Aaron Hernandez Pleads Not Guilty in 2012 Double Murder

Disgraced NFL star Aaron Hernandez plead not guilty to all seven charges that have been placed on him for a double murder that occurred in Boston, MA in July 2012.

The former New England Patriots tight end was charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the murder of two men he met in a Boston nightclub.  These new charges are in addition to the charges he faces for the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd last June.

As the hearing began, Hernandez’s lawyer asked the judge if his client could have his handcuffs removed.  The request was denied.

Unlike the case of Odin Lloyd, where Hernandez personally knew the victim, the killings of Cape Verdean nationals Daniel Abreu and Safiro Furtad seem to be a spontaneous event.

“These men were ambushed and executed as they drove home along Shawmut Avenue,” Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel Conley said after a Grand Jury indicted Hernandez on the  homicide charges two weeks ago. “Neither of the victims were involved in gangs, guns or violence of any kind. Their chance encounter inside a club triggered a series of events that culminated in these murders.”

“When the victims’ car stopped at a red light, the SUV (with Hernandez inside) pulled up beside the victims’ car on the right. Aaron Hernandez then fired a .38 caliber revolver multiple times from the driver’s side of his vehicle into the passenger side of the victims’ vehicle,” Conley added.

The victims immediately died at the scene.  According to police reports, witnesses in another vehicles claim they saw a light skinned Hispanic man with short, dark hair driving the SUV.  It wasn’t until the killing of Odin Lloyd that police were able to piece clues together and link Aaron Hernandez to the crime.

Hernandez was a rising star in the NFL and had a contract worth $40 million with the New England Patriot before the team dropped him hours after his arrest last summer.