The Aaron Hernandez case involving the shooting death of Odin Lloyd took an interesting turn last week, as his girlfriend Shayanna Jenkins along with his cousin Tanya Singleton and two accomplices in the case in Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz were brought into court on new charges regarding the case.
According to ESPN.com, Jenkins was charged with perjury for allegedly lying to the grand jury looking into the Hernandez case, while Singleton was indicted and arraigned on conspiracy charges for her involvement after the crime. The ESPN report says that Singleton may have helped Ernest Wallace, an arrested accomplice in the case, flee after the murder to Florida, buying him a bus ticket to help him get out of town after he came to her home after the shooting.
Reports have said that Wallace and Ortiz hung out at the house Singleton lived at with her uncle and she was brought into court this week on charges of "conspiracy to commit accessory after the fact to murder", which obviously is a serious charge and she pleaded not guilty in court in Fall River. Hernandez has also pleaded not guilty to his charges, while Jenkins has yet to be arraigned in court.
Singleton previously was in custody for refusing to testify in front of the grand jury and details about what happened after the murder included that she drove Wallace to Georgia and later bought him a bus ticket to Florida, where he had family. Singleton may be able to get out on bail at a later time and she will be back in court later in October for pretrial issues and other details. The case has continued to build since Hernandez was arrested and now his girlfriend is facing serious charges as well.
According to ESPN.com, Jenkins is facing up to 20 years in prison for the perjury charges and based on state law, she could be facing life in prison for lying to a grand jury in a murder trial investigation. ESPN reported that Jenkins will be in court in the coming weeks for her arraignment, while prosecutors did not detail what she is accused of lying or misleading police about.
Jenkins is a connection between Hernandez and Lloyd, as he sister was dating the former semi-pro football player at the time of his death. Hernandez was arrested from the house he shared with Jenkins a week after Lloyd's body was found less than a mile from his home shot to death and lawyers have said the murder stemmed from a dispute the two had at a nightclub. Some past reports have said Jenkins mentioned that she thought Lloyd was a drug dealer, but it's unclear if that's where the charges stem from.