As a memorial for the girl formerly known as “Baby Doe” continues to grow, a woman who lived with Rachelle Bond in a family shelter believes the child’s mother was doing well, but that drugs ruined her progress.
The father of Bella Bond, the 2-year-old "Baby Doe" whose body washed up on the shore of Massachusetts’ Deer Island in June, is expressing doubt that Bella’s mother, Rachelle Bond, was involved in her death.
Bond was arrested and charged as an accessory after the fact. Bond's boyfriend, 35-year-old Michael McCarthy, was accused of her murder.
"She told me the whole story," Bella's biological father, Joseph Amoroso, told the Boston Herald. "She was very emotional, sincere through the whole thing, and I believe her. I believe her that it was this man who murdered our daughter. Murdered a 2-year-old."
Meanwhile friends of Bond say she had a troubled past and believed drugs kept the 40-year-old from being the parent she wanted to be.
"She was doing really well," said Junie Dieujuste, who lived with Rachelle Bond in a family shelter.
Dieujuste said Bella was supposed to be a new chance for Bond, who lost custody of her first two children.
"She was a beautiful little girl," Dieujuste said about Bella.
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"She had a rough life, wasn't an easy one," said Doug Dutrizac, a former boyfriend of Rachelle Bond. "Inside, she was a good person. Drugs did her in."
Dutrizac says he lived with Bond for two years, well before Bella was born. He said she tried to be a good mother to her two older children.
The Massachusetts Department of Children and Families terminated her parental rights with one child in 2001 and another in 2006. Years later, she pleaded guilty to a prostitution charge after a 2010 arrest.
The DCF had contact with Bella Bond in 2012 and 2013 for neglect. In both instances, the department provided services and the cases were closed.
Even after millions saw a computer-generated image of "Baby Doe" — one that bared a very close resemblance to the child — no one identified her until a the Boston Police Department's Homicide Unit received a tip that led investigators to Friday's determination.
"I didn't know. Every time I saw the picture, I just kept saying, 'Somebody knows something, someone knows who she is,'" Dieujuste said through tears.
On Facebook, Rachelle Bond portrayed herself as a doting mother, posting several pictures and a video of Bella's second birthday, the last the toddler would ever celebrate.
Friday, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel Conley announced the charges against Bond and McCarthy, whose arrest had been authorized as he remained hospitalized for an unrelated medical condition.
"This child, whose very name means 'beauty,' was murdered," Conley said. "We allege that McCarthy caused Bella's death, that he did so intentionally, and that he and Bond took specific steps to keep Bella's death a secret and to avoid prosecution."
Conley went on to say that the cause of Bella's death has "puzzled" investigators since her body was found, but that they have "a very good idea" of what happened to her based on the evidence."
The district attorney would not elaborate on that, saying that more details would be available Monday.
Officials say the death was violent and it happened at the family's apartment on Maxwell Street.
