，伊波利托曾在那里经营一家受欢迎的餐厅，并且是辛普森长期亲信阿尔·考林斯的密友。
In the wake of the infamous Bronco chase with Mr. Simpson and Mr. Cowlings, investigators found photos in the vehicle of one of Mr. Ippolito’s girlfriends, along with her phone number.
在辛普森和考林斯那场臭名昭著的布朗科越野车追逐事件之后，调查人员在这辆车中发现了伊波利托其中一名女友的照片以及她的电话号码。
Mr. Ippolito was eventually brought back into custody a year later. Right away, records show, he fed federal investigators in New York information about the mafia and set up meetings with undercover drug agents, with prosecutors saying that they “found Ippolito to be a remarkable source of information.” Mr. Ippolito risked his own safety to help them, prosecutors wrote in a memo lobbying a federal judge for leniency in his sentence.
伊波利托最终在一年后再次被拘留。记录显示，他随即向纽约的联邦调查人员提供了关于黑手党的信息，并安排了与卧底缉毒探员的会面，检察官称，他们“发现伊波利托是一个极其宝贵的信息来源”。检察官在一份游说法官对其从轻判决的备忘录中写道，伊波利托冒着自身安全风险协助了调查。
He also divulged information about Mr. Simpson and the killings.
他还泄露了关于辛普森和这起杀人案的信息。
The informant spoke about the missing murder weapon.
这名线人谈到了失踪的凶器。
Prosecutors said that Mr. Ippolito’s close relationship with Mr. Cowlings and Mr. Simpson made him “privy to many facts relevant to the case, including Mr. Simpson’s alleged domestic violence, the Simpsons’ narcotics usage, Mr. Simpson’s attempted flight from justice, and his disposal of the murder weapon.”
检察官说，伊波利托与考林斯和辛普森的密切关系使他“知晓许多与本案相关的事实，包括辛普森涉嫌的家庭暴力、辛普森夫妇吸毒、辛普森试图逃避司法，以及他处理凶器的情况”。
Details of Mr. Ippolito’s cooperation were outlined in a federal court memo, as well as a sentencing hearing transcript, obtained by The Times. A federal prosecutor, a former U.S. marshal, a former agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration and an official involved in prosecuting the murder case also independently confirmed Mr. Ippolito’s cooperation.
《纽约时报》获得的一份联邦法院备忘录以及一份量刑听证会记录概述了伊波利托合作的细节。一名联邦检察官、一名前美国法警、一名前缉毒局探员以及一名参与起诉此谋杀案的官员也分别独立证实了伊波利托的合作。
Federal officials said they shared the information with prosecutors in Los Angeles. But the information arrived near the end of the murder trial, which was attracting global attention. Mr. Ippolito was never called as a witness. He died in 2006.
联邦官员说，他们已将信息分享给洛杉矶的检察官。但信息送达时，这场吸引全球关注的谋杀案审判已接近尾声。伊波利托从未被传唤作证。他于2006年去世。
The informant’s brother said his sibling was at the murder scene.
这名线人的兄弟说，其兄弟曾在谋杀现场。
Earlier this year, one of Mr. Ippolito’s brothers, Sam, told The Times that they were staying at a West Hollywood apartment on the night of the murders in 1994. Joey told Sam he was going out for the night to help a friend. Sam said his brother came back hours later with what appeared to be blood on his hands and a bag that contained a heavy object. Joey asked his brother to get rid of the bag, Sam Ippolito recalled. Sam Ippolito said he tossed it into a construction site dumpster nearby.
今年早些时候，伊波利托的兄弟之一萨姆告诉《纽约时报》，1994年谋杀案发生当晚，他们住在西好莱坞的一套公寓里。乔伊告诉萨姆，他当晚要出去帮一个朋友。萨姆说，几个小时后，他的兄弟回来了，手上似乎有血，还带着一个装有重物的袋子。萨姆·伊波利托回忆说，乔伊让自己把袋子处理掉。萨姆·伊波利托说，他把它扔进了附近一个建筑工地的垃圾箱。
Sam Ippolito said he was confident his brother had been at the scene of the murders. Months after the Times interview, Sam Ippolito asked for compensation. When a reporter declined, he recanted his story and said he “was offered a ton of money” to tell his story elsewhere, apparently for an upcoming documentary.
萨姆·伊波利托说，他确信自己的兄弟曾出现在谋杀现场。在接受《纽约时报》采访数月后，萨姆·伊波利托要求获得报酬。当一名记者拒绝时，他推翻了之前的说法，并说自己“被提供了一大笔钱”去别处讲述自己的故事，显然是为了一部即将上映的纪录片。
Simpson once described a ‘hypothetical’ accomplice.
辛普森曾描述过一名“假设”的同伙。
In 2007, Mr. Simpson went public with a “hypothetical” confession to the murders, published in the book “If I Did It.” In that account, he described a friend who was with him on the night of the murders, who first was a horrified bystander but then agreed to take the murder weapon and Mr. Simpson’s bloody clothes.
2007年，辛普森公开了对这起谋杀案的“假设性”认罪，发表在《如果是我干的》(If I Did It)一书中。在书中，他描述了一位在谋杀当晚与他在一起的朋友，此人起初是一名惊恐的旁观者，但后来同意帮他处理凶器和辛普森沾满血迹的衣服。
Prosecutors and investigators gave little credence to the details of Mr. Simpson’s tale, and they did little to follow up on the idea that someone may have aided in helping Mr. Simpson get rid of the murder weapon.
检察官和调查人员对辛普森叙述的细节几乎不予采信，也几乎没有跟进有人可能帮助辛普森处理凶器的说法。
Investigators remain skeptical. The case remains open.
调查人员仍持怀疑态度。此案仍未结案。
The Times found that Mr. Ippolito’s name had surfaced early — and repeatedly — in the murder investigation. Police investigators asked about him. The defense team examined him, checking into his mafia ties and exploring whether he could be considered a suspect.
《纽约时报》发现，伊波利托的名字早在谋杀案调查初期就出现过——而且反复出现。警方调查人员曾询问过他。辩护团队也对他进行了调查，核查了他与黑手党的联系，并探究他是否可能被视为嫌疑人。
Tom Lange, who was the lead detective in the Simpson case, said he recalled Mr. Ippolito’s name coming up but didn’t consider him a serious suspect. He still does not believe Mr. Simpson had help.
曾担任辛普森案首席侦探的汤姆·兰格表示，他记得伊波利托的名字曾被提到，但并未将其视为重要嫌疑人。他至今仍不相信辛普森有帮手。
Mr. Simpson was eventually held civilly liable for the deaths. He died in 2024.
辛普森最终被判定对这两起死亡事件承担民事责任。他于2024年去世。
The Times learned that last year, investigators with the Los Angeles Police Department’s cold case unit were making calls to collect information about accomplice theories.
《纽约时报》获悉，去年，洛杉矶警察局悬案组的调查人员曾致电多方，收集关于共犯理论的信息。
A police department spokesman said last week that the “O.J. Simpson case remains an open and ongoing investigation.” Because there was no conviction in the murders, “the department has an obligation to continue to pursue justice in this matter.” The spokesman added, “at a point that new evidence is found, detectives will follow those investigatory leads.”
警方发言人上周说，“O·J·辛普森案仍是未结且正在调查中的案件。” 由于该谋杀案尚未作出定罪判决，“警局有义务继续在此事中追求正义”。发言人还说，“一旦发现新证据，警探们将循着这些调查线索跟进。”
