The wealthy, estranged husband of a missing Connecticut mother has been arrested and charged with tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution.
Fotis Dulos, 51, and his girlfriend Michelle Tronconis, 44, were both booked Saturday night on the charges. Earlier that same day, police found traces of blood in the New Canaan, Conn., home of Jennifer Dulos, 50, who suddenly went missing last week after dropping her kids off at school.
There has been a frantic search for Jennifer, with investigators using dogs, drones, and helicopters to search the area where her abandoned car was discovered.
Jennifer and Fotis Dulos have been involved in an acrimonious divorce and custody battle since 2017. Jennifer said in court documents that she feared her husband and worried that he would take the children — aged eight to 13 — back to his home country of Greece.
“I am afraid of my husband,” Jennifer said in an affidavit filed in June 2017. “I know that filing for divorce and filing this motion will enrage him. I know he will retaliate by trying to harm me in some way.”
She also claimed in the affidavit that Fotis engaged in “irrational, unsafe, bullying, threatening and controlling behavior.”
In June 2017, Jennifer and the children left the family’s 10,000-square-foot mansion in Farmington, Conn. to move to New Canaan. State police have now descended on that property with at least two canine units. The mansion is listed for sale at $2.99 million.
K-9 units and over a dozen cop cars are at 80 Mountain Spring road in Farmington in relation to the Jennifer Dulos’ disappearance. pic.twitter.com/lwsfGntzAp
— Dave Puglisi (@DavePuglisiTV) June 2, 2019
DNA and hair samples have been taken from Fotis. He and his girlfriend are each being held on $500,000 bond with court appearances scheduled for Monday.
Police said Sunday that “as the criminal investigation continues, additional criminal charges are expected.”
A representative for Jennifer’s family said in a statement after the arrests that they had no comment at the time and are “just urging people to please respect the privacy of Jennifer’s family and friends.”
