The Boston police officer, John O’Keefe, was found buried in the snow, during a heavy snowstorm, outside a Canton home on Sunday. O’Keefe was a 16-year veteran of the police force. Investigators believe the victim was run over and killed by his girlfriend.
The District Attorney said O’Keefe had been left in the cold for an extended period of time and suffered a head injury.
Karen Read, a 41-year old Mansfield woman, was arrested on Tuesday night. She was identified as O’Keefe’s girlfriend by multiple sources.
Read faces multiple charges, including manslaughter, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle collision causing death, and motor vehicle homicide.
O’Keefe was found about two miles from where he lived. Prosecutors believe he knew the owners of the home where he was found. Investigators claim to have Ring Cam footage from the incident. According to NBC10 Boston, property records show the same name and middle initial as the seasoned police sergeant. Boston PD would not confirm the report.
The couple went to at least two bars together before heading home on Fairview Road around midnight, said prosecutors at Read’s arraignment on Wednesday. According to Read, O’Keefe was left alone at the residence after Read went home because she was ill. Read said she did not see O’Keefe enter the house after making a three-point turn and left.
Read claimed she could not get a hold of O’Keefe after contacting him. She noticed her taillight was broken the following day.
Wondering if she could have hit O’Keefe with her car, prosecutors said per WCVB report. Read was heard saying, “Could I have hit him? Did I hit him?”
O’Keefe was found in the snow with swollen eyes, severe cuts on his arms and head, and bleeding from the nose and mouth. 911 was called CBS Boston reported. Read claimed, in court, that she thought a snow play had struck O’Keefe.
A medical examiner determined that O’Keefe’s cause of death was hypothermia and multiple skull fractures.
Read’s attorney argued for a low bail citing health problems, including multiple sclerosis and a brain tumor, as the reason.
The judge rejected the plea because Read had “plenty of reason to flee.” Read’s bail has been set at $50,000. She is also ordered to stay away from the victim’s family. Read has been released on bail.
O’Keefe leaves behind a niece and nephew he adopted and raised.
“The Boston Police Department continues to grieve over the tragic loss of our brother Police Officer John O’Keefe,” Superintendent-in-Chief Gregory Long said in a statement.
“John was a kind person, dedicated to his family, and will be greatly missed by his coworkers and anyone who had the privilege of meeting him.”
No internal affairs investigation has been opened, and no one has been placed on leave, said a spokesperson for the Boston PD to NBC10.
