Fotis Dulos, the luxury developer charged with murdering his estranged wife, has died two days after attempting suicide at his Connecticut home, his lawyer said Thursday.
Dulos, 52, was hospitalized in critical condition on Tuesday after authorities found him unresponsive and “sitting in his vehicle” in the garage of his Farmington home with “obvious signs of medical distress.” He was initially transported to UConn Health before he was flown to Jacobi Medical Center in New York City to receive oxygen therapy in a hyperbaric chamber.
The father of five was arrested and charged this month with capital murder, murder, and kidnapping, seven months after Jennifer Dulos disappeared after dropping their five children off at school.
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His attorney, Norm Pattis, confirmed to reporters Thursday his client “was declared dead tonight at 5:32.”
“It’s been a truly horrific day for the family filled with difficult decisions, medical tests and meeting the requirements to determine death,” Pattis said. “As to those who contend that Mr. Dulos’ death reflects a consciousness of guilt, we say no. We say it was more a conscience overborne with the weight of a world that was too busy to listen and wanted a story more than it wanted the truth.”
The Connecticut State Police confirmed to The Daily Beast that a search warrant was executed Wednesday at Dulos’ home relating “to the ongoing murder investigation of Jennifer Farber Dulos.” The warrant has been sealed due to a court-issued gag order.
In a new motion filed Thursday, Pattis stated that investigators found a note in Dulos’ car, in which he claimed his innocence and suggested that his lawyers have information proving he did not murder his wife. Pattis argued that the note should be preserved.
“In the course of executing a search of Fotis Dulos’ car, law enforcement officials recovered a note in which Mr. Dulos declared...his innocence of the infamous and heinous crimes that the State has accused him of and claimed his lawyers have the evidence to prove it,” the motion states.
Pattis said Thursday his team has filed an “unusual motion” to have Dulos’ estate replace the 52-year-old as a defendant in his wife’s murder case in order to force the state to turn over what evidence they have collected in the case.
“It’ll be a difficult challenge,” Pattis said of the motion he plans to file. “We intend to proceed on as if he were alive to vindicate him. The family is adamant that his name is cleared.”
Investigators reportedly did not find any evidence that could help lead them to the body of Jennifer Dulos, who has been missing since May 24. Dulos reportedly attempted suicide after receiving a call that authorities were taking steps to revoke his bond, which was secured by overvalued real estate.
“The potential for a bond revocation was devastating news to him,” Pattis said.
During a Wednesday hearing, a Stamford Superior Court judge raised Dulos’ bond to $6.5 million from $6 million and ordered three re-arrest warrants because he missed his initial court hearing. The hearing also addressed the questionable collateral Dulos used to post his bond this month.
According to court records obtained by The Hartford Courant, Dulos was able to post bail for his Jan. 7 arrest with the help of Anna Curry, a 42-year-old North Carolina woman who was allegedly present at Dulos’ home just before and after he attempted suicide.
Curry, who was reportedly at Dulos’ side at the New York hospital where he was being treated, was described as his “best friend” in bond documents,. She reportedly contributed $147,000 in cash to pay the bail-bondsman fee on Jan. 9 and had promised to pay an additional $272,000 in 15 installments until April 2022.
Once Dulos’ co-worker at a New York financial firm, Curry also signed a $3 million promissory note to the Palmetto Surety Corporation, the company that also initially insured the bond with six pieces of real estate.
“It is my understanding and belief these were old friends who developed a friendship years ago at work and out of loyalty to that friendship, she has assisted Mr. Dulos,” Pattis said. “We should all be lucky enough to have such a loyal friend.”
The bail bondsman later raised concerns over “imperfections in the collateral” after discovering that at least one of the properties had been foreclosed on in December and another was significantly overvalued, according to court documents.
On Tuesday, emergency vehicles swarmed Dulos’ home around 12:45 p.m., just as he was supposed to head into court for an emergency bond hearing. Authorities went to the house to perform a welfare check when Dulos failed to show up in court and found him in “medical distress,” according to Farmington Police Lt. Timothy McKenzie.
“Officers forced entry and immediately began to perform life-saving measures,” McKenzie said. “Typically, CPR will be performed for a period of time. If there is any sign of life present, the patient would be transported to the hospital. And that’s what happened today.”
On May 24, 2018, Jennifer Dulos, 50, was last seen dropping off her five kids at school. Authorities later found her car abandoned on a New Canaan road “in reverse” with its “lights on,” according to the arrest warrant. Blood was also found on the passenger side of the car.
Authorities have alleged Dulos was “lying in wait” near his estranged wife’s New Canaan home the day she vanished—and enlisted the help of a new girlfriend to dump evidence of her killing.
Dulos’ former live-in girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, was also charged on Jan. 7 with conspiracy to commit murder.
An attorney who previously represented Dulos, Kent Mahwinney, has also been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, authorities said at a Tuesday press conference. Dulos has repeatedly denied the allegations and maintained his innocence.
If you or a loved one are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.
