Judge says Michelle Troconis is broke. Public defender’s office files appearance in case.

Michelle Troconis will be represented by a public defender as she appeals her conviction for conspiring with her boyfriend to murder his estranged wife Jennifer Farber Dulos.

After reviewing financial records, a Superior Court judge in Stamford agreed this week that Traconis no longer has the financial resources to pay for private counsel or the costs associated with an appeal.

The Office of the Chief Public Defender, Legal Service Unit in Hartford has filed an appearance on behalf of Troconis, according to records contained in the filings with the state Appellate Court. The appearance is signed by Jennifer Bourn, a supervisor in the public defender division.

A request for court transcripts also has been filed in the appeal of the case.

Troconis was convicted March 1 of plotting with Fotis Dulos to murder Farber Dulos, who disappeared on March 24, 2019. Troconis was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, tampering with evidence, conspiracy to tamper with evidence and hindering prosecution.

On May 31, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison, suspended after 14 1/2 years

Lead detective in CT Farber Dulos case speaks out. Why he thinks Troconis holds key to what happened

Farber Dulos vanished in May 2019 amid a contentious two-year divorce and custody dispute with her estranged husband, who was quickly the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Troconis was living with Fotis Dulos in Farmington at the time. She was accused of trying to create an alibi for him the morning his estranged wife disappeared and, later, helping him clean a pickup truck police said was used in the crime.

Sealed custody report viewed on Michelle Troconis’ laptop during trial, contempt warrant alleges

Fotis Dulos committed suicide in January 2020 while facing murder and other charges in the case. Jennifer Dulos was last seen on May 24, 2019 and her body has not been found.

With Dulos dead, detectives continue to believe the best hope of finding his wife’s remains lies with Troconis, who they suspect is withholding evidence. She was accused, among other things, of accompanying Dulos to Hartford the night after the murder while he stuffed bags of bloody evidence into storm drains and garbage cans.

Sealed custody report viewed on Michelle Troconis’ laptop during trial, contempt warrant alleges

State police investigators believe Dulos drove from Farmington to New Canaan to kill his wife. Based on blood-stained car seats and other evidence collected through searches across the state, detectives believe Dulos may have cut the body of his estranged wife into pieces. Later in the day, police believe he returned to Farmington where he met Troconis, who allegedly helped dispose of evidence.

Troconis has also pleaded not guilty a contempt of court charge stemming from the trial earlier this year.

Troconis, 49, this month entered the not guilty plea during a brief hearing in Stamford Superior Court, where her case was continued to Sept. 16, according to the clerk’s office.

Troconis has been accused of displaying a sealed custody report on her laptop during her trial earlier this year in the death of Farber Dulos. Carrie Luft, a friend of Farber Dulos and spokesperson for the Farber family, allegedly saw the sealed report and alerted prosecutors to it.