The estate of former NFL player Aaron Hernandez has settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the families of two men he was accused of murdering in 2012, according to TMZ.
The former New England Patriots player who committed suicide in jail in 2017, was accused of having a hand in the drive-by shooting of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado who were gunned down after they left a Boston bar.
Hernandez was put on trial for the double murder, but his defense team claimed that the men were killed over a failed drug deal by another of Hernandez’ associates. Ultimately the player was acquitted of the murders in April of 2017. Several days later Hernandez hung himself in the jail where he was serving a life sentence for killing a third man, Odin Lloyd.
The families of the two 2012 murder victims filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Hernandez before he died, but after more than three years in court, the case has been settled.
According to ESPN, court records show that a Superior Court judge ordered the dismissal of the lawsuit on July 23.
A spokesman for the Abreu family claimed that the undisclosed settlement “honors the legacy and memory of Daniel de Abreu, my client’s former husband.”
An attorney for the Hernandez estate insisted that no assets of the estate were used to settle the lawsuit.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.