The Birchmore Murder Investigation Record You Should Never Have Heard – Boston 25 News

An audio recording obtained by 25 Investigates reveals what former Abington Police Chief David Del Papa knew about one of his officers months before that officer's name was made public in an explosive report about the manipulation and sexual advances of Sandra Birchmore by members of the Stoughton Police Department.

The recording, which was never intended to be made public, comes from a review Abington conducted into Del Papa's handling of information about Joshua Heal, then an Abington school resource officer. Heal met Birchmore when she was a young adult in his previous role as an animal control officer in Stoughton.

Stoughton Deputy Police Chief Robert Holmes first contacted Del Papa in December 2021 to tell him about an internal investigation Stoughton had launched based on text messages Massachusetts State Police detectives retrieved from Birchmore's cellphone after she was found dead in her Canton apartment in February 2021. State police assigned to the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office initially ruled Birchmore's death a suicide.

In August, federal authorities charged former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell with murdering Birchmore and staging her death to make it look like she had hanged herself. Farwell first met Birchmore when she was 13 years old and participated in Stoughton's Police Explorer Program, which teaches young people about law enforcement careers.

“The deputy (Holmes) told me that Heal and the deceased woman were friends and that they had been texting quite frequently, I believe daily,” Del Papa can be heard saying on the recording. “There was a lot of digital information. He said he hoped Josh (Heal) would help them connect the dots.”

Del Papa insists in his testimony that Holmes originally told him that Heal was merely a witness in the Stoughton investigation and that Holmes gave him a letter containing that statement.

In an early conversation, Holmes told Del Papa that he would share more information about Heal's connection to Birchmore if Del Papa agreed to a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement. Del Papa says he balked at the non-disclosure agreement, calling the request highly unusual. Del Papa says at the time he had no concerns about Heal.

Holmes interviewed Heal two weeks later, but according to Del Papa, Heal ended the conversation because he felt Holmes was treating him like a suspect. Del Papa ordered Heal to speak to Holmes, and a second interview took place in February 2021. Del Papa said he still viewed Heal as a “witness” in Stoughton's investigation, despite Heal's request for legal counsel.

The following month, Holmes told Del Papa that Birchmore was known to have mental health issues and that Heal had performed oral sex on Birchmore while off duty as a young adult. Del Papa said Holmes also told him that Birchmore “had disclosed in great detail to Josh details about her relationships with other members of the (Stoughton Police) department.”

Heal's attorney, Peter S. Farrell, told 25 Investigates that Heal is a key witness in an ongoing federal investigation and “has not been and will not be the target of criminal charges because he has not broken any laws.”

Del Papa said he was not concerned at the time about Heal's role in schools or as a police dog handler. Del Papa told a city attorney that Heal was married when he received oral sex from Birchmore and “extramarital affairs are none of my business. I really can't get involved in that,” according to the audio recording.

Kirk Minihane was the first to report in detail about Heal's involvement with Birchmore in Season 2 of his highly rated podcast, The Case.

In an interview with investigative journalist Ted Daniel in his Watertown studio, Minihane said alarm bells should have rung when Del Papa learned that Heal was wanted for information in Stoughton's then-secret investigation.

“It seems to me like the first minute you find out, you put the guy on leave until you get everything cleared up, and if he gets exonerated, it's fine to go back to work, but of course he wasn't exonerated,” Minihane said. “Heal kind of went under the radar, and he shouldn't have. I think we gave Heal an episode, but we probably didn't cover what he did enough.”

In a statement, Del Papa said Abington's review of his actions found he acted professionally and diligently in his dealings with Heal. Abington's report said Del Papa “was challenged throughout the SPD (Stoughton Police Department) investigation and was given limited information from Holmes and the SPD specifically related to Heal.”

Heal continued to work at Abington schools for six more months until, on September 22, 2022, Del Papa learned from a law firm that Heal's name had been mistakenly left unredacted in a Stoughton police report on Birchmore's relationships with then-Stoughton officers Matthew Farwell, his twin brother William, Robert Devine, and Heal, which was intended to inform Stoughton police's release.

“They wanted to warn us because there was going to be a disaster, so I hung up, called Josh (Heal) and told him, I think you're on administrative leave. At that point, I didn't know the full scope of Stoughton's investigation … as far as the relationship of one of the officers with this underage female and the advances and all that,” Del Papa explained in the recording.

Two days earlier, Holmes had told Del Papa in a Walgreens parking lot that Heal was not credible and warned him, “I don't think you want him around children.” Del Papa said he was still weighing that information when he learned that Heal's name was on Stoughton's report.

At the meeting at Walgreens, Del Papa said, Holmes also revealed: “Josh and Miss Birchmore had been sending each other dirty text messages. He said Josh had tried to have sex with her girlfriend during his marriage. He said Josh was interested in the girlfriend because she was a virgin.”

Abington City Manager Scott Lambiase told 25 Investigates that Del Papa followed department policies and protocols and did not learn the full extent of Stoughton's findings until they became public.

“As a police officer and a member of a union officer, there are certain steps you have to go through before you can actually place someone on leave or open an investigation. I think once we knew the exact facts and had confirmation of what actually happened, we were given instructions pretty quickly,” Lambiase said.

Heal remained on paid administrative leave until February 2023, when he submitted his resignation. Del Papa left Abington in May, in what Lambaise described as an amicable separation from the city. Del Papa received a letter of recommendation and, according to his separation agreement, he will be paid until May 2025.

Del Papa told 25 Investigates: “What happened to Sandra Birchmore was an absolute tragedy. I pray that justice will be served soon and that it will bring some comfort to her family after this truly horrific event.”

Based on his investigation, Minihane said Del Papa should have acted sooner.

“I don't know how Del Papa could go to work every day knowing that one of his people with such a past was running around schools and taking care of children,” he said.

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