MILFORD, MASSACHUSETTS // Former NFL star Aaron Hernandez, who was serving a life sentence for murder, was found dead in an apparent suicide in a prison cell in Massachusetts early on Wednesday morning.
Hernandez was found hanging from a bed sheet at the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts at about 3.05am local time, CNN reported, citing a statement from the state’s department of correction.
Authorities tried to revive the former New England Patriots tight end, and he was pronounced dead at UMass Memorial - HealthAlliance Hospital in Leominster at 4.07am.
Hernandez tried to block the cell door from the inside by jamming the door with various items, authorities added.
Hernandez, who was serving a life sentence for a 2013 murder, was acquitted on Friday in a 2012 double murder prosecutors said was fuelled by his anger over a drink spilled at a nightclub.
* Associated Press and Reuters
