Former New England Patriots tight end and convicted murderer Aaron Hernandez was remembered by his family, friends and former teammates at a private funeral service in his hometown of Bristol, Conn., Monday afternoon.
As his loved ones prepared to mourn him, the three suicide notes Hernandez left behind in his prison cell were turned over to his family, ABC News reports.
As previously reported on The Root, Hernandez, 27, hanged himself in his jail cell and was discovered April 19 at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. His death has been ruled a suicide.
At the time Hernandez was discovered in his cell, three handwritten notes were also found, and Paul Jarvey, a spokesman for the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office told ABC News Monday that the notes have now been released to Hernandez’s family.
Hernandez was serving a life sentence for the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd. On April 14, he was acquitted of a separate double murder charge.
According to the Associated Press, in addition to family members and his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins Hernandez, those in attendance at the funeral included twin NFL players Mike and Maurkice Pouncey and football player Brandon Spikes.
A spokeswoman for the Connecticut Funeral Directors Association told ABC that after the services, the family would be having Hernandez’s remains cremated.
Hernandez’s brain was taken to Boston University, where scientists will study it for any signs of repeated trauma he may have suffered while playing football.
