Carlos Ortiz, a suspect charged in the Aaron Hernandez murder case, changed his story and told prosecutors only the former New England Patriots star exited the car with Odin Lloyd moments before Lloyd's death, the Boston Globe and Hartford Courant reports.
Ortiz originally said Hernandez and Ernest Wallace, who's charged as an accessory after the fact in the murder of Lloyd, both exited the car with Lloyd in a North Attleborough industrial park, where Lloyd's body was later found.
Prosecutor Patrick Bomberg, during a bail hearing for Wallace on Thursday, said Ortiz changed his initial story and now "does not think" Wallace left the car with Hernandez and Lloyd. Ortiz's amended account of the events leading up to Lloyd's murder now suggests Hernandez acted alone when he allegedly shot Lloyd to death.
Ortiz has spoken to authorities about the night of Lloyd's death, according to multiple news outlets, and is expected to be the Commonwealth's key witness against Hernandez. While the story change is helpful for Wallace, it could hurt the prosecution's case against Hernandez by casting doubt on Ortiz's credibility as a witness.
Ortiz's credibility was further questioned by a lawyer for Wallace, David Meier.
Meier said during Wallace's bail hearing that during an interview between Ortiz and police, Ortiz admitted that surveillance footage showed him with a white towel around his neck prior to Lloyd's death. Police found a white towel at the crime scene, according to court documents that Meier cited.
Ortiz had originally been arrested on a weapons charge. On Friday, the Associated Press reported a grand jury indicted Ortiz on a charge of accessory to murder after the fact.
Authorities believe Lloyd was murdered with a .45 caliber pistol, which hasn't been recovered.
Lloyd, a semi-pro football player and friend of Hernandez, was killed on June 17. A grand jury indicted Hernandez earlier in September for multiple charges, including first-degree murder. Hernandez has pleaded not guilty, and his attorneys characterized the Commonwealth's case as circumstantial and weak.
