Kent Mawhinney Accused Of Tampering With GPS Device; Sent Back To Jail

STAMFORD, CT — Kent Mawhinney, one of two remaining suspects in the disappearance of Jennifer Farber Dulos, has been sent back to prison after a court determined that he had tampered with the GPS monitoring device on his ankle.

During a court hearing Monday in Stamford Superior Court, Judge Gary White increased Mawhinney's bail from $246,000 to $1.5 million, after Supervisory Assistant State's Attorney Michelle Manning convinced the judge that Mawhinney had damaged the device's strap.

"Our technician informed us that it was a true strap tamper," Manning said. "Both sides of the strap were damaged."

She presented a picture of the damaged device, which Patch and other media outlets were able to photograph (see above).

Mawhinney and Michelle Troconis are accused of assisting the late Fotis Dulos in the disappearance of Jennifer Dulos, who has not been seen since May 24, 2019. Her body has not been found, and she is presumed to be dead.

The Duloses were in the midst of a contentious divorce and child custody fight at the time of her disappearance, and prosecutors charged Fotis Dulos with kidnapping and murdering her. He died in January 2020 after a suicide attempt before he could stand trial.

Troconis was Fotis Dulos' girlfriend at the time of Jennifer Dulos' disappearance, and Mawhinney was an attorney and friend of Fotis Dulos. Both Mawhinney and Troconis have been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, and both have pleaded not guilty.

Mawhinney and Troconis have been free on bond, and both have been wearing a GPS monitoring device. Mawhinney had sought to have the court remove the GPS device from his ankle in May 2021, but was denied. Troconis has repeatedly tried to have the court remove hers, also to no avail.

Attorney Jeffrey Kestenband, who represents Mawhinney, argued in court Monday that his client has been in compliance with the conditions of his bond release for more than two years, having been allowed to travel out of state with the device.

"He has always returned without incident," Kestenband said, adding that because of the case's notoriety, his client could not escape detection if he had tried to cut the device off, because "his photo being publicized nationally and internationally."

Kestenband said the device became damaged through "wear and tear" while his client tried to clean the area around his ankle, and that Mawhinney had alerted the probation office of the damage.

"The two wires at the top and bottom of the bracelet were untouched," Kestenband said, referring to the device's alert system; if the wires are cut or damaged, the probation office is immediately notified.

"The only part with damage was the rubber bracelet. The fact that the wires were untouched is all that needs to be said," Kestenband said.

Manning argued that the two wires were intact because Mawhinney did not succeed in removing the device, and the only thing he told the probation office was that the device's battery had become slow to charge.

Kestenband tried unsuccessfully to have a separate hearing where he could question the probation officer and technician who alerted the prosecutor's office of the damage, but Judge White denied the request.

"This is not a mini trial," White said.

Outside of court, Kestenband reiterated that Mawhinney did not damage the device, but declined to say whether his client would be able to post the new bond.

After his arrest in January 2020, Mawhinney spent more than nine months in jail, unable to post bond when it was $2 million. It was later lowered to $246,000, which he was able to post with assistance from his family.

The Dulos case:

• New Details On How Jennifer Dulos May Have Died: Warrant
• Jennifer Dulos' Killer Still At Large, Says Fotis Dulos' Family
• Finding Jennifer Dulos Remains '#1 Focus' For Chief Prosecutor
• Jennifer Dulos Was Never In 'Human Grave' Prosecutor Says: Report
• Shocking Details Revealed In Case Of Missing New Canaan Mom
• Jennifer Dulos Case: New Updates As Mystery Remains Unsolved
• New DNA Evidence Disclosed In Jennifer Dulos Disappearance
• Michelle Troconis' Attorney Files Dulos Brief With CT Supreme Court
• Jennifer Dulos Case: Suspect Michelle Troconis Not Living In CT
• 6 Facts About Jennifer Dulos Murder Case