Shraman Mitra
The residents of Winthrop, Massachusetts, witnessed a shocking event in June 2015 when the body of a two-year-old child washed up on the shores of Deer Island. While the body was found inside a plastic bag, it took investigators around three months to identify it as Boston resident Bella Bond. A&E’s ‘City Confidential’ talks about Bella’s sudden demise and shows how the ensuing investigation discovered that her mother, Rachelle Bond, and her then-boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, were responsible for the crime.
Who is Michael McCarthy?
A resident of Boston, Massachusetts, reports mention that Michael met and got acquainted with Rachelle Bond in early 2015. By then, the latter was residing in a Boston apartment with her daughter, Bella, and the two soon welcomed him into their home. Although the toddler belonged to Rachel and her previous partner, Joseph Amoroso, her father left before she came into this world. Thus, Michael was the only father figure in Bella’s life at the time of her death.
Interestingly, neighbors mentioned that Michael and Rachelle found it challenging to keep Bella happy as they often heard the toddler crying. On top of it, sources talked about Michael’s fascination with the occult and how he had a lengthy criminal record, including substance abuse convictions. However, nothing seemed out of the ordinary in their day-to-day life, and people had no idea that Bella was about to meet such a horrifying end.
To this day, investigators haven’t been able to determine the day Bella passed away, but her body was found by a woman who was walking her dog on Deer Island on June 25, 2015. While walking along the shoreline, the witness noticed a plastic packet containing the two-year-old’s remains, a zebra-print blanket, and a pair of polka-dotted pants. Unfortunately, the police did not have much to go by in the form of identification, and the body remained classified as a Baby Doe for about three months.
On the other hand, doctors believed the victim died due to strangulation or a heart attack, even though an autopsy could not determine the cause. Eventually, once the police asked the public for help, a man named Michael Sprinsky came forward and identified the remains as that of Bella Bond. He even claimed that Rachelle and Michael had conspired to murder the baby.
During the investigation, the police were alarmed to discover that Michael and Rachelle had prior substance abuse convictions. On top of it, Sprinsky insisted that he witnessed the couple beating Bella before locking her inside a cupboard. Naturally, Michael and Rachelle denied involvement in the child’s death and maintained their innocence throughout the initial interview. Yet, the cops had an ace up their sleeve, and they got Rachelle to talk after promising her a plea deal. When questioned for the second time, she mentioned that Michael believed a demon was inside Bella.
Rachel claimed that her then-boyfriend punched Bella in the stomach, which led to her death. Besides, she even confessed to hiding the child’s body in the freezer before dumping it into the water at Boston Harbor. Interestingly, Rachelle’s statement did not match the evidence, as medical examiners found no signs of trauma on the victim’s body. On top of that, a forensic search of the freezer and Rachelle’s car revealed no trace of human remains. Nonetheless, the cops arrested both Michael and his then-girlfriend on circumstantial evidence.
Michael McCarthy is Still Imprisoned
Michael pled not guilty when presented in court and insisted on his innocence. However, Rachelle cut a deal and decided to testify against him. Hence, the jury convicted Michael of second-degree murder, and the judge sentenced him to 20 years to life in prison in 2017. In the meantime, Rachelle pled guilty to larceny and accessory after the fact to murder in 2017.
The judge considered the time served before sentencing Rachelle to two years of probation. In the months following Michael’s conviction, he put in several petitions talking about his innocence and seeking to overturn the ruling. Yet, his pleas have been rejected, and he remains incarcerated at the Old Colony Correctional Center in Bridgewater, Massachusetts.
Read More: Bella Bond Murder: How Did She Die? Who Killed Her?
