Aaron Hernandez jerseys and memorabilia have been turning a serious profit on sites like eBay since he was arrested and charged with murder last Wednesday. The former New England Patriots tight end may never play in the NFL again. Despite the alarming accusations that continue to pile up, Hernandez’s jerseys and autographed items remain in high demand.
However, many sports memorabilia stores in New England are refusing to hike prices on Hernandez items. TMZ spoke with the owners of several stores, all of who agreed they are sticking to business as usual despite the rise in demand.
“We don’t want to make money off this incident,” the owner of Sportsworld USA in Saugus, Mass. said. “It’s what we consider blood money. We just want to get our money back.”
[Related: Aaron Hernandez jerseys removed from NFL shop]
The owner of Your Sports Memorabilia in Boston echoed those sentiments.
“I do not stand for what he allegedly did and wouldn’t want to profit off an individual who was murdered,” he said “… Sports memorabilia is a dirty industry and this is one of the reasons why.”
The person in charge of SureShot Promotions in Hanson, Mass. said they have even been discounting some Hernandez apparel, calling it a “sad situation.” And to prove demand truly is high, the owner of New England Pictures in Manchester, NH told TMZ they sold more Hernandez jerseys the day he was arrested than they did in the previous six months.
As for the auction market, ESPN’s Michele Steele spoke with the head of an auction house who downplayed the idea that Hernandez memorabilia has become more valuable. The source said Hernandez jerseys have “no value” and that he “cannot emphasize that enough.”
[Related: Patriots offer free exchange of Aaron Hernandez jerseys]
On Wednesday, Yahoo! Sports told us about a vigilante who has been submitting winning bids for Hernandez items on eBay and then refusing to pay, instead sending the sellers hostile messages.
“I don’t think that I will be getting paid,” one seller wrote to Yahoo! Sports. “The person emailed me stating I should ‘burn the jersey and stop seeking money for that morons (sic) actions’. Looks like the person has some kind of social agenda.”
Apparently a number of sports memorabilia stores have a similar agenda. Money isn’t everything — at least for some.
