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Aaron Hernandez's fiancee Shayanna Jenkins indicted on perjury charge in Odin Lloyd murder case; cousin also charged
Tanya Singleton, the cousin of the ex-New England Patriots star, was indicted on charge of conspiracy to commit accessory after the fact.
BY KEVIN ARMSTRONG / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Bristol County (Mass.) District Attorney Sam Sutter announced the grand jury indictments of three individuals with close ties to former NFL player Aaron Hernandez, including his fiancée and cousin, in relation to the murder of Odin Lloyd on Friday.
Hernandez's fiancée, Shayanna Jenkins, was indicted on a count of perjury. His cousin, Tanya Singleton, was charged with conspiracy to commit accessory after the fact of Lloyd's slaying. Carlos Ortiz, an alleged accomplice of Hernandez, was indicted as an accessory to murder after the fact.
GEORGE RIZER/AP
Tanya Singleton, a cousin of former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez, is charged on conspiracy to commit accessory after the fact.
Hernandez has been charged with first-degree murder for allegedly orchestrating the execution-style killing of Lloyd, whose body was discovered in an industrial park less than a mile from Hernandez's expansive house on June 17. Hernandez has been held in jail since he was arrested on June 26, but prosecutors and investigators have intensified their probe of what Hernandez and others may have done to help cover up their parts in the murder. His alleged accomplice, Ernest Wallace, was previously charged as an accessory after the fact of murder.
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MARK STOCKWELL/AP
Carlos Ortiz (l.), seen during a June court appearance, is indicted as an accessory to murder after the fact in the shooting death of Odin Lloyd.
Jenkins had not faced any charges until Friday. Singleton, who allegedly bought a bus ticket for Wallace to travel from Georgia to Florida the week after the murder, has been in jail since Aug. 1. She did not respond to a subpoena to testify in front of a grand jury investigating the homicide.
Investigators have been interested in Jenkins for what she may know about what happened to the murder weapon, which has not been recovered by police. Documents submitted to obtain a search warrant suggest Hernandez told Jenkins in a phone conversation and text message, to "get rid of" firearms. According to court records, surveillance camera footage from the North Attleborough, Mass. home she shared with Hernandez and their infant daughter, shows Jenkins leaving the basement of the house around 1:15 p.m. on June 18, carrying a trash bag, which authorities said contained a "rigid object," resembling a lock box. She placed the bag in the trunk of a red Nissan Sentra. Footage showed her returning 35 minutes later and opening the trunk of the car, which no longer held the trash bag and "rigid object," according to the records.
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Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez is facing murder charges in the case.
Jenkins was last seen in court when Hernandez was arraigned on Sept. 6. She sat next to Hernandez's mother, Terri, in the courtroom at the Fall River Justice Center. Her sister, Shaneah, was dating Lloyd at the time of his death. Shaneah has sat with Lloyd's family in court proceedings.
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AP
Odin Lloyd, 27, was found shot to death in an industrial park in North Attleborough, Mass., in June.
Meanwhile, Ortiz was previously charged with illegal firearm possession in relation to the Lloyd case, and has cooperated with investigators, according to court documents. Ortiz travelled up to Hernandez's home on the night of June 16, hours before Lloyd was killed, with Wallace.
Wallace's bail hearing on Thursday brought several revelations, but most important may have been the prosecution's disclosure that Ortiz, long considered the key witness in the case, changed his story with investigators. Assistant District Attorney Patrick Bomberg maintained that Ortiz had told authorities at least six times that both Hernandez and Wallace got out of a car, along with Lloyd, at the industrial park before Ortiz heard gunshots. According to Bomberg, Ortiz now says he doesn't believe Wallace got out of the car.
POOL/REUTERS
Aaron Hernandez, who remains in jail, has pleaded not guilty to murder and gun-related charges.
When asked if the change in Ortiz's story weakens the prosecution's case, district attorney Sam Sutter said, "Not at all."
Attorney David Meier, who is representing Wallace, noted that Ortiz could be placed outside the car when Lloyd was executed. Meier said state troopers in Connecticut questioned Ortiz after the killing when Ortiz reported to a meeting with his probation officer. During that questioning, Ortiz admitted that surveillance footage captured him wearing a white towel around his neck before Lloyd was killed, according to Meier.
Investigators informed Ortiz that the first person to approach Lloyd's body in the industrial park after the shooting left a white towel nearby, Meier said.
Wallace's bail was kept at $500,000. Hernandez has been in jail since he was arrested at his house on June 26. All three defendants have pleaded not guilty thus far. Hernandez is next expected in court on Oct. 9.
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