Trial starts for Colorado Springs man accused of wife’s murder

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - Years after his wife disappeared and following a delay in the case last fall, the Dane Kallungi murder trial has finally begun.

Opening statements commenced Thursday morning after two days of jury selection. The list of potential witnesses contains more than 20 names, including the victim’s mother. 11 News reporter Melissa Henry spoke to Margie Amaga last month about the case for her daughter’s alleged murder ramping up for trial.

Dane Kallungi faces first-degree murder charges in connection with Jepsy Kallungi, who vanished without a trace in 2019. She has not been located alive, nor have investigators found her body. Her distraught mother has repeated pleaded for information on her daughter’s whereabouts.

“I just want to know if she’s still alive or dead,” Amaga told 11 News in April 2019. “I don’t know where she is, why she’s gone.”

Kallungi was arrested in New Mexico in 2021 and extradited back to Colorado. A trial was set for September of last year, but his attorneys asked for it to be pushed back.

In January, a judge ruled to keep a detective’s testimony that was brought into question in the trial for jurors to hear.

11 News will have a crew in the newsroom during the trial and will continue to provide updates.

Copyright 2023 KKTV. All rights reserved.