Aaron Hernandez, the convicted killer and former New England Patriots star, wrote a popular Bible verse on his forehead using a red marker pen before committing suicide in his Massachusetts jail cell, it has been claimed.

The disgraced ex NFL star reportedly scrawled the verse ‘John 3:16’, which reads: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’

He also left a Bible in his cell on to that verse, according to CBS Boston. The verse has been referred to as ‘The Gospel in a Nutshell’.

Investigators are also said to be looking at the possibility Hernandez smoked K2 synthetic marijuana before taking his own life.

Inmates are telling investigators that Hernandez was high on K2 – also known as ‘Spice’ – prior to his death, DailyMail.com has learned.

That’s the same drug he was said to be smoking the night of Lloyd’s murder. Although the chemical composition of the drug varies, it’s been linked to psychotic episodes, collapses and seizures among users.

The investigative team is also looking at a 22-year-old friend and fellow inmate of Hernandez’s who is believed to be the last person to see him alive. The inmate is now under suicide watch.

The fresh developments came after it was suggested Hernandez may have – inadvertently or intentionally – cleared his own name by committing suicide early this morning.

Under a long-standing state legal principle, courts customarily vacate the convictions of defendants who die before their appeals are heard.

The former Patriot tight-end was found hanged with his own bed sheets at 3am this morning at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts.

It comes less than a week after he was acquitted of the 2012 murders of Boston men Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado.

He was already serving a life sentence for the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd, a semi-professional football player who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s finance.

Hernandez’s attorneys can now move to have the conviction in the Lloyd case erased, said Martin Healy, chief legal counsel for the Massachusetts Bar Association.

‘For all intent and practical purposes, Aaron Hernandez will die an innocent man,’ said Healy.

Hernandez’s shock suicide came on the same day his former teammates were honored at the White House for their recent Super Bowl win.

Hours after Hernandez’s death, quarterback Tom Brady said he would not be attending the Patriots celebration.

He cited ‘recent developments’ and said he was ‘attending to some personal family matters’. He thanked President Trump for ‘supporting our team as long as I can remember’.

He later posted a photo on Instagram of his parents – thanking them for their loving relationship.

Christopher Fallon, the assistant deputy commissioner of communications of the Massachusetts Department of Correction, sent out a message after Hernandez’s death on Wednesday.

‘On April 19, 2017 Aaron Hernandez was discovered hanged in his cell by corrections officers at the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley Massachusetts at approximately 3:05am.

‘Lifesaving techniques were attempted on Mr Hernandez and he was transported to UMASS Leominster where he was pronounced dead at 4:07am by a physician at the hospital,’ said Fallon.

‘Mr Hernandez was in a single cell in a general population housing unit. Mr Hernandez hanged himself utilizing a bed sheet that he attached to his cell window.

‘Mr Hernandez also attempted to block his door from the inside by jamming the door with various items. The Massachusetts State Police are on scene and the investigation continues. Mr Hernandez’s next of kin have been notified.’

A spokesperson for the Patriots said that the team would not be commenting on Hernandez’s death at this time, stating: ‘We are aware of the reports, but I don’t anticipate that we will be commenting today.’

Reports suggest that Hernandez had a violent record in prison, including many fights with other inmates, but he had never attempted suicide.

Massachusetts State Police are investigating the incident, and will take a look at what time he went to his cell, the last time he was seen by guards.

They will also look into whether there had been any recent incidents between Hernandez and other inmates.

DailyMail.com understands that Hernandez may have developed an antagonistic relationship with some members of the Bloods gang in the prison.

Certainly his links with the group go back at least two years, to May 2015, when he was one of two men who beat up a third man in an attack that was ‘gang-related.’

A source told Fox News Latino at the time: ‘The victim in the fight was some absolute nobody. He was just trying to show he’s down with the Bloods, a scared man looking at life in prison.’

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SOURCE: Daily Mail