The older brother of Aaron Hernandez spoke publicly Tuesday for the first time since the former New England Patriots tight end’s death by suicide last month.
Jonathan Hernandez expressed his enduring love for his brother in a statement released to multiple news outlets.
“From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank everyone who has supported my mother and me during such difficult times,” Jonathan Hernandez said, via The Providence Journal.
“My younger brother Aaron was far from perfect, but I will always love him. Many stories about my brother’s life have been shared with the public — except the story Aaron was brave enough to share with our mother and me. It’s the one story he wanted us to share with the world.
“It is Aaron’s truth.”
Hernandez did not explain what this “truth” is, but the second half of his statement suggests he plans to share his brother’s story at some point in the future.
At the time of his death, Aaron Hernandez was serving a life sentence for the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd. He was found not guilty of the murders of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado just days before he was found dead in his cell at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center.
Jonathan Hernandez, who is three years older than Aaron, played quarterback and wide receiver at UConn before beginning a career in coaching. He worked as an assistant at Iowa and Brown and now serves as head coach at Ledyard High School in his home state of Connecticut.
Thumbnail photo via The Sun Chronicle/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
