Pregnant woman strangled to death by cop accused of grooming her as teen, feds say
A Massachusetts police officer charged with killing a young pregnant woman, whom he is accused of grooming and sexually abusing since she was 15, has been federally indicted in the death of her unborn baby, federal prosecutors said.
Months before her death on Feb. 1, 2021, the now-former Stoughton police officer, Matthew Farwell, 39, of Easton, made an agreement with Sandra Birchmore as he continued to have a sexual relationship with her into her adulthood, according to prosecutors. Birchmore was 23 when she died, NBC News reported.
He agreed that he would try to impregnate her, as she had been wanting a child, “in exchange for her silence about his criminal conduct (i.e., child sexual abuse) and (his) years-long extramarital affair,” prosecutors wrote in court filings, referencing him having been married.
When Birchmore told him she was pregnant and that he was the father in December 2020, Farwell responded “poorly” and “became physically violent” with her, she told friends, according to prosecutors. Birchmore, prosecutors said, was excited about becoming a mother and hoped Farwell would be involved in the baby’s life.
In January 2021, Birchmore’s friend called the Stoughton Police Department, sharing information about Birchmore and Farwell’s sexual relationship, according to prosecutors.
Nearly two weeks later, Farwell strangled Birchmore to death, according to prosecutors, who said he staged her death as a suicide in her apartment. She was about eight to 10 weeks pregnant
Now Farwell is charged with Birchmore’s unborn baby’s death as well as her death, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts said in an Oct. 28 news release. He was first indicted in August 2024.
A superseding indictment charging him with both deaths was filed Oct. 28.
Federal public defenders appointed to represent Farwell did not immediately return McClatchy News’ request for comment Oct. 29.
In an August 2024 motion for Farwell’s detention, prosecutors wrote Farwell “spent years sexually exploiting” Birchmore, adding that his “grisly crime was designed to conceal forever the truth about his years of criminal conduct targeting Birchmore.”
When Birchmore was underage, Farwell had been her direct instructor in the Stoughton Police Explorers Academy, an educational program for children to learn about law enforcement, according to prosecutors.
Birchmore joined the program at age 12, in 2010, two years before Farwell became a Stoughton police officer , prosecutors said.
He began grooming and sexually abusing Birchmore when she was 15, according to prosecutors. The abuse was said to have continued until she was an adult, followed by Farwell having a sexual relationship with her until her death.
Farwell is accused of engaging in sex acts with Birchmore through the years when he was supposed to be working.
“To conceal this activity, it is alleged that Farwell falsely represented that he had worked certain hours, when in fact he was not working but engaging in sex acts with the then-minor victim,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in an earlier news release.
Two additional, and now former, Stoughton officers are also accused of “having inappropriate relationships with Birchmore,” NBC News reported in September. They are not charged with crimes.
In an exclusive interview with “Dateline,” Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara spoke of Birchmore and said, “I am sorry that she was treated so horrifically by three men from my department.”
“They dehumanized her,” she said, according to NBC News. “It’s vile.”
In the weeks leading up to her death, Birchmore shared with Farwell that she was excited about her baby’s due date, ultrasounds, medical appointments and a gender reveal, prosecutors said.
She ordered items for her baby, booked medical appointments and researched information about pregnancy and raising a child online, according to prosecutors.
Birchmore also planned to announce her pregnancy on Valentine’s Day in 2021, prosecutors said.
After Birchmore’s friend told a Stoughton Police Department employee about their relationship, Farwell became “enraged,” according to prosecutors.
He believed that Birchmore broke their “pregnancy-for-silence agreement,” prosecutors wrote in court filings.
Farwell is accused of holding her in a headlock at one point, saying he wanted her dead, prosecutors said.
On Feb. 1, 2021, Farwell arrived at Birchmore’s apartment wearing a mask and used the strap of a duffle bag to fatally strangle her, according to court documents.
Farwell’s trial is set for Oct. 5, 2026, court records show.
If convicted of causing Birchmore’s unborn baby’s death, Farwell would face a mandatory life sentence, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Stoughton is about a 20-mile drive southwest from Boston.
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