Bodycam footage of the moment police discovered blood on Jennifer Dulos’ Range Rover was shown today in court at the trial of Michelle Troconis, the woman now on trial for allegedly helping to conceal her murder.
Troconis is accused of assisting her boyfriend, Fotis Dulos, cover up Jennifer’s murder in May 2019. Fotis killed himself in January 2020, leaving his Venezuelan socialite lover to face the music alone.
He and Jennifer were in the midst of an acrimonious divorce and custody battle when she vanished.
Troconis is accused of hindering the prosecution by concocting an alibi for Fotis, and for conspiring to commit Jennifer’s murder. She denies the charges.
On the first day of her trial, the state presented bodycam footage of officers searching Jennifer’s home in New Canaan, Connecticut, including the garage where police say Jennifer was so badly injured that she bled profusely.
Police say Fotis transported her body out of the house or garage and disposed of it later in a friend’s SUV.
A ‘red stain’ on the grill of Jennifer Dulos’ Range Rover on May 24, 2019, the day she vanished. Police searching the house said it stood out to them and did not appear to have been from a deer strike. The state alleges Fotis Dulos killed his wife either in the home or the garage, injuring her so badly that she bled profusely, and then removed her body
Jennifer’s car was sitting in the house when police arrived. It was not the vehicle she used to drop off the kids earlier in the day – that car was later found discarded. The garage has a door that leads into the house
Michelle Troconis in court today. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges
On the stand today was one of the officers involved in the initial search. He said police immediately noticed the ‘red stain’ on the grill of Jennifer’s vehicle.
‘There appeared to be red blood on the front of the vehicle. A red mark on the grill of the vehicle.
‘We looked at the vehicle, didn’t observe any damage, we discussed it possibly could be a deer strike… there was no hair or damage indicating any such collision with a deer.’
The bodycam also showed the interior of Jennifer’s home, and bloody footprints inside the garage.
Michelle Troconis has been spotted heading into Connecticut Superior court for the first day of her criminal trial over the disappearance of her former boyfriend’s ex.
The 49-year-old glamorous American-Venezuelan former ESPN host denies charges connected to the suspected homicide – including conspiracy to commit murder, evidence tampering and hindering prosecution.
Police also found a bloody footprint in the garage where they believe Jennifer’s body was moved
Cops also pointed out what they thought were ‘drops’ of blood in the same garage
Flanked by her legal team, family and close supporters Troconis was seen arriving at court as her trial begins
Jennifer vanished aged 50 on May 24, 2019, and her body was never found. Judge William P. Osterndorf declared her ‘officially dead’ on Wednesday.
At the time of her disappearance, Jennifer had been entangled in an acrimonious divorce and child custody proceedings with her Greek husband Fotis Dulos. He was charged with her murder but died by suicide aged 52 in January 2020.
Prosecutors allege that Fotis, a luxury real estate developer, brutally slayed Jennifer at her New Canaan home before disposing of her body in several trash bags with the help of Troconis.
Jennifer Farber Dulos vanished in May 2019. Her remains have never been found, but police believe she was murdered by her husband Fotis Dulos, and that his new girlfriend Michelle Troconis conspired with him to help him cover up the crime
Troconis – who is accused of helping lover Fotis Dulos kill his wife in 2019 – is currently free on a $2million bond and faces up to twenty years in prison if convicted
Flanked by her legal team, family and close supporters Troconis was seen arriving at court as her trial begins
Jennifer disappeared on the morning of May 24, 2019 after dropping her beloved children off at New Canaan Country School. The mother-to-five, who made her living as a writer for Patch.com, was last seen returning home at 8.05am on a neighbor’s security camera.
She missed two doctor’s appointments in New York City scheduled for later that day, and two of her friends, including her nanny Lauren Almeida, reported her missing after being unable to get in touch with her.
State police launched an investigation, starting with a search of her home where they found her blood splattered on the exterior of a Range Rover in her garage and on several surfaces in the kitchen.
Officials said there was evidence of an attempted cleanup, and the enormous amount of blood made it apparent Jennifer could not have survived.
She was going through a messy divorce with Fotis at the time, and arrest warrants show that he was also $7 million in debt while living with Troconis and her daughter in the Farmington, Connecticut home he once shared with his wife and children.
The Dulos children – Petros, Theodore, Constantine, Christiane and Cleopatra Noelle – were aged between eight and 13 at the time.
Prosecutors believe Fotis drove an employee’s Toyota Tacoma pickup truck from that property to New Canaan before riding a bicycle to Jennifer’s home and attacking her in the garage.
He put her body in her Chevrolet Suburban and drove around three miles, police say, The vehicle was found abandoned near Waveny Park in New Canaan.
Michelle Troconis, pictured in October, faces 20 years in prison if found guilty of homicide
Jennifer Dulos is pictured in a photo released by police when she went missing
Jennifer, a 50-year-old writer and mother-of-five from New Canaan, close to Stamford, vanished after dropping her five beloved children off at school on May 24, 2019
Fotis (pictured) killed himself in his mansion aged 52 while awaiting trial in January 2020, leaving Troconis to face the music alone
Jennifer Dulos went missing in May 2019 and her body has never been found despite extensive searches from investigators. Her husband Fotis killed himself the following January after being charged with her murder
That evening at around 7.30pm, Fotis and Troconis were seen on surveillance cameras in his pickup truck stopping at several locations in Hartford. Fotis emerged from the vehicle to dispose of several garbage bags while Troconis remained inside.
Police recovered some of the bags several days later and found bloodied clothing, zip ties and other items containing DNA matching Jennifer and Fotis. One bag also had Troconis’ DNA on, authorities said.
In police interviews, Troconis said she thought the bags contained goods from one of the houses Fotis was selling at the time.
Officers also uncovered what came to be known as ‘the alibi scripts’ – two pages written by Fotis and Troconis which detailed their activities on a nearly hourly basis the day Jennifer was last seen, but did not include the bag disposal time.
Troconis claimed they detailed their actions on the advice of Fotis’ lawyer.
But her arrest warrant also alleges that she presented conflicting stories to police during three interviews about whether she saw Fotis on the morning that Jennifer died.
That morning, Fotis was meant to meet with Kent Mawhinney, his friend and lawyer, but they never actually met. Mawhinney was also charged with conspiracy to commit murder and awaits trial. He has pleaded not guilty.
Meanwhile, Troconis’ lawyer, Jon Schoenhorn, has accused police of lying to and misleading his client during interviews and questioning her in English with no interpreter present when her primary language is Spanish.
Venezuelan socialite Troconis (left with Dulos and right with her daughter) has always denied having any involvement in Jennifer’s death
Schoenhorn has also challenged much of the evidence in the case. Judge Kevin Randolph recently ruled the police seizure of Troconis’ cellphone was illegal and any evidence obtained from it cannot be used during the trial.
But Randolph allowed other evidence Schoenhorn sought to bar, including video of the police questioning of Troconis and DNA test results.
Dulos’ family and friends hope the trial provides accountability for her death and answers to lingering questions.
‘As this trial begins, it is crucial to remember who is at the center: Jennifer, whose five children have lost their mother and, as an eventuality, both parents,’ said her friend Carrie Luft, in a statement on behalf of family and friends.
‘Jennifer´s family and loved ones have lost a loving daughter, sister, cousin, and lifelong friend.’
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