Michael DuCharme Pleads Guilty in 2007 Murder of Woonsocket's Vicki Connolly

Michael DuCharme, 46, of Burriville, pled guilty today for the 2007 murder of Woonsocket resident Vicki Connolly. 

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Superior Court Justice Netti C. Vogel sentenced Ducharme to 60 years, with 40 years to serve and the remainder suspended with probation.

DuCharme was indicted in July 2009 for the murder of the 33 year-old Connolly after her badly decomposed body was found in the Black Hut Management Area in November 2007 at the end of Spring Lake Road in Burrillville. She had been reported missing after she was last seen on Sept. 5, 2007.  

The autopsy report found that she had been stabbed in the head and torso repeatedly, ruling her cause of death “homicidal violence with multiple sharp and blunt force injuries,” according to the Attorney General's office. A synthetic cord was also found wrapped around her neck.

Connolly was reportedly friends with Ducharme. Her body was found four miles from his residence at 235 Mount Pleasant Road in Burrillville. 

The Burrillville Police had no suspects until Ducharme started trying to tell police he had info on the murder in an attempt to curry favor in hopes of getting released early, according to Amy Kempe, public information officer for Attorney General Peter Kilmartin's office. During several interviews with Burrillville Police Detective Sergeant Guy Riendeau, Ducharme shared details of the crime scene that only the perpetrator would know.  

It took several months to investigate all the false leads and get more info from Ducharme, Kempe said. "We then presented it before a grand jury and indicted him."

Ducharme was serving time at the Adult Correctional Institution when the murder charges were brought against him. His criminal record includes drug dealing, assaults, break-ins, receiving stolen goods and driving a vehicle without an owner's consent, going back as far back as 1984.

“This case was solved through the tremendous effort of Detective Sergeant Guy Riendeau of the Burrillville Police Department, who gained the confidence and trust of Michael Ducharme into sharing details of the crime that no one else could know,” said Attorney General Kilmartin.  “I applaud his commitment to making sure this case was solved, hopefully bringing a measure of closure to Vicki’s family.”