According to a 19-month internal investigation by the Stoughton Police Department, three former Massachusetts police officers and two other people are claimed to have had “inappropriate contacts” with a pregnant lady who committed suicide earlier this year.
One of those connections allegedly started when the lady was a 15-year-old kid, according to a copy of the final report that PEOPLE was able to access.
The results were revealed by Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara at a press conference on Friday.
Sandra Birchmore, according to the report, died by suicide in February 2021. The 23-year-old woman’s body was discovered inside her Canton apartment, after she failed for several days to show up for work.
“I am here to talk about today is her life and how she was failed by, manipulated by and used by people of authority that she admired and trusted right up until her final days,” McNamara told reporters.
Birchmore’s pregnancy status was unknown, and the report’s cause of death was redacted; it also omits any information regarding the possible father of the unborn child.
According to McNamara, Matthew Farwell, a former officer, was 27 when he started dating Birchmore, then 15, in an improper manner.
The report also asserts that Robert C. Devine and William Farwell, who is Matthew’s twin brother, had inappropriate connections with the girl.
The report also notes that all three of the officers were associated with the department’s Explorers program, which gives kids the chance to learn more about a future in law enforcement by interacting with neighborhood police. Involved in the program from 2010 (when she was 13) through 2016, Birchmore.
Regarding the case, no accusations have been made.
According to the investigation, Matthew Farwell allegedly appeared on security footage at Birchmore’s residence four days before to her discovery dead.
The report states that he spent 20 minutes at her apartment and that Farwell was “the last known person” to see her alive.
According to reports, Matthew Farwell acknowledged to investigators that he had known Birchmore for roughly ten years. According to the article, his brother allegedly informed detectives that he and Birchmore started having an inappropriate relationship in 2019. Devine is charged with exchanging obscene texts with Birchmore between the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2022.
According to the investigation, all three of them broke departmental rules.
Two additional men are allegedly acting inappropriately around the girl.
At the press conference, McNamara said the findings of the probe were “deeply troubling” to her “as a human being and a police chief.”
She added: “Ms. Birchmore was a vulnerable person who had one constant in her life: An unwavering admiration for police officers, of those serving in the military. People in uniform. People with oaths and duties to protect and serve. The admiration led her to form relationships with men who were willing to take advantage of her.”
