Pregnant Woman's Death Was Ruled Suicide. Now, Police Think a Married Cop Killed Her: 'We Knew She Didn't Kill Her Baby'

Mar. 15, 2025

Sandra Birchmore.Photo:Sandra Birchmore Facebook

Sandra Birchmore Facebook

When she learned she was pregnant in late 2020, Sandra Birchmore contacted her cousin in Seattle with the exciting news. “She woke me up at 4 o’clock in the morning to tell me,” recalls Barbara Wright, 68. “She was over the moon.”

Unmarried, Birchmore immediately began preparing for the birth, buying toys, and looking in advance for a photographer to take pictures of her newborn. She was planning a social media announcement on Feb. 14, 2021—Valentine’s Day. “She had a friend make a sign that said, ‘I’m expecting a new little one to love. My own little Valentine,’” says Wright.

Matthew Farwell.Stoughton Police Department/AP

Stoughton Police Department/AP

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Sandra Birchmore.Sandra Birchmore Facebook

“Sandra Birchmore survived years of grooming, statutory rape and then sexual violence, all at the hands of Matthew Farwell,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said in Boston on the day of the arrest. “And when it became clear to Mr. Farwell that he could no longer control [her], he allegedly silenced her permanently.” (Farwell has pleaded not guilty to premeditated killing a victim. His attorneys declined to comment.)

Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara (on Aug. 28, 2024) called Birchmore’s death a “horrific injustice.”.Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe/Getty

Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe/Getty

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Prosecutors believe that in the fall of 2020—after Farwell’s wife became pregnant with the couple’s third child—Birchmore told Farwell she wanted a child of her own. Farwell allegedly agreed to impregnate her and, in return, she promised to keep quiet about their relationship.

She will never be forgotten, according to her friends. “Sandra was fun, gentle. All she ever wanted was to be loved,” says pal Tiara Martin, 29. Adds Natalia Pimentel-Alves, 56, who had coffee with her every week, “She wanted to be a teacher or a nurse, and to have a child. She didn’t deserve this.”

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.

source: people.com