DARTMOUTH, Mass. (WPRI) — When Aaron Hernandez appeared in court this week sporting a new tattoo on his neck, many wondered how he was able to get it while in a maximum security prison.

Bristol County House of Corrections Superintendent Steve Souza knew Hernandez while he was housed there during the Odin Lloyd murder trial. He says it’s possible another inmate could have inked the former Patriots player behind bars.

“They’ll utilize anything they can use,” Souza told Eyewitness News. “They could use a staple, they could use a paperclip, they could use a pen that they’ll sharpen down to a point.

Souza says Hernandez’s five-point star tattoo, which reads “Lifetime”, could possibly have two meanings.

“You can relate it to that he has a lifetime now in jail, or you can relate it to lifetime being in a gang,” he explained.

A spokesperson from the Massachusetts Department of Correction says any prisoner found with a tattoo that was previously undocumented is subject to discipline.Copyright 2015 WPRI