Bombshell Report Reveals NFL Star “Frequently Spent Time” With Woman Whose Dead Body Was Discovered At His Former Home — After His Lawyers Claimed He Didn’t Know Her
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
The Mike Pennel case just took a serious turn. Back in April, when ESPN first reported that the free-agent defensive lineman was a person of interest in a death investigation, Pennel’s camp drew a hard line. He called the story “fake news.” His attorney told reporters flatly that Pennel did not know the woman.
A new ESPN investigation says otherwise. According to interviews with people close to the victim and police records reviewed by the outlet, Pennel “frequently spent time” with Carli Franchesca Guzmán Roche whenever he was in the Dominican Republic.
What the New Report Says About Mike Pennel
That detail directly contradicts the denial issued by his attorney, Alexander Valbuena. He told ESPN in April that Pennel “did not know, nor had any connection to” the woman.
Guzmán Roche was 22 years old when her family reported her missing on September 11, 2021, after she moved to Sosúa, a coastal town in the Puerto Plata province. Her body went undiscovered for more than four years. It was finally found in January 2026, when the new owner of Pennel’s former gated-community property was performing excavation work and uncovered her remains during a trench dig.
Investigation records reviewed by ESPN also show that several people told police, early in the original 2021 search, that Pennel had connections to Guzmán worth looking into. Despite that, and despite officers having visited the property with members of her family in the days following her disappearance, there is no indication police ever interviewed Pennel at the time.
Neither Pennel nor his lawyer responded to the multiple messages ESPN sent seeking comment on the new findings.
Mike Pennel’s NFL Career and What Comes Next
Pennel, 35, is a two-time Super Bowl champion who has bounced around the league since going undrafted out of CSU Pueblo in 2014. He has suited up for six different franchises, including three separate stints with the Kansas City Chiefs. He won both of his championship rings with Andy Reid’s team.
When ESPN’s original report broke in April, Pennel sent a defiant text message insisting he had nothing to do with the case and accused the outlet of “damaging my reputation.” Pennel’s freedom appeared to be at stake as the Dominican attorney general’s office began treating Guzmán’s death as a homicide.
This is not the only off-field controversy that has followed Pennel in recent years. He was also named in a separate domestic violence allegation earlier this year. He denied it and characterized it as an extortion attempt.
For now, Pennel remains an NFL free agent, and no charges have been filed in connection with Guzmán’s death. But the latest reporting significantly undercuts the version of events his legal team presented just two months ago — and puts fresh pressure on Dominican authorities to determine exactly what happened to Carli Franchesca Guzmán Roche.
