Patriots’ Robert Kraft Testifies During Aaron Hernandez Trial

Robert Kraft, the New England Patriots owner, took to the stand today to talk about his meeting with Aaron Hernandez, which took place two days after the murder of Odin Lloyd.

The witness for the prosecution was specifically asked about June 19, 2013, when the investigation and the media coverage began to heat up. As a result, the owner met with Hernandez to discuss the player’s involvement.

“I understood there was an incident that had transpired, and I wanted to know whether he was involved,” Kraft testified. “And if he was — any player that comes into our system, I consider part of our extended family, and I wanted to get him help.”

But Hernandez denied all involvement and even claimed that he was still at the club when the incident took place. Prosecutors believe he was at the club earlier, but allegedly left with Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz to commit the murder.

Following the meeting, Kraft only saw Hernandez one more time, where he thanked the owner for his concern. The former tight end was arrested less than a week later.

Kraft is not the only member of the Patriots organization that will testify. Coach Bill Belichick and the head of Patriots’ security are both on the witness list: the latter is expected to testify today.

This high-profile case has seen its fair share of media attention. Last week, a bomb threat was called in, delaying the trial. On top of this, Hernandez’s fiancée testified yesterday about disposing a box and the judge made a controversial ruling last Thursday, which allowed the prosecution to use the defendant’s jailhouse calls.