SHIRLEY, Mass. — State Police have released a report after their investigation into Aaron Hernandez’s suicide and request that the case be closed.
Hernandez, a former New England Patriots tight end who had been convicted of murder, was found hanged in his prison cell at Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center on April 19.
The report says an officer was making rounds just after 3 a.m. when a bed sheet was found hanging over the door of Hernandez’s cell. When the officer called in to Hernandez there was no answer, and when the officer moved the bed sheet it fell, exposing Hernandez’s naked body hanging from a bed sheet tied to the window bars.
The officer called for the cell to be unlocked, but a piece of cardboard was jamming the tracks, forcing the officer to manually open the door.
Once officers were able to enter the cell, they discovered a large amount of shampoo on the floor making it very slippery.
- Aaron Hernandez found hanged in cell
- Investigators taking closer look at Hernandez's final hours
- Third Hernandez suicide note addressed to inmate, lawyer says
- Growing concern for high rate of suicides in Massachusetts prisons
- Father of South End murder victim takes 'no joy' in Hernandez suicide
Two officers went in to the cell, one of whom lifted Hernandez's body while another cut the sheet so he could be lowered to the ground. The officers attempted to revive him until paramedics arrived. Hernandez was then transported to UMass Hospital in Leominster, where he was pronounced dead.
According to the State Police report, Hernandez had a fresh cut on his right middle finger and large, circular blood marks on his feet. In addition, “John 3:16” was written on his forehead in ink and on the wall in a substance “consistent with blood.”
Police said there were also drawings on the wall of the cell and a Bible was open to John 3:16 with blood on the specific verse.
Police said surveillance video of the cell block shows that no one entered or exited the cell between 8 p.m. on April 18 -- when Hernandez was locked in -- and 3 a.m. when his body was discovered.
Three hand-written letters were found in the cell, but the police report does not describe their contents. A State Police Sergeant also reported listening to the last five phone calls made by Hernandez but said there were no indications he intended to harm himself.
A toxicology screen performed by the Medical Examiner came back negative for all substances including synthetic marijuana and the cause of death was officially ruled a suicide by hanging.
Hernandez 's prison file also includes his disciplinary record, which shows he was written up numerous times.
The offenses include fighting, possession of a homemade knife, disrespecting officers, and getting prison tattoos
A number of inmates from Hernandez's cell block were interviewed after his suicide. All expressed surprise that Hernandez would take his own life.
One inmate described Hernandez as unusually "happily emotional.” Another who washed clothes for Hernandez said he had asked that he have the laundry "ready for the weekend because he was expecting a visit from his fiancee and daughter"
An unnamed man who told investigators he was Hernandez's closest friends said the former football star "had been talking about the NFL and going back to play even if it wasn't with the Pats."
Aaron Hernandez Timeline: From Odin Lloyd's death to present