A former Massachusetts police officer is accused of killing a pregnant woman who accused him of sexual abuse and staging her death to look like a suicide.
Sandra Birchmore, 23, died in 2021, as previously reported. The Stoughton, Mass., police department previously alleged that three former officers in the department had engaged in inappropriate relationships with Birchmore, beginning when she was 15 years old.
Now, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts has announced an indictment against one of the officers, Matthew Farwell, 38, on a charge of killing a witness or victim. Farwell was arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 28, the justice department says.
It is not immediately clear if Farwell has entered a plea or retained an attorney.
Prosecutors claims that, “Farwell killed Birchmore with the intent to prevent law enforcement from learning about Farwell’s commission or possible commission of federal offenses,” according to a press release.
Birchmore’s death was originally ruled a suicide, but prosecutors say that the federal investigation resulted in a probe of old evidence and revealed new evidence that led to Farwell being charged.
Prosecutors claim that Farwell began a relationship with Birchmore when she was 15 years old. The relationship continued after she became an adult, with Birchmore eventually becoming pregnant in December 2020 with a child that she said was Farwell’s, prosecutors say in a press release.
When the alleged relationship began, Birchmore was a member of the Stoughton’s Explorers program, which provides kids a chance to explore a law enforcement career and interact with officers. Farwell, a former Stoughton cop, was an instructor in the program.
Federal authorities allege that Farwell killed Birchmore in Canton, Mass., on Feb. 1, 2021, nearly two weeks after a friend of Birchmore called the Stoughton Police Department and reported the relationship.
If convicted, Farwell would face a mandatory sentence of death or life in prison, prosecutors say.
The Boston Globe previously reported that Birchmore’s family had hired Dr. Michael Baden, the former chief medical examiner for New York City, to examine her cause of death. Baden wrote a letter in June disputing the original determination of a suicide and claimed that she had been strangled to death, The Globe reported.
Stoughton police Chief Donna McNamara released a statement in June regarding the recent attention focused on Birchmore’s death.
“Every good and decent police officer should be aware of and angry about the injustices inflicted upon Sandra Birchmore,” McNamara said. “Sandra idolized police officers and what policing stood for in America, and she was victimized as a result.”
Neither of the other two former officers that Stoughton police had alleged engaged in an inappropriate relationships with Birchmore are currently facing charges.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
