Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez, currently serving a life sentence for first-degree murder, is facing a new charge of witness intimidation in a double-homicide case against him.
A grand jury returned an indictment against Hernandez last Friday charging him with shooting a man in the face and leaving him to die on the side of the road two years ago, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office announced Monday.
Hernandez was convicted last month in the June 2013 shooting death of semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancee.
In another case, Hernandez was indicted last May on two counts of first- degree murder and other charges in the shooting deaths of two men in Boston on July 16, 2012.
He is accused of ambushing the victims and firing into their car following an incident at a nightclub.
The witness intimidation charge is connected to that case. Prosecutors allege Hernandez shot an acquaintance on Feb. 13, 2013, after the man made a remark about the 2012 double slayings.
The district attorney's office didn't name the victim as a matter of policy, but it is believed to be Hernandez's friend Alexander Bradley, who has sued the former tight end in Florida.
Although the incident took place in Riviera Beach, Florida, Hernandez can be prosecuted in Massachusetts for "willfully causing physical injury to a witness with the intent to impede a Suffolk County criminal investigation," the DA's office said.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison.
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