Woman found guilty of all charges in connection to death, disappearance of Connecticut mom
A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of Michelle Troconis, who is charged in the disappearance and death of Jennifer Farber Dulos, a New Canaan mother of five who went missing in May 2019.
STAMFORD, Conn. (WTNH) - A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of Michelle Troconis, who is charged in the disappearance and death of Jennifer Farber Dulos, a Connecticut mother of five who disappeared in May 2019.
Troconis was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of conspiracy to commit tampering with physical evidence, two counts of tampering with physical evidence and of one count of hindering prosecution in the second degree.
Troconis faces up to 50 years behind bars, if the sentences run consecutively.
Troconis, 49, was found guilty by the Stamford jury following a lengthy trial in which prosecutors laid out a case that she helped her then-boyfriend, Dolus' husband, to plot and cover up the killing of his estranged wife as they battled each other in divorce and child custody proceedings.
Fotis Dolus, who denied the allegations, never stood trial himself: He killed himself in January 2020 shortly after being charged with murder.
Troconis was accused of being with Dulos when he drove around Hartford disposing of evidence in bags and being with him when he washed a truck to clear it of evidence. Video also showed Troconis discarding a package that contained old license plates in a storm drain, prosecutors said.
Troconis has said she didn't know what was in the bags and has denied any involvement in Farber Dulos' disappearance and death.
Farber Dulos' body has never been found.
Jennifer Dulos, 50, vanished on May 24, 2019, after dropping off their five children at school. At the time, she was living with the children in New Canaan while Fotis Dulos stayed in the family’s spacious home about 70 miles away in Farmington. Troconis and her daughter were living with Fotis Dulos at the time.
The case drew widespread attention and was the subject of a made-for-TV movie, Lifetime’s “Gone Mom.”
Jennifer Dulos was a member of a wealthy New York City family whose father, the late Hilliard Farber, founded his own brokerage firm. She also was a niece by marriage of fashion designer Liz Claiborne. Fotis Dulos built luxury homes and was originally from Greece.
Troconis, a dual American and Venezuelan citizen, has described herself as a co-founder of horse riding therapy programs in different parts of the world who once had her own TV production company in Argentina and hosted a snow-sports show for ESPN South America.
Troconis became visibly emotional following the reading of the verdict, placing her forehead on the table.
On Thursday, the jury submitted a note at about 11:50 a.m. asking for clarification on whether Troconis would have had to have physical contact with something to qualify as “tampering,” including if she had moved or altered something. Judge Kevin Randolph said that she did not have to touch something.
On Wednesday, the jury had asked to review testimony from Troconis’ friend, Clara “Petu” Duperron. During her testimony on Feb. 23, Duperron spoke about her relationship with Troconis and what she learned around the time Farber Dulos went missing. Duperron’s testimony also focused on how often Troconis and Dulos lit their fireplace. Prosecutors have claimed that Troconis lit the fire to dispose of evidence when Farber Dulos went missing — and have said it’s odd to light a fire in May.
The jury got the case late Tuesday afternoon after closing arguments touched on several topics – including Troconis' varying timelines of what she did that day, if there was a language barrier in her interrogations with police and if she knew that Dulos planned to kill his estranged wife.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.