CNN
–
Brian Walshe was charged with murder on Tuesday in the death of his wife Ana Walshe, a Massachusetts mother of three who has been missing since the New Year, Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey announced.
Walshe, 47, pleaded not guilty last week to misleading investigators about what he did at the time of his wife’s disappearance. He is being held at the Norfolk County House of Corrections and will be taken to Quincy District Court to be arraigned on the manslaughter charge Wednesday, Morrissey said.
“Additions to the investigation and evidence supporting the charges may be presented in court but will not be discussed at this time,” the prosecutor said.
A lawyer for Brian Walshe declined to comment.
Latest update: Brian Walshe has been charged with murder
The arrest warrant comes in about two weeks Ana Walshe was reported missing from work, prompting investigators to launch a massive search for her whereabouts.
Police have found shocking evidence: blood and a bloody knife in the basement of the family’s Cohasset home, according to prosecutors; Brian Walshe’s Internet articles that show how to search for and lose weight, according to legal sources; and hacksaws and bloodstains at the garbage collection site, law enforcement sources said.
According to police, he told investigators he last saw his wife on January 1 when she left their Cohasset home in a car or taxi to go to the airport and board a flight to Washington, DC to work in real estate. She said she ran into her mother near Swampscott that day and went to get ice cream with one of her children the next day.
However, the prosecutors said that there was no evidence that Ana Walshe appreciated the ride or going to the airport, and in the criminal decision, the police said that there was no evidence that he drove his mother on New Year’s Day. Prosecutors obtained a video showing Brian Walshe at Home Depot buying $450 worth of cleaning supplies, including mops, buckets and tarps, on Jan. 2.
The document describes Brian Walshe’s statements to police as “a clear attempt to mislead and delay investigators.” Prosecutor Lynn Beland said in court last week that his comments “gave him time to remove evidence (or) dispose of evidence.”
His employer, Tishman Speyer, reported him missing on January 4 after he failed to show up for work. According to Brian Walshe’s attorney, Tracy Miner, they called him at work to ask if he knew where he was before calling the police. Miner also said his client has “been very cooperative.”
Pamela Bardhi, who previously worked with Ana Walshe, said she was angry on Tuesday evening – but also relieved that there had been an update on the case and the way to respond.
“I was praying for the best but preparing for the worst,” Bardhi said. “From the first day, when I saw him missing from the media, my friends were writing, I just had a bad feeling and I prayed that I was wrong. I prayed that it wasn’t like that. And now we found out that a few hours ago there is a case of murder.”
The license to kill follows a series of legal challenges for Brian Walshe.
In 2021, he pleaded guilty to three counts of federal fraud related to a 2018 scheme to sell Andy Warhol art online. He has been on house arrest and supervision since then as part of his pre-arrest conditions.
Also in 2018, his father Dr. Thomas Walshe died, leading to a permanent dispute over his charges. In court documents, those close to the family have accused Brian Walshe of financial hardship, described him as an angry and violent person and said he was found to be a sociopath.
“He had a lot of arguments with his son,” Andrew Walshe, who is the manager of the center, said about Dr.’s friendship. Walshe and Brian. “Brian ran away with most of his money; had not met Brian R. Walshe in over ten years.”
Also, Ana Walshe told police in 2014 that someone had threatened to “kill (her) and her boyfriend,” according to a CNN report obtained from the Washington DC Metropolitan Police Department. A spokesman for the department confirmed that Brian Walshe was the subject of the report.
The report was submitted by Ana Walshe – then Ana Knipp – while living in DC. The case was later closed because the victim refused to cooperate with the prosecution, the spokesman said.
The couple’s three children, all between the ages of 2 and 6, are in the custody of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, a spokeswoman said.
