‘This Is The Time To Come Forward’: Former Prosecutor Discusses Finding Closure In Jennifer Dulos Case

In May 2019, Connecticut mother of five Jennifer Dulos vanished from her New Canaan home, and while various suspects have been arrested in connection with the case over the ensuing months, Jennifer has yet to be found. 

Following her disappearance, investigators uncovered that Jennifer was in the middle of a heated divorce and custody battle with her husband, Fotis Dulos, and they collected a mountain of evidence against him implicating him in not only her vanishing, but also her suspected murder. 

Authorities alleged Fotis had co-conspirators — his then-girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, and former civil lawyer Kent Douglas Mawhinney — who were both charged with conspiracy to commit murder, to which they have pleaded not guilty. 

Although Fotis himself was brought up on capital murder, murder, and kidnapping charges in early January 2020, he never faced his day in court. He died by suicide later that month, leaving behind a note that proclaimed his, Troconis’, and Mawhinney’s innocence.  

Up until his suicide, Troconis was cooperating with the investigation and had provided statements to police about the case, according to “Injustice with Nancy Grace,” airing Thursdays at 9/8c on Oxygen. While authorities may never know what really happened to Jennifer, former Connecticut Chief State Attorney Christopher Morano has urged the two remaining suspects to reveal any information they have about her disappearance. 

“[I]f Michelle Troconis and Kent Mawhinney know where Jennifer Dulos is, what happened to her, this is the time to come forward because that will be viewed by everyone as the ultimate example of cooperation,” Morano told producers. 

Troconis released a statement in May 2020 that she has no knowledge of Jennifer’s whereabouts, saying, “Whether or not Fotis Dulos was capable of doing the things the police and prosecutors accused him of doing, I do not know. But based on what I have learned in the last year, I think it was a mistake to have trusted him," according to NBC Connecticut. 

Jennifer was last seen alive on the morning of May 24, 2019, when she dropped off her children at school in a black Chevrolet Suburban. After returning home, investigators believe she was brutally attacked in her garage by Fotis, who was “lying in wait,” according to the arrest warrant. 

Following her murder, Fotis allegedly cleaned up the crime scene and disposed of the evidence in various trash cans around Hartford. He was captured on surveillance cameras alongside Troconis, whose attorney has denied that she took any part in the disposal, reported CNN. 

The search for Jennifer’s remains continues, and in June 2020, authorities drained a septic tank at a Connecticut home where Jennifer and Fotis once lived in hopes of finding her. 

In addition to the charges that both Troconis and Mawhinney already face, Troconis has been accused of second-degree hindering prosecution, tampering with physical evidence, and conspiracy to commit tampering with physical evidence, reported NBC Connecticut. 

She is set to return to court in November, when she will enter a plea on the charges. While Troconis remains on GPS monitoring, Mawhinney has been unable to post his $2 million bail. 

To hear more about the case, watch “Injustice with Nancy Grace” now on Oxygen.com.