Bella Bond's Mother Pleads Guilty In Connection To Toddler's Death

BOSTON, MA — The mother of Bella Bond, the toddler known as Baby Doe after her remains were found in a plastic bag on Deer Island in 2015, has agreed to a plea bargain in exchange for testifying against her then-boyfriend accused of killing the girl.

Rachelle Bond, 41, pleaded guilty to helping dispose of her daughter's body after then-boyfriend Michael McCarthy allegedly killed the 2-year-old girl. Rachelle Bond entered her plea Friday in Suffolk Superior Court.

Rachelle Bond will be sentenced after she testifies against McCarthy in his upcoming murder trial, scheduled for April 11. Bond wanted to cooperate with McCarthy's prosecution since shortly after her arrest, prosecutors said.

Bella Bond's body washed up on Winthrop's Deer Island in the summer of 2015, wrapped in a plastic bag. McCarthy was charged with murder three months later. He was accused of punching the little girl to death for being "unruly."

• READ: Rachelle Bond's Lawyers Push for Dismissal of Charges

Prosecutors said Rachelle Bond had known her daughter had been killed in her Maxwell Street home but "gave untrue and conflicting answers when asked where the girl was," the Suffolk County District Attorney's office said.

Rachelle Bond was indicted as an accessory after the fact of murder. She was additionally indicted for larceny over $250 for allegedly continuing to accept more than $1,300 from the Department of Transitional Assistance after she knew of her daughter’s death.

She pleaded guilty to both charges Friday. The $1 million bail on which she has been held was revoked.

McCarthy is due back in court Feb. 23.

Alison Bauter contributed to this report.