Vanilla Ice made his name in the early ’90s as a rapper, but these days he’s renovating homes in Florida for the DIY Network. As of Wednesday, he may be reconsidering his career move, as he was arrested for burglary and grand theft after police found items in his home that had been taken from a house next door to one he was fixing up.
Among the stolen items were a pool heater and some furniture, and Ice (real name Robert Van Winkle) says he thought the home had been abandoned. The property is in the midst of foreclosure, however, and the owners identified the items as their own.
“The property was identified by the victim at the location and returned to the rightful owner,” a police statement read.
Ice has been doing his show, The Vanilla Ice Project, for quite a while now on the DIY Network, but before that he was still making music. He made headlines earlier this year when Gwyneth Paltrow revealed to Howard Stern that she almost took the lead role in his film Cool As Ice before her dad forbade it.
“My dad, he was like the greatest asset in my life, and he was so smart. I said, ‘Dad I don’t know what to do. I got offered the lead in the movie.’ I must have been 19 years old, I was so thrilled. It was like $50,000 and I was starring in a film. And he read it. On the first page the guy asks for my phone number and the number ends in 69-69. He was like, ‘I forbid it!’” Paltrow said.
Right now it’s not clear what will become of Vanilla Ice following his arrest.