Husband Charged in Wife’s Murder Commits Suicide After Arrest

On Monday, June 1, Investigation Discovery is airing the second-to-last installment in its “Nine at 9” series — Vanished in New Canaan: An ID Mystery. In it, the true-crime channel examines the 2019 disappearance of wife and mother of five Jennifer Dulos.

The investigation zeroed in on her husband, Fotis Dulos, and his lover, Michelle Troconis, but that line of investigation ended when Dulos took his own life. Here’s what you need to know about what happened.

Jennifer Dulos Went Missing in May 2019

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Jennifer Dulos, a 50-year-old mother of five, disappeared from her home in New Canaan, Connecticut, on May 24, 2019. According to CBS News, she and her husband, Fotis, were in the middle of a contentious divorce and child custody proceedings over their two sets of twins and a baby daughter.

According to People, Jennifer learned Fotis was having an affair with Michelle Troconis in 2017 and began divorce proceedings. She also moved her children from their Farmington, Connecticut home 70 miles away to New Canaan. She said in court documents used in the custody proceedings that she feared for her life, especially after her husband purchased a gun.

On the morning of May 24, after dropping her children off at school, Jennifer disappeared and has not been seen since.

Fotis and Troconis Were Arrested and Charged in Jennifer’s Disappearance

VideoVideo related to husband charged in wife’s murder commits suicide after arrest2020-06-01T19:42:23-04:00

According to NBC Connecticut, surveillance footage showed Fotis throwing away trash bags in Hartford, Connecticut, that were found to contain Jennifer’s blood. In January 2020, Fotis and Troconis were arrested. He was charged with murder and she was charged with conspiracy to commit murder. They had both previously been charged with first-degree hindering of prosecution and two counts of tampering with physical evidence in September 2019.

The murder charged alleged that Fotis “lay in wait” for Jennifer to return home from dropping their children off at school and he later drove away with her body. Investigators found evidence of a “clean up” in the garage and found Jennifer’s blood mixed with Fotis’ DNA in the sink, according to CBS News.

Shortly After Being Charged with Murder, Fotis Committed Suicide

VideoVideo related to husband charged in wife’s murder commits suicide after arrest2020-06-01T19:42:23-04:00

On January 28, 2020, shortly after Fotis was arrested for Jennifer’s murder, Fotis attempted suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning, according to NBC News. Police officers found Fotis in his running vehicle in his garage and transported him to the nearby University of Connecticut hospital, where he remained in critical condition for two days before dying.

At the time, Fotis’ attorney Norm Pattis, told NBC that Fotis’ family had arrived from Greece and would try to clear Fotis’ name.

“As we are speaking, we have filed an unusual motion in the Connecticut courts asking to substitute an estate for Fotis Dulos for him as a defendant to force the state to show its hand in a trial filled with evidence, we think, that amounts to no more than innuendo and unsupported suspicion,” said Pattis, adding, “As to those who contend that Mr. Dulos’ death reflects a consciousness of guilt, we say no. We say it was more of a conscience overworn with the weight of the world that was too busy to listen and that wanted a story more than it wanted the truth.”

In an update from NBC Connecticut on May 27, 2020, a judge agreed to nolle (“will no longer prosecute”) murder charges against Fotis. The state had asked the case to be dropped because the defendant was deceased.

Vanished in New Canaan: An ID Mystery airs Monday, June 1 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Investigation Discovery.

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