It’s not uncommon for NFL players to run into legal trouble, but what Aaron Hernandez did was next level.
In 2013, New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was arrested and later convicted of murdering Odin Lloyd, a semi-pro football player who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancée.
Evidence suggested that Lloyd may have been talking to police at a Boston nightclub while with Hernandez. Some believe Lloyd witnessed Aaron Hernandez’s involvement in a double homicide. If Lloyd testified, it could have led to Hernandez’s imprisonment, which is why many think Hernandez ultimately killed Lloyd.
Recently, a video surfaced showing a cheerful Aaron Hernandez discussing “bounties,” referencing the “Bountygate” scandal during Sean Payton’s tenure as head coach of the New Orleans Saints. The Saints were found to have placed bounties on opposing players, rewarding hits that caused injuries.
In the video, a fan asked Hernandez how much a hit would cost if placed on him. Hernandez replied that he wouldn’t be upset if there was a bounty on his head. When asked again about the cost of a hit on him, Hernandez responded with, “No comment.”
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Aaron Hernandez was convicted of killing Odin Lloyd on June 17, 2013. In 2015, he was sentenced to life in prison for Lloyd’s murder. Hernandez died by suicide in 2017, hanging himself in his jail cell.
Hernandez’s death came as a shock, especially since he had recently been acquitted of the 2012 murders of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado, who were killed in a drive-by shooting outside the Boston nightclub Cure. He was also found not guilty of five of six other charges, including armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
Shayanna Jenkins, Hernandez’s fiancée and the mother of their child, responded to jokes about Hernandez during Netflix’s “The Roast of Tom Brady.”
“It’s sad that I’m trying to raise my children in such a cruel world,” Jenkins told TMZ regarding her 11-year-old daughter.
