NFL veteran Michael Pennel Jr. maintained through his Dominican lawyer that he never knew Carli Franchesca Guzmán Roche, the young woman whose body was uncovered on his Puerto Plata property. ESPN’s investigation, based on family interviews and police records, shows the two spent considerable time together while Pennel owned the resort‑area home. The claim of ignorance now appears false.

Guzmán’s family filed a missing‑person report on Sept. 11, 2021; her remains were not located until January 2026, when a new owner began excavation. Police visited the backyard in September 2021 after relatives reported a strong decay odor, yet dismissed it as an animal carcass and never searched the area. Dominican officials reopened the case in March, labeling Pennel a person of interest and pursuing a homicide charge.

Pennel’s attorney Alexander Valbuena repeated that his client was abroad when Guzmán vanished and offered no explanation for the body’s presence on the land. A confidential police file shows no interview with Pennel, while the phone number he supplied to investigators matched his own. Prior to the disappearance, Pennel and two Americans were arrested for illegal firearm possession, adding another layer of scrutiny to his September 2021 Falcons signing.