Former Stoughton officer charged in connection to death of Sandra Birchmore

A former Massachusetts police officer who voluntarily decertified has been charged in connection with the death of a young woman.

FBI Boston’s SWAT Team arrested former Stoughton Police Officer Matthew Farwell of North Easton at a shopping plaza in Revere for allegedly killing Sandra Birchmore. FBI stated that they took him into custody without incident.

According to the indictment, on or about Feb. 1, 2021, Farwell allegedly killed Sandra Birchmore by strangulation. It is alleged that Farwell staged her body and apartment to make it appear as if Birchmore had committed suicide. The indictment alleges that Farwell killed Birchmore with the intent to prevent law enforcement from learning about Farwell’s commission or possible commission of federal offenses.

Farwell was employed as a police officer for the Stoughton Police Department beginning in March 2012. He resigned from that position on April 1, 2022. 

On July 1, 2021, Farwell was automatically certified as a police officer in Massachusetts. On October 10, 2022, the Commission denied the Stoughton Police Department’s application for recertification of Farwell. 

It is alleged that Farwell had a sexual relationship with a member of the Stoughton Police Explorers Program, Sandra Birchmore, beginning in 2013, when she was fifteen years old and when the Respondent was twenty-seven years old. Farwell allegedly subsequently pursued additional sexual encounters with Birchmore by various means, including by sending her text messages while on duty, as recently as 2020. It is further alleged that the sexual encounters between Farwell and Birchmore continued over an extended period, until just months before her death, when she was twenty-three years old. 

Additionally, it was alleged that Farwell was untruthful during the Massachusetts State Police’s investigation into the death of Birchmore, as he purportedly misrepresented the extent of his sexual encounters with her to investigators. 

In August 2022 the Stoughton Police Department sustained allegations that Farwell engaged in conduct unbecoming of an officer, was incompetent, was untruthful, and failed to display the proper attention and devotion to his duty.

On November 22, 2022, the Commission authorized the Division to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the allegations of misconduct against Farwell. On June 30, 2023, the Division submitted its report of preliminary inquiry to the Commission. Subsequently, on July 12, 2023, the Commission voted to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Farwell. 

On several occasions, Farwell allegedly engaged in sex acts with Birchmore while on duty as a Stoughton police officer. 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. Farwell’s sexual contact with Birchmore continued until her death on Feb. 1, 2021

In December 2020, Birchmore learned that she was pregnant. According to court documents, she was excited about the pregnancy: scheduling doctors’ appointments, purchasing items for childcare and telling loved ones how happy she was to become a mother. Soon after she learned she was pregnant, Birchmore told Farwell that he was the father of the child and that she expected him to be involved, at least in part, in the child’s life. Birchmore disclosed to loved ones that Farwell allegedly became violent with her when they discussed the pregnancy and his role in the child’s life. At one point while she was pregnant, Farwell allegedly held Birchmore in a headlock and told her that he wished she were dead.

On or about Jan. 20, 2021, Birchmore’s friend called the Stoughton Police Department and referenced Farwell and Birchmore’s sexual relationship. Upon learning this, Farwell allegedly then sent Birchmore angry text messages and, a few days later – approximately one week prior to Birchmore’s death – Farwell visited Birchmore at her apartment in Canton and asked her if she could give him a spare apartment key and keep it a secret. It is further alleged that one week prior to her death, Farwell visited Birchmore’s apartment and began looking through her closets and bathroom, conduct which made her uncomfortable.  The court documents allege that, on Feb. 1, 2021, facing perceived imminent disclosure of his criminal conduct, Farwell murdered Birchmore to silence her.

On December 29th of 2022, Darlene Smith as the personal representative of the estate of Sandra Birchmore, filed a lawsuit against Matthew Farwell and former officers William Farwell and Robert Devine, the Town of Stoughton, and the Stoughton Police Department.

The lawsuit states that the complaint claims a grooming scheme and misconduct led to Birchmore’s death.

 Friends and family of Birchmore had found her death to be more suspicious despite reports listing her death as a suicide.

The following is a statement from Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara:

“The day after Sandra Birchmore was found dead in her Canton apartment, I ordered a lengthy and aggressive internal affairs investigation, the instructions of which made it clear that no stone should be left unturned.

“The Stoughton Police Department has supported other agencies and worked with other agencies, including the FBI investigation that today resulted in a murder indictment that concluded that Sandra was killed.

“The alleged murder of Sandra is a horrific injustice. The allegations against the suspect, a former Stoughton Police Officer, represent the single worst act of not just professional misconduct but indeed human indecency that I have observed in a nearly three-decade career in law enforcement.

“It has been my life’s work over these past three years to ensure that justice was served. As I have stated previously, Sandra Birchmore received no justice during her life. It is imperative that justice be served in her death, and today’s actions appear to bring our society one step closer to justice.”

The charge of killing a witness or victim carries a mandatory sentence of death or life in prison. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.