Aaron Hernandez jerseys aren’t too hot an item across New England after the former Patriots tight end was arrested for first-degree murder, and the team seems to understand that.
On Friday the New England Patriots announced that any fan with an Aaron Hernandez jersey can come into the team store and swap it with a free jersey of comparable value. The exchange is available during the weekend of July 6-7 at the Patriot Pro Shop.
It seems a generous offer from a team that showed no sympathy to Hernandez. In the week leading up to his arrest, as police repeatedly searched the home of the tight end, Patriots officials seemed no patience for Hernandez. When we was finally arrested on Wednesday, the Patriots wasted no time in dealing with him, announcing two hours later that they’d cut Hernandez.
But the Patriots did seem to want to do right by their fans.
“We know that children love wearing their Patriots jerseys but may not understand why parents don’t want them wearing their Hernandez jerseys anymore,” Patriots spokesman Stacey James said in a statement. “We hope this opportunity to exchange those jerseys at the Patriots Pro Shop for another player’s jersey will be well received by parents.”
Police have charged Hernandez with first-degree murder for the death of Odin Lloyd , a semi-pro football player who was an associate of Hernandez. They did not say that Hernandez actually pulled the trigger, but said he orchestrated the murder and drove Lloyd the remote location where he was later found dead.
Police sources say Aaron Hernandez is now being investigated in a double homicide in Boston in 2012, a case that may be related to the murder of Lloyd. Sources say that Lloyd may have had information about the other murder.
Fans who think about trading in their Aaron Hernandez jerseys in the Patriots jersey exchange might want to check out all their options first. There were several jerseys for sale on eBay , with some fetching more than $200.