Cops Believe Fotis Dulos Was ‘Lying In Wait’ For Jennifer, Say ‘Blood-Like Substance’ Recovered From Discarded Truck Seat

The estranged husband of Jennifer Dulos — the Connecticut mother of five who has been missing since last May — has been arrested in connection with her disappearance again after his girlfriend allegedly told police that Jennifer’s body was in a truck he was adamant about cleaning.

Fotis Dulos was arrested by Connecticut State Police at his Farmington home on Wednesday and now he faces another charge of tampering with evidence, WFSB in Hartford reports.

The charge comes after Dulos’ girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, allegedly told police that “the body of Jennifer at some point was in” a truck Dulos had borrowed from an employee at his real estate development company, which he was driving the day Jennifer vanished, according to the new warrant, obtained by KTBS. Troconis told police that Dulos had the truck cleaned days later.

Police say Dulos was seen on surveillance video with the truck, a Toyota Tacoma, at a carwash. The video allegedly showed him first dumping a garbage bag into a trash can and then going into the “passenger compartment of the truck, [where he] retrieves a smaller item which is obscured by the truck and places it into the same trash can,” according to the warrant.

Police say Dulos demanded his employee swap out the seats of the truck and the employee obliged but "when he did remove the seats on this date, [the employee] decided to keep the seats without telling Dulos in the event they may be needed by police,” according to the warrant.

On those seats, investigators said they found a “blood-like substance” containing Jennifer's DNA. 

The warrant also states that surveillance photos show Jennifer's vehicle heading toward her home at 8:05 a.m. the day she vanished. The police caption reads: "This photograph is the last known photograph of Jennifer alive. At the time this footage was recorded, Dulos is believed to have been lying in wait at 69 Welles Lane for his wife to return home.” 

Police also stated in it that “the crime and clean-up are believed to have occurred between 8:05 AM and 10:25 AM.”

However, Dulos has not been charged with murder at this point, a point his attorney Norm Pattis raised after his latest arrest, according to the Stamford Advocate.

"Where’s the murder charge?" Pattis asked, adding “it sounds like the state is trying to convince itself that Fotis is responsible for Jennifer’s disappearance. [...] When and if the state decides it can prove its case, we will welcome the chance to meet the case in open court. The new warrant speaks of a lying lover and handyman with something to hide. When do we get the chance to question these folks?”

Dulos has already been released after posting $500,000 bond on the new charge.

This is the second time that Dulos has been arrested on this specific charge. He and Troconis were previously charged with evidence tampering and hindering prosecution in the case after police allegedly found evidence of the couple disposing of garbage bags, some of which contained bloody clothing, in trash receptacles. They have pleaded not guilty. Troconis has not been charged this time around.

One of Dulos’ employees was previously questioned in relation to the case.

Jennifer and Fotis Dulos have five children together and they were embroiled in a heated custody battle when she vanished.

Jennifer has still not been found.