Agreement: No declaration of death needed
Estate of Jennifer Dulos’ estranged husband allowed to access his IRA
FARMINGTON — A probate court judge will not need to declare Jennifer Dulos dead in order for her estranged husband’s estate to access his individual retirement account, according to an agreement signed this week by her family.
Jennifer Dulos’ five children and the guardian ad litem assigned to represent the missing mother in probate proceedings have waived their interest in the $194,000 IRA account, which was owned by Fotis Dulos before he died in January 2020.
The best interests of her children were paramount to Jennifer Dulos, said Peter Jay Alter, the guardian ad litem assigned to represent the New Canaan woman who vanished May 24, 2019.
“Further considering the unfortunate publicity and stress that would be imposed on her children if the court requires extensive evidence to be given to
determine if Jennifer Farber Dulos did in fact predecease her late husband, the undersigned on behalf of Jennifer Farber Dulos and acting in her best interests, irrevocably waives any interest in the IRA,” Alter said.
The estate of Fotis Dulos had requested Farmington Probate Judge Evelyn Daly to declare Jennifer Dulos dead in order to access the money since he did not name a beneficiary. Bank regulators had determined the estate could not use the money unless his spouse had predeceased him.
Fotis Dulos died from a suicide in January 2020 while facing murder, kidnapping and other charges in his estranged wife’s death and disappearance. He was accused of attacking her in the garage of her New Canaan home when she returned from dropping off their children at school the morning of May 24, 2019, according to arrest warrants in the case.
While her body has never been found, police said Jennifer Dulos is presumed dead based on blood and other evidence found in her garage, arrest warrants state.
Fotis Dulos’ estate has been in limbo since December when Daly said she did not have enough evidence to declare Jennifer Dulos dead. Daly had called for another hearing, which was scheduled for April when more evidence was supposed to be presented.
But attorney Christopher Hug, the appointed administrator of Fotis Dulos’ estate, brokered a stipulation agreement that was signed Tuesday, allowing the couple’s five children and the guardian ad litem for Jennifer Dulos to withdraw any claim to the IRA.
The $194,000 is one of the few assets that Fotis Dulos had left after bruising divorce proceedings, litigation filed against him by his mother-in-law and the criminal charges in his estranged wife’s death.
All of the properties owned by Fotis Dulos and his high-end real estate development company, Fore Group, have gone through foreclosure proceedings since his death, including the Farmington home where he attempted suicide.
But the impasse over declaring Jennifer Dulos dead had stalled probate proceedings. Hug had submitted police arrest warrants and a document signed by an attorney representing her mother, Gloria Farber, and her five children that stated the family believed she was dead. Farber has been caring for the children since their mother’s disappearance.
In October, Daly said the documents were not enough to surmount the state’s required sevenyear period before a missing person could be declared dead.
Daly will need to approve the agreement reached this week before the estate can access the money in the account.
Police have staged massive searches for the remains of Jennifer Dulos since she was reported missing. In recent months, state police hired a New Hampshire man known as “Bone Finder” to search one of Fotis Dulos’ Farmington properties with groundpenetrating radar.
Fotis Dulos’ ex-girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, and his former attorney and longtime friend, Kent Mawhinney, have each pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder charges. Troconis has also pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution charges.
The prosecution has said Mawhinney will likely testify against Troconis if her case goes to trial.
Troconis is scheduled to next appear in state Superior Court in Stamford on May 25 — one day after the two-year anniversary of the disappearance. Mawhinney is set to appear on June 21.