Police: Attorneys for man accused of murdering wife should face charges for allegedly removing bloody sheets, possible weapon

Two defense attorneys who represented David Tronnes, the man charged with first-degree murder in the 2018 death of his wife, should also face charges for having private investigators remove evidence from the home and not disclose it for nearly a year, Orlando police investigators are saying.

Orlando Police say the attorneys should face accessory after the fact to first-degree murder, and tampering with evidence.

Read: Confusion over assets delays trial of Orlando man accused of killing wife in 2018

In the days following the murder of Santi Cooper-Tronnes, Orlando police collected evidence from her and Tronnes’ upscale home in Delaney Park. However what they missed was a set of bloody sheets later collected by a private investigator hired by Tronnes’ former attorneys -- Robert Mandell and Gregory Greenberg.

A green cable was collected from the home by a different private eye, also hired by the defense, and held as evidence.

Police call that cable a potential murder weapon; Cooper Tronnes’ autopsy results show Cooper-Tronnes had been beaten and strangled, and investigators said she had “an unusual linear mark on the right side of her neck with possible ligature markings on either side.”

According to police, the defense attorneys didn’t disclose the bloody sheets or the cable to prosecutors until 11 months after Cooper-Tronnes’ death.

Police said in the investigation that it “seemed apparent” Mandell’s law firm would not have disclosed the evidence if officers hadn’t placed a surveillance camera at the home that captured the private investigators leaving.

Police said they have concluded in their investigation there’s enough probable cause to charge both attorneys with felonies, and the case has been handed over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to review.

Read: Jailhouse informant: Delaney Park man accused of killing wife says he doesn’t remember it happening

In a statement to Eyewitness News, Mandell’s attorney Vincent Citro said:

“OPD’s attempt to excuse an inept investigation by casting constitutionally dangerous allegations against a defense attorney is disturbing and an afront our justice system. Detective Sprague makes clear that any lawyer vigorously defending a client should be charged with a crime. Mr. Mandell is innocent and will be exonerated should a prosecution go forward.”

Greenberg’s attorney said Greenberg followed the law and the rules of professional conduct of the Florida Bar.

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