FALMOUTH, MA – An 87-year-old woman investigating noises inside her Cape Cod home was attacked by a man who had climbed through her bedroom window, prompting a series of serious charges and a multi-town investigation that ended in an arrest days later. The incident unfolded at night in a quiet Falmouth neighborhood and left the victim shaken after what police described as a violent encounter inside her own home.
Neil O’Flaherty, 27, is charged with aggravated burglary, kidnapping, assault with intent to murder, assault and battery on a person age 60 or older, and breaking and entering in the nighttime for a felony. He was arraigned in Falmouth District Court this week, according to the Falmouth Police Department.
Home invasion unfolds inside bedroom
FALMOUTH, MA – The incident happened May 25 at about 9 p.m. on Austin Stokes Drive. According to police, the woman heard noises and went to check a bedroom, where she discovered someone had entered through a window.
The intruder, identified by investigators as O’Flaherty, “grabbed her by the neck and shoulders and proceeded to drag her down the hallway to the living room,” police said, according to WBZ. Authorities say the suspect then attempted to kiss the woman, pushed her to the floor, and covered her face with a blanket, “restricting her breathing.”
The victim screamed, alerting her husband, who is also 87, blind, and uses a walker. Police said his presence interrupted the attack.
“The suspect was not known to the residents,” the police department added.
Suspect tracked after second incident
FALMOUTH, MA – Officers responded to the home around 9:40 p.m. but were unable to locate the suspect that night. The case remained open until about a week later, when a separate reported break-in in Mashpee, roughly 10 miles away, led investigators to a suspect.
“During the course of their investigation, Falmouth Police detectives were able to link O’Flaherty to the Austin Stokes Drive incident that occurred on May 25,” the Falmouth Police Department said.
Authorities said O’Flaherty was taken into custody and booked into jail following the investigation.
The woman, described by local reporting as a great-grandmother, did not suffer serious injuries, according to police.
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