In the world of chauffeuring celebrities, the unexpected comes with the job. But even seasoned drivers aren’t prepared for their boss to stagger outside, holding a gun, and say, “I think I killed somebody.” That’s exactly what happened to Adriano De Souza, Phil Spector’s driver, who made a frantic 911 call that set off one of Hollywood’s most shocking murder cases.
It was February 3, 2003. De Souza had spent the night driving Hall of Fame musician, songwriter, and producer–Phil Spector–to bars and clubs. Spector met actress Lana Clarkson who was working as a club hostess. De Souza drove the two back to Spector’s Alhambra mansion. He waited outside as the night wound down—until he heard a “pow.”
Then Spector appeared outside the house’s back door. He was holding a gun. He reportedly mumbled, “I think I killed somebody.”
De Souza froze. Clarkson’s body was visible inside, slumped in a chair. Blood covered her face. “I didn’t know what to do,” De Souza later told the jury. “He could shoot me.” Realizing his car was still running, he made a snap decision. “I tried to escape from that place.” De Souza pulled out of the driveway, but only went as far as the gate. He needed help—and fast.
First, he called Spector’s assistant, Michelle Blaine and blurted out, “Michelle… I think he killed some—a lady.” No answer. Just voicemail.
Still panicking, he dialed 911. “I think my boss killed somebody,” he said. His voice trembled.
This would have been a great time for the police to spring into action, protecting De Souza from any lingering danger. Instead, the operator asked De Souza why he believed that. The driver stammered. “Because … he, he have a lady on the, on the floor and he have a gun in, in his hand.”
The chauffeur’s pivotal 911 call reporting Phil Spector
What happened next made his nightmare worse. Instead of dispatching help immediately, the operator asked for a play-by-play of the night. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, she shuffled him to another department. “Oh my God. Again?” De Souza asked as he was forced to repeat the story–parked in Phil Spector’s driveway.
He pleaded for someone to come quickly. “I’m afraid to go inside again,” he said, worried Spector might reappear in the rearview mirror, gun in hand. But the dispatcher didn’t tell him to leave. Instead, they asked more questions while De Souza waited, terrified.
Police finally arrived to find Clarkson dead in Phil Spector’s foyer. Spector claimed it was suicide. “She kissed the gun… She killed herself,” he told Esquire later.
But De Souza’s testimony painted a different picture. He told the jury he heard “like a noise”—the gunshot—and described Spector’s chilling confession.
The defense tried to shake his story, saying the Brazilian-born De Souza misunderstood Spector’s words because of his accent. De Souza stood firm. He even mimicked Spector’s nasal voice in court to prove he could understand the musician just fine.
In the end, the jury believed De Souza. Phil Spector was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 19 years to life. He would later die in prison of suspected COVID complications.
