Mother's boyfriend killed "Baby Doe" at bedtime, prosecutors say

BOSTON -- A Massachusetts judge has ordered the mother of Baby Doe to be held on $1 million cash bond and the mother's boyfriend to be held without bail.

Rachelle Bond is the mother of 2-year-old Bella Bond, who was found dead in a trash bag washed up on a Boston Harbor island on June 25. Her boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, is charged with killing Bella.

Bond is charged as an accessory after the fact.

A composite image of the chubby-cheeked girl with deep brown eyes known as "Baby Doe" had been viewed by millions as authorities tried to identify her. The big break came last week when Boston police received a tip and a search warrant was executed Thursday at her mother's apartment.

Assistant District Attorney David Deakin said Monday that police got the tip after Bond broke down in tears Sept. 16 and told a friend of McCarthy that McCarthy had killed Bella.

The man said Bond told him she had been off drugs for the last couple of days. When the man told her that was good news, that she'd now be able to get her daughter back from state custody, he said Bond broke down crying and said, "I'll never see my daughter again,'" according to the prosecutor.

Bond allegedly told him: "Michael McCarthy killed her," according to Deakin, adding that the man told his sister, and she contacted authorities.

Deakin said during the arraignment Monday that Bond told police that McCarthy believed Bella was possessed by demons.

Bond's lawyer had asked the judge to set a $250 cash bail and allow her to be under house arrest and with an electronic bracelet. That comment drew murmurs and snickers from people in the courtroom.

McCarthy's lawyer, Jonathan Shapiro, did not ask for his release on bail.

Earlier during Monday's arraignment, a woman was escorted out of the courtroom after she yelled at Bond: "I hope you rot in hell!"

As McCarthy was being led away after the arraignment, Joe Amoroso, who says he is Bella's biological father, shouted, "Mike McCarthy, you're done! You won't last a day."

Assistant District Attorney David Deakin said Monday that a lifelong friend of McCarthy told police he had lived with the couple and Bella earlier this year but moved out because he was appalled at how they treated her.

According to the friend, the couple had locked Bella inside a closet at least twice for 30 minutes to an hour while she screamed, the prosecutor said.

The prosecutor said Bond, 40, told police that one night in late May, Bella didn't want to go to bed and was fussy. McCarthy, 35, said he would go into the bedroom to calm her down, Deakin said.

A little while later, when Bond realized she didn't hear any noise coming from the room, she went to check on Bella and found her lying on a bed and McCarthy standing over her with his hand near her abdomen, the prosecutor said.

Deakin said Bond reported that Bella's head was swollen and she was gray and that she knew her daughter was dead when she picked her up.

According to Bond, McCarthy said, "She was a demon anyway. It was her time to die."

Police said they found books on demons and demonology in the apartment, CBS Boston reported via Twitter.

The prosecutor said Bond told authorities that McCarthy threatened to kill her if she told anyone what he had done to Bella.

Bond said she allowed McCarthy to get a plastic construction bag and believes McCarthy put Bella's body inside and then put the bag inside a refrigerator, the prosecutor said.

Later, Bond said, McCarthy put the bag containing Bella's body inside a duffel bag and put the duffel bag inside the trunk of his vehicle, Deakin said. He drove the car to the Boston Seaport, added weights to the bag and then dumped the bag into the water, the prosecutor said.