HARTFORD, Conn. • A man charged with murdering his missing wife amid a contentious divorce case died Thursday, his lawyer said.

Fotis Dulos, 52, had been hospitalized since Tuesday when he was found at his home in Farmington, Conn., after an apparent suicide attempt.

“It’s been a truly horrific day for the family filled with difficult decisions, medical tests and meeting the requirements to determine death,” attorney Norm Pattis said.

“To those who contend that Mr. Dulos’ death reflects a consciousness of guilt, we say no,” he added.

Dulos, a luxury homebuilder originally from Greece, was accused of killing Jennifer Dulos, who has not been seen since she dropped their five children off at school in New Canaan in May. Her body has not been found despite extensive searches. Fotis Dulos had denied any role in her disappearance.

The children, who ranged in age from 8 to 13 when their mother vanished, are in the custody of their maternal grandmother in New York City.

Dulos insisted he was innocent in a note found near him, according to a court motion filed by his lawyers Thursday. Police officers recovered a note in which Dulos “declared his innocence of the infamous and heinous crimes that the state has accused him of and claimed his lawyers have the evidence to prove it,” his lawyers wrote in the filing asking a judge to order the state to preserve the note and other evidence found at the home.

On the day Fotis Dulos was found stricken, he had been facing an emergency bond hearing where he could have been sent back to jail.

Fotis Dulos had been arrested Jan. 7 on murder and kidnapping charges.