Aaron Hernandez Found Not Guilty In Double Murder

Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has been found not guilty of murder on Friday.

Hernandez was accusing of shooting Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado in July 2012 as they were stopped at a red light in Boston.

The news of the verdict broke on Friday afternoon after a week of jury discussion.

Hernandez is currently serving a life sentence for murdering Oldin Lloyd in 2013. He is not eligible for parole.

As USA Today points out, the verdict came a day before the two-year anniversary of Hernandez’s previous conviction.

While not found guilty of the murders of de Abreu and Furtado, Hernandez was found guilty of unlawful gun possession. The sentence for that charge to 4-5 years in state prison, which is separate for his current life sentence.

Hernandez’s fiance, Shayanna Jenkins, told reporters outside the hearing that she was “very, very happy” with the verdict.

Hernandez played for the Patriots from 2010-2012, but his crimes and reputation soon made him an infamous figure in the sports world.

In this case, the defense argued that Hernandez’s friend Alexander Bradley was the real culprit behind the double-murder.

Bradley, who had an immunity deal with the prosecution, alleged that Hernandez became angry at de Abreu for bumping into him at a nightclub. Bradley said he drove as Hernandez later shot up the victims while they were at a stoplight.

It was also alleged that Hernandez shot Bradley in the face at a later date up mentioning the crime. Bradly lost his right eye in that incident.

The defense responded to these accusations by pushing a narrative that involved Bradley shooting the men after a drug deal went wrong.

[h/t USA Today]