Aaron Hernandez, the NFL tight end turned convicted murderer, has been placed on suicide watch and taken to MCI Cedar Junction in Massachusetts where he will stay until transported to a permanent prison.
Hernandez was sentenced to life Wednesday (April 15) after a jury found him guilty in the 2013 murder of his one time friend Odin Lloyd. Lloyd’s bullet ridden body was found days later in an industrial park not too far from Hernandez home.
TMZ reports the former New England Patriot has been isolated from the general population due to his celebrity and it’s not uncommon for someone given a life sentence to be placed on suicide watch.
The 6’1, 25 year old showed no emotion during the verdict and turned to his mother and fiance who wept and told them to “be strong.”
Hernandez, who once had a $40 million contract with the Patriots, will be shipped to the Souza-Baranowski Correction Center, Souza for short, where he will serve out his term. The new prison, built in 1998, has tight security with 366 cameras recording 24/7.
It’s unclear if Hernandez will stay in solitary confinement, among the general population, the “lifer’s block” for those serving a life sentence or the “kitchen block” for those working in the kitchen.