Ex-NFL Star Hernandez Found Hanged in Prison, Family Seeks Probe

Ex-NFL Star Hernandez Found Hanged in Prison, Family Seeks Probe
Former NFL player Aaron Hernandez and defense attorney Charles Rankin wait in the courtroom during the jury deliberation in his murder trial at the Bristol County Superior Court in Fall River, Massachusetts on April 10, 2015. (REUTERS/CJ Gunther/Pool)
Reuters
4/19/2017
Updated:
5/1/2017

BOSTON—Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was found hanged on Wednesday in a prison cell where he was serving a life sentence for murder, prison officials said. His family called for an immediate investigation into the circumstances.

The body of the 27-year-old former athlete was found hanging from a bed sheet at the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts. Hernandez was serving a life sentence for the 2013 murder of an acquaintance but on Friday had been found not guilty of killing two other people.

State police were investigating the circumstances of the death of the former rising star in the National Football League, and a coroner was performing an autopsy on Wednesday.

“There were no conversations or correspondence from Aaron to his family or legal team that would have indicated anything like this was possible,” said lawyer Jose Baez, who successfully defended Hernandez in the double-murder trial. “Aaron was looking forward to an opportunity for a second chance to prove his innocence.”

Baez called on authorities to “conduct a transparent and thorough investigation” and promised his own examination of the death.

Prison officials patrol the roads around the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts, U.S., where former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez was found dead in his jail cell April 19, 2017. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
Prison officials patrol the roads around the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts, U.S., where former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez was found dead in his jail cell April 19, 2017. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)