BOSTON — The case against a former Stoughton police officer accused of killing a pregnant woman and staging her death as a suicide is expected in federal court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors allege that Matthew Farwell killed Sandra Birchmore by strangling her on February 1, 2021, and then staging her Canton apartment to make it look like a suicide in an attempt to conceal their sexual relationship, which authorities say began before Birchmore turned 18.
Investigators say Birchmore was pregnant at the time of her death. However, DNA testing later determined the unborn child was not Farwell’s.
In a significant recent development, Birchmore’s death certificate has been updated. Her manner of death is now listed as “undetermined,” after previously being ruled a suicide.
Farwell has been in prison since August 2024, and is charged with her murder and causing the death of Birchmore’s unborn child.
Farwell has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
His trial is scheduled for October.
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