Attorney: ‘Informant’ could be seeking deal in Dulos case
STAMFORD — Kent Mawhinney — the attorney charged in the Jennifer Dulos case — met with state police investigators in the weeks leading up to his release from prison and could be trying to work out a deal with prosecutors, according to court documents filed Monday.
Attorney Jon Schoenhorn, representing co-defendant Michelle Troconis in the case, said the prosecution has turned over evidence that includes a video of a nearly two-hour interview state police had with Mawhinney on Aug. 31.
Schoenhorn told Hearst Connecticut Media on Monday the video showed Mawhinney discussing with state police investigators conversations he apparently had with Troconis and Fotis Dulos around the time Jennifer Dulos vanished.
In describing the contents of the video, Schoenhorn said Mawhinney claimed to have a conversation with Troconis and Fotis Dulos on May 23, 2019 — the night before the disappearance — where they revealed what they were planning to do.
In the interview, Mawhinney disclosed potentially incriminating evidence against Fotis Dulos and Troconis, Schoenhorn said. However, Schoenhorn said he has doubts about the validity of Mawhinney’s statements.
“I’m looking forward to the ability to cross-examine him during a trial,” said Schoenhorn, who has maintained his client’s innocence.
In the video, Schoenhorn said Mawhinney also denied knowing about a large hole described by witnesses, according to an arrest warrant, as a “human grave” found at a gun club he was associated with in the days leading up to Jennifer Dulos’ disappearance. After the witnesses reported the hole, state police investigated the area
and found no signs of Jennifer Dulos.
According to Schoenhorn, Mawhinney’s interview was held at the state police polygraph unit in Meriden.
However, it remains unclear whether Mawhinney was administered a polygraph, Schoenhorn said. It is also unclear who initiated the meeting.
Mawhinney’s attorneys, Lee Gold and Jeremy Donnelly, did not respond to messages seeking comment on Monday.
Chief State’s Attorney Richard Colangelo Jr., who is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.
Mawhinney, who had been held on $2 million bond since he was arrested at gunpoint in January on a conspiracy to commit murder charge, was released from prison on Oct. 19. Mawhinney posted $246,000 in cash and real estate after a judge granted his request so he could visit his sick father in Florida.
Colangelo did not object to Mawhinney’s release and a bond hearing was not held.
In his motion filed Monday in state Superior Court in Stamford, Schoenhorn is seeking information “pertaining to consideration, rewards or understanding regarding favorable treatment, compensation or reward of any kind in exchange for Mawhinney’s cooperation with the state, the investigation or prosecution of this case.”
Referring to Mawhinney as a “jailhouse informant,” Schoenhorn is also seeking “all reports or communications detailing efforts by law enforcement to document or substantiate anything that Mawhinney alleged during his interview on or after Aug. 31, 2020.”
“Any and all other information that documents preferential treatment, consideration or favors or otherwise demonstration that Mawhinney’s statements are ‘inherently suspect’ as a jailhouse informant,” Schoenhorn stated in his motion.
Mawhinney and Troconis have each pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder in the case. They are both free on bond, but are each monitored by GPS tracking devices. Troconis has also pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution charges.
Mawhinney is accused of trying to create an alibi for Fotis Dulos the morning of May 24, 2019 when Jennifer Dulos vanished.
Fotis Dulos faced murder, kidnapping and other charges when he died in January from an apparent suicide. Police believe Fotis Dulos was “lying in wait” and attacked his estranged wife in the garage of her New Canaan home when she returned from dropping off their five children at school, according to arrest warrants. Jennifer Dulos has not been found, but police said she is presumed dead based on blood and other evidence found in her garage, arrest warrants state.
Mawhinney was a longtime friend of Fotis Dulos and his attorney in several property transactions.
In February, Hartford Superior Court Judge Laura F. Baldini mentioned a potential deal when Mawhinney appeared before her on unrelated charges in connection with domestic incidents involving his estranged wife.
Baldini said Mawhinney at the time was in “discussions” with prosecutors in the Dulos case.
Mawhinney was charged in January 2019 by South Windsor police with spousal sexual assault, disorderly conduct and seconddegree unlawful restraint. Mawhinney was then charged in June 2019 with violating of a protective order after his estranged wife reported to police a series of incidents involving Fotis Dulos that occurred in the days before Jennifer Dulos went missing.