Aaron Hernandez Prison Friend Kyle Kennedy Responds To Inmate's Death

Investigations into the death of Aaron Hernandez continue to probe the circumstances surrounding the suicide of the former New England Patriots tight end, who was serving a life sentence for murder. An explosive April 21 report from Newsweek found that Hernandez, 27, may have had a sexual relationship with a male inmate at the prison, a claim that have been denied by the athlete’s family. Now the inmate, Kyle Kennedy, is speaking out.

“I miss my friend, Aaron Hernandez,” said Kennedy in a Wednesday statement. “I’d like to send my condolences to his fiancée, his mother and his daughter. I would ask the media to respect the privacy of my family. This is a private matter that doesn’t concern them.”

It is unclear whether the nature of the relationship between Kennedy and Hernandez was intimate, though Newsweek reported that Kennedy was “described by multiple law enforcement sources as the prison boyfriend of Hernandez.”

A Monday statement from Kennedy’s attorney, Larry Army Jr., said, “My client is obviously saddened by the loss of his friend, Aaron Hernandez... A letter was left to my client but neither I, nor my client, have seen the letter. We will be requesting that the letter be turned over to my client as soon as possible.”

Read: Aaron Hernandez Found With Bible Verse 'John 3:16' Written On Forehead

Hernandez was found dead in his prison cell April 19 after reportedly using a bed sheet to hang himself from his prison cell window. He was serving a life sentence at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts, for the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd.

Newsweek reported Monday that Hernandez tested positive for a synthetic form of marijuana commonly referred to as K2, according to two law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the case. According to the report, “The lawyer for Kyle Kennedy confirmed that his client, described by multiple law enforcement sources as the prison boyfriend of Hernandez, was the intended recipient of one of the three letters found in the cell where the one-time NFL standout hanged himself.”

A separate investigation on behalf of Hernandez’s family was spearheaded by attorney Jose Baez, who represented Hernandez during the 2017 double-murder trial. The Associated Press reported that a judge on Friday ordered that key evidence in Hernandez's death be preserved so the family can further investigate details surrounding his death.