A chilling video has emerged showing a masked ex-cop accused of murdering his pregnant mistress entering and leaving her apartment just hours before she was murdered.
Sandra Birchmore, 23, of Massachusetts, was found dead in her Canton apartment in February 2021.
Prosecutors say her accused killer Matthew Farwell, a former Stoughton detective, staged the scene to make it look like a suicide.
They allege the married ex-cop tried to hide his sexual relationship with Birchmore, which allegedly began when she was 15 and he was 27, from his pregnant wife.
The terrifying video shows Farwell entering Birchmore’s apartment building wearing dark hooded clothing and a Covid-19 face mask, before rushing out about 30 minutes later.
He was then reportedly pictured wearing the same clothes while cradling his newborn son the next day, recorded on the investigative podcast The case reports.
A chilling video has emerged showing the final hours of expectant mother Sandra Birchmore, 23, who prosecutors say was strangled by her ex-cop lover
A federal complaint states that Farwell “resisted” wearing a face mask during the pandemic and would only do so if instructed to do so by his employers, making his choice to visit Birchmore unusual.
The detail is one of several unexplained aspects that prosecutors say were overlooked when Birchmore’s death was initially ruled a suicide by hanging.
These included Birchmore’s gold chain, which experts say was broken around her neck in a manner indicative of a struggle.
The necklace was not considered evidence and was later found tangled in a clump of hair by Birchmore’s family while they were cleaning her apartment.
The expectant mother, who was about three months pregnant, was found dead on February 4, three days after she was killed.
Despite evidence showing that Farwell was the last person to see her alive, the death was quickly ruled a suicide.
But for her loved ones, this conclusion did not make sense. Birchmore was excited to become a mother, as evidenced by a homemade sign she made for Farwell to announce that he was going to be a father.
She had communicated normally and performed her daily duties on the day she died. At the time of her death, a load of wet laundry was discovered in the machine. Boston Magazine reports.
Video footage showed her accused killer, former Stoughton police detective Matthew Farwell, entering and leaving her apartment the night she died
Prosecutors say Matthew Farwell killed his pregnant mistress and staged it as a suicide
It would take four years of campaigning by her family and investigation by the FBI to bring charges against Farwell.
Part of the decision was based on a review of the evidence by federal forensic expert Dr. William Smock, who found details indicating foul play.
Smock pointed out that Birchmore’s beloved gold chain was broken and hanging around her neck in photos taken before her body was taken to the morgue.
‘Dr. Smock noted that Birchmore was in the habit of always wearing a necklace with a flamingo pendant,” the FBI complaint said.
‘The chain was found broken around Birchmore’s neck. The breaking of Birchmore’s chain indicates a struggle.’
Smock also highlighted inconsistencies with how Birchmore’s neck bone was broken, suggesting her neck was broken by strangulation rather than hanging.
The abrasions on her body were also inconsistent with the original story, which suggested she committed suicide by wrapping the strap of a duffel bag around her neck and tying it to her closet door, Smock said.
Birchmore herself made a creepy reference to the same closet in a text message to a friend describing how Farwell stopped by to inspect the closet, the complaint said.
Birchmore met her accused killer through the Stoughton Police Explorers and prosecutors allege he groomed her before entering into a sexual relationship with her when she was a minor.
She became pregnant with his child and signed this handmade card for him to celebrate
Farwell has denied any involvement and pleaded not guilty to Birchmore’s murder.
A crucial part of the story that initially seems to be overlooked is their alleged relationship.
The two met when Birchmore was a 12-year-old aspiring police officer and she joined the Stoughton Police Explorers.
Farwell was her mentor throughout the program, but prosecutors say their relationship crossed a line, with him taking her virginity when she was just 15.
Even years later, the accused killer would refer to this fact in text messages.
In 2019, Birchmore told Farwell she was glad he “took it.” Later in the same conversation, Farwell acknowledged that it was “a big deal to be first,” according to the complaint.
The document also exposes explicit messages describing Farwell’s rape and incest fantasies, as well as his controlling nature.
“Birchmore often wrote about Farwell using sexual acts to punish her,” the complaint says.
‘According to her diary entries, Farwell would engage in vigorous oral, vaginal and anal sex acts to punish her for her mistakes, such as getting bad grades, having intercourse with other people and not sharing the location of her cell phone with him.’
However, prosecutors say Farwell, the married father of three, began to fear he was losing control of Birchgrove and turned to deadly actions to keep the relationship quiet.
Former officers William Farwell and Robert Devine were also accused of grooming and sexually assaulting Birchgrove
The sexual encounters often took place while Farwell was on duty, prosecutors said.
The filing further notes that morbid memes related to necrophilia, rape and sexual assault were also found on Farwell’s electronic devices.
All the while, Farwell was a married father of two, with a third child on the way.
Boston Magazine reports that his youngest son was born just hours after Farwell left the Birchmore home on the night of the murder and that the accused killer was pictured wearing the same outfit he had worn earlier that evening.
Leading up to the murder, Farwell “lost control of Birchmore and the information it possessed about his past and conduct at the time,” the indictment said.
A friend had also contacted police to make allegations about their relationship, which were relayed to Farwell, the document said.
Another friend told Boston Magazine that Birchmore had also been involved with Farwell’s brother William “Billy” Farwell.
While Farwell was dominant, Billy presented himself as “the sweet one, the best friend with benefits.” It was a very sick ‘good cop, bad cop’ relationship she had with them,” Hailee Sousa said.
In 2022, 18 months after Birchmore’s death, three officers were publicly reprimanded by Police Chief Donna McNamara for “inappropriate” relationships with the young woman.
Multiple law enforcement agencies continue to investigate her death
Sousa said Birchmore was also manipulated by a third police officer named Robert Devine, whom she also met through the discovery program.
Devine allegedly used an online profile to solicit sexual content from Birchmore. His police certificate was suspended, but he is fighting to have it completely revoked.
Devine, who has now retired, said: ‘I had no personal relationship with Sandra whatsoever. She never had access to my phone number and I never interacted with her,” the Boston Globe reported.
But he and Billy were reprimanded by Police Chief Donna McNamara in 2022 for “inappropriate” relations with the young woman. Neither has been charged with any crime.
“Sandra is a victim of sex trafficking,” Sousa said. “They told her to do things and send pictures and videos of them. Matt knew she would be obedient to him.
‘That was the dynamic. They mentally manipulated that girl until she had no voice.”