When Was The Knife At O.J. Simpson's Estate Found

As O.J. Simpson is once again in the news thanks to FX's The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story, possible new evidence in the murder trial of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman was revealed Friday. According to TMZ, a knife buried at O.J. Simpson's estate was uncovered by a construction worker in 1998 or "several years ago," depending on the source, and he gave it to a cop who held onto it for years. TMZ reported that the site was told multiple stories about when exactly the knife — a folding buck knife — but that it is currently being tested by the Los Angeles Police Department in a "top secret investigation," according to law enforcement sources. Update: According to ABC News, the LAPD has confirmed it is testing a knife found on O.J. Simpson's former property, but it's "unclear when the knife was found."

According to TMZ, the construction worker found the knife and then brought it to the LAPD officer. The cop was in the LAPD's traffic division, but at the time the knife was found, he was off-duty and working as security for a movie shoot across the street from Simpson's estate. Sources told TMZ that the cop proceeded to hold onto the knife for years, without alerting law enforcement. TMZ reported that the knife was only brought to the LAPD's attention this past January when — believe it or not — the cop, who had since retired, told a friend who worked in LAPD's Robbery Homicide Division (RHD) that he planned to frame the knife.

TMZ reported that the officer who allegedly held onto the knife found at the O.J. Simpson told his friend about his souvenir because, "he wanted his friend to get the DR (Departmental Record) number for the Nicole Brown Simpson/Ronald Goldman murder case, which he planned on engraving in the frame."

According to TMZ, the friend who works in the LAPD's Robbery Homicide Division reported the knife find to superiors, who "demanded that the retired cop turn the knife over." TMZ reported that sources say the knife is being tested for fingerprints and hair and will then be tested for DNA next week. One source told TMZ that "cops who eyeballed the knife think it could have blood residue on it, but it's hard to know without testing because it's extremely rusted and stained."

In 1995, Simpson was found "not guilty" in the murders of his ex-wife and Goldman. He is currently in prison for a 2007 robbery case in Nevada.