Where are Jennifer Dulos’ children now? Their ‘normal’ lives after her disappearance

Jennifer Dulos

On the morning of May 24, 2019, Jennifer Dulos dropped her children off at school and was never seen again. While the police never found any physical trace of her whereabouts, they did find splatters of her blood in her home and additional evidence suggesting that she had been a victim of serious assault.

Jennifer – a stay-at-home mom, writer, and blogger – was in the midst of a bitter divorce and child custody proceedings with her estranged husband Fotis Dulos. The subsequent arrest of Fotis linked to her disappearance and his eventual suicide give credence to the unlikely scenario of her being ever found. With Jennifer presumed to be dead, it has been over three years since their five children have been orphaned.

Jennifer’s children, who are now aged between 11 and 16, are said to be “thriving and doing well”

Married for 15 years, Jennifer and Fotis Dulos had five children (with two sets of twins and a baby daughter) between the ages of 8 and 13 at the time of her disappearance.

Jennifer Dulos’ children
Jennifer Farber Dulos leaves behind five children.

The soon-to-be-divorced couple shared joint legal custody of their children – Petros, Theodore, Christiane, Constantine, and Cleopatra Noelle – while the divorce proceedings were going on. However, since Jennifer had been granted full physical custody of them in March 2018, all of the children lived with their mother in her Welles Lane home in New Canaan, Connecticut.

When Jennifer went missing a year later, the kids were placed in the care of her mother, Gloria Farber, under a temporary custody placement. The court later ruled their custody in favor of Gloria Farber over Fotis, saying:

“Ms. Farber has acted as a parent to the children since the plaintiff (Jennifer) disappeared on May 24, 2019. Their safety and security have been paramount. They are emotionally bonded to her. It would be harmful to them to be removed from her care.”

Today, the oldest twin boys (16 years old), the fraternal twins (13 years old), and the youngest girl (11 years old) all live in New York with Farber who has since become their legal guardian. In May 2022, on the third anniversary of Jennifer Dulos’ disappearance, the family representative, Carrie Luft, told The New York Post that the children were “thriving and doing well”. The statement further read:

“We feel the immeasurable loss of [Jennifer] every day. We also delight in her presence and celebrate her spirit as they manifest in her five incredible children.”

The children visited Fotis Dulos before he was taken off life support after his suicide attempt in January 2020

On June 1, 2019, Fotis Dulos, along with his then-girlfriend Michelle Troconis, was arrested on suspicion of Jennifer’s murder. They were initially charged with evidence tampering and obstruction of justice after the investigators found surveillance footage of the pair discarding garbage bags filled with blood-soaked clothing and cleaning items in the nearby city of Hartford – the blood was identified to be Jennifer’s.

Fotis Dulos during a hearing in Superior Court in Stamford, Connecticut, on June 11, 2019.
Fotis Dulos during a hearing in Superior Court in Stamford, Connecticut, on June 11, 2019. | Erik Trautmann / Hearst Connecticut Media

Despite the charges rallied against him, Fotis attempted to get custody of his children and claimed that Farber was keeping them under armed guard. His lawyer, Norm Pattis, stated:

“Fotis misses his children deeply. The irresponsible manner in which the state has proceeded against him is costing his children the chance for a real relationship with a man who loves them deeply. This is a travesty of justice. We are evaluating his appellate options.”

Fotis was later charged with felony murder, murder, and kidnapping of Jennifer Dulos in 2020. His former attorney Kent Douglas Mawhinney was also arrested with Troconis and charged with conspiracy to murder.

On the day of his court appearance on January 28, 2020, Fotis attempted suicide by carbon monoxide poisoning in the garage of his home while out on bail. The children visited him in the hospital before he was taken off life support. It was their first meeting with him since their mother’s disappearance and his arrest.

“Five children have lost both parents in the span of eight months. Our main priorities are ensuring their well-being and protecting their privacy. Understandably, they wished to say goodbye to their father, which we arranged with the assistance of hospital personnel,” said Luft.