News

Springfield woman found dead in Westford, DA says death 'suspicious'

WESTFORD, Mass. — A 38-year-old woman from Springfield was found dead in Westford, and authorities are now calling her death suspicious.

An investigation was launched after the woman's body was found late Sunday morning in a neighborhood along Providence Road, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said in a statement Monday.

"This is being actively investigated as a suspicious death based on the location and because the female was not dressed in appropriate clothing for the cold temperatures," Ryan said.

Authorities have not yet identified the woman.

Police responded to Providence Road just after 11 a.m. Sunday for a report of a body located on the side of the road.

Neighbors in the rural Westford community said they were in shock after the woman's body was found.

“[It's] a little weird, just really not expecting it," Westford resident Michael Burns Told Boston 25 News Saturday. "We live down the road, so just not something you expect.”

Burns said investigators were milling around his neighborhood for at least three hours that day.

An autopsy will be done on the woman to determine how she died.

MORE: Six-alarm fire in Roxbury church rages on Saturday morning