Hartford, Conn. — A former attorney for Fotis Dulos, the estranged husband of missing Connecticut woman Jennifer Farber Dulos, pleaded guilty on Friday to a lesser charge of interfering with law enforcement in a high-profile murder case. Kent Mawhinney’s plea comes amidst ongoing scrutiny into the circumstances surrounding Farber Dulos’ disappearance in May 2019.
Initially charged with conspiracy to commit murder, Mawhinney now faces an 11-month prison sentence, having already served that time and been released. Prosecutors alleged that Fotis Dulos killed his wife during a contentious divorce and transported her body, a claim he consistently denied before dying by suicide in 2020 after being charged with her murder.
Jennifer Farber Dulos, a 50-year-old mother of five, was reported missing after she was last seen dropping her children off at school on May 24, 2019. Mawhinney reportedly met with Fotis Dulos on that same morning but later denied any contact, despite evidence from phone records suggesting otherwise. He later altered his account, attributing the inconsistencies to memory loss from a concussion sustained in a fall.
Further complicating the investigation, arrest records indicated Mawhinney may have connections to a potential burial site found at the Windsor Rod & Gun Club. Police reports noted that a makeshift grave was discovered a week before his arrest, measuring six feet in length and nearly four feet deep, surrounded by a tarp and bags of lime. No human remains were recovered during the search.
Farber Dulos has yet to be located, though she was declared legally dead in January 2023. Outside the courthouse, Mawhinney told reporters he did not know her whereabouts and wished he could provide answers. He stated, “If I did know where she was, I’d tell them. I don’t know how they can get closure without that.”
Mawhinney’s attorney, Jeffrey Kestenband, emphasized that his client had no role in Farber Dulos’ death and noted the prosecution’s concession that sufficient evidence to support the original conspiracy charges was lacking. Kestenband remarked that Mawhinney had endured significant challenges since his arrest but is now positioned to move forward.
Since January 2020, Mawhinney’s law license in Connecticut has been suspended. This plea deal follows the conviction of Michelle Troconis, Fotis Dulos’ girlfriend, who was sentenced last year to over 14 years for her role in the crime and subsequent cover-up.
The case remains a somber reminder of the unresolved questions surrounding Jennifer Farber Dulos’ disappearance, casting a long shadow over those involved in the tragic story.
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