NFL player Mike Pennel reportedly named person of interest in DR homicide
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A longtime NFL veteran is reportedly being considered a person of interest in the possible murder of a woman in the Dominican Republic.
The body of Carli Franchesca Guzman Roche was found on property belonging to Mike Pennel, a two-time Super Bowl winner with the Kansas City Chiefs who disappeared in 2021.
Guzman, who had not been heard from since eight days ago, was announced missing on September 13, 2021. His body was found in January while a worker was digging a ditch on land that Pennel sold last year. ESPN reported. ESPN’s report cited anonymous sources close to the investigation.
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Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Mike Pennel Jr. runs on the field against the San Francisco 49ers before Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, on February 11, 2024. (Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports)
The house is located in a gated community in Sosúa on the country’s north coast.
Pennel denied any involvement in a message sent to ESPN.
“This is not a story. I am not legally involved in this. This is reported fake news. I recommend you speak to my manager/lawyer before writing a fake story. It is damaging my reputation,” he wrote.
Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Mike Pennel Jr. plays against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 9, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
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Pennel played for both the Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals last season. This was his third game in Kansas City.
The defensive lineman was suspended three times by the NFL for violating the league’s substance abuse policy; two of these occurred in 2016. He was also sued in 2024 by Dwayne Haskins’ widow, who accused him of defrauding her of $275,000 from a dog breeding business in the Dominican Republic.
The 34-year-old played collegiately at Scottsdale Community College, Arizona State and CSU Pueblo and went undrafted in 2014.
Mike Pennel Jr. of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates after stopping a two-point conversion in the first half of the AFC Championship game against the Buffalo Bills at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on January 26, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
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But the Green Bay Packers took his chance, and he parlayed that into a 12-year career with five teams, including the New York Jets and Atlanta Falcons. He was also on the practice squad of the New England Patriots and Chicago Bears.
He is currently a free agent.
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