Sunday marks one year since New Canaan mother of five Jennifer Dulos vanished after dropping her kids off at school. Police believe she was violently murdered by her estranged husband Fotis Dulos.
What to Know
- Jennifer Dulos disappearenced after dropping her children off at school on May 24, 2019. She remains missing nearly a year later.
- Her estranged husband, Fotis Dulos, was charged with her murder. His then-girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, and friend, Kent Mawhinney, were charged as co-conspirators.
- Fotis Dulos after attempting suicide at his home in January, and the charges against him were nolled. The cases against Troconis and Mawhinney continue.
Dulos maintained his innocence until his passing earlier this year. He died after attempting to take his own life. Jennifer’s body has never been found.
Police also charged his then-girlfriend Michelle Troconis and friend Kent Mawhinney as co-conspirators in the case. Both of them have pleaded not guilty.
NBC Connecticut’s Shannon Miller sat down for a one on one interview with the lead investigators in the case.
“The thing with Mr. Dulos was we wanted his help,” Sgt. Kenneth Ventresca, case supervisor with the Western District Major Crimes Squad with State Police said.
It hadn’t been 24 hours since Jennifer Dulos was reported missing when state police say her estranged husband Fotis Dulos was already raising more than just questions but serious red flags.
“I believe initially he was trying to fish for information to see what we knew,” Ventresca said.
“You don’t show up six hours later with an attorney and have a defense team already. To me that’s just that’s just bizarre,” Ventresca said.
Ventresca and Detective John Kimball said the busy home building businessman’s cellphone left at his Farmington house the morning of Jennifer’s murder raised even more questions.
“He had a missed call, after missed call, after missed call and wasn’t responding to text messages, realtors,” Ventresca said.
Investigators said Fotis Dulos' cellphone data points later led them to Albany Avenue, where Chief State’s Attorney Richard Colangelo now says Fotis made six stops, not 30 stops as originally alleged in the initial arrest warrant, dropping off trash bags with items that contained Jennifer’s blood.
“The fact they’re on anything it’s kind of well geez maybe it’s a coincidence but when it’s on multiple items that’s a little more than a coincidence,” Colangelo said.
Fotis Dulos always maintained his innocence. In a note he left behind after an attempt to take his life, he said he had an explanation for why he was seen disposing of evidence. His attorney later told a judge Dulos found those bags dumped on his Farmington property.
Kimball said there were more bags in the back of Fotis’ pickup that were not recovered but the items they were able to retrieve were telling.
“I guess the question is how many stops is it all right to make to dump clothing that tests positive for your missing wife’s blood and DNA. I think the answer would be none, zero,” Kimball said.
Investigators said they have not found anything of evidentiary value at the MIRA trash facility but have not ruled out any of the locations they’ve searched for Jennifer.
“At least be able to determine where she went whether or not we are able to retrieve her but at least provide that information back to her family,” Kimball said.
These tireless investigators said they still receive new information every day and vow to work until the case is closed.
“We’re not going to have closure until we find Jennifer,” Ventresca said.
Jennifer’s family and friends released a statement Friday, saying in part, “We miss Jennifer beyond words. The ache of her absence doesn’t go away. Countless questions remain unanswered.”
On Thursday, Michelle Troconis released a statement maintaining her innocence and regret for trusting Fotis Dulos. Her case has been continued until August 6.
Lawyers for Kent Mawhinney say they were unavailable this week to speak with NBC Connecticut about their client's pending case.
