Brian Walshe held without bail on murder charges

COHASSET, Mass. (NewsNation) — Brian Walshe, the husband of missing Boston mom of three Ana Walshe, was arraigned in court on Wednesday, and will remain in police custody without bail until his next status hearing on Feb. 9.

During the arraignment, the prosecution accused Brian of killing Ana, claiming he dismembered and disposed of her body. The prosecution read disturbing Google searches found on an iPad in the Walshe home and listed evidence that was collected from 10 trash bags investigators recovered at Brian’s mother’s housing complex.

The 47-year-old was charged with murder and the improper transport of a body in connection to his wife’s disappearance, Morrissey announced Tuesday. 

“It is easy to charge a crime and even easier to say a person committed that crime,” Brian’s lawyer, Tracy Miner, told NewsNation in a statement. “It is a much more difficult thing to prove it, which we will see if the prosecution can do.”

Miner said she would not comment further on the evidence provided in court on Wednesday, but will wait until she can fight the battle in court.

“We shall see what they have and what evidence is admissible in court, where the case will ultimately be decided,” she said. “I intend to win this case in court, not in the media, which has already tried and convicted Mr. Walshe.”

Ana, 39, was last seen New Year’s Day, leaving her Massachusetts home to fly to Washington, D.C., where she worked and owned a condominium. She was reported missing three days later by her husband. However, the Daily Beast reports that Ana may have been reported missing by her employer before Brian.

In a statement to NewsNation, Ana’s company extended their sympathies to her family and friends, saying Ana will be greatly missed.

“All of us at Tishman Speyer are devastated by the tragic and untimely passing of our beloved colleague, Ana Walshe. Ana’s vivacious energy and warmth made her a true friend to so many at Tishman Speyer and in the broader Boston and D.C. communities,” Tishman Speyer CEO Rob Speyer said.

Outside of the courthouse, a friend of Ana Walshe’s talked about the new details of the case.

“I just got this sense of rage everywhere in my body and I’m asking myself —how does one get to a point like that?” Pamela Bardhi said. “How do you commit such a heinous, heinous crime?”

Cohasset police first arrested Brian four days after Ana was reported missing, accusing him of lying to investigators about his whereabouts in the days after Ana disappeared.

He was charged with misleading investigators in the search for his missing wife.

In court, prosecutors said they found blood in the couple’s basement along with a broken bloody knife. They also had surveillance video of Brian buying hundreds of dollars in cleaning supplies at a Home Depot — a trip they said he failed to mention. He also bought supplies at Home Goods, TJ Maxx and Lowe’s on Jan. 4.

Sources told Los Angeles Magazine that Brian allegedly dismembered Ana in the basement of their home and took her remains to an incinerator site. The source also said police may never find a body.

NewsNation has not been able to independently confirm that report.

Searches of Boston-area trash facilities revealed additional evidence. Investigators recovered 10 trash bags, discovering towels, rags, slippers, tape, gloves, cleaning agents, hunter boots, carpets, rugs, a COVID-19 vaccine card in the name of Ana Walshe, a hacksaw, a hatchet and some cutting shears.

A portion of a necklace Ana had been seen wearing in past photos was also discovered. Blood was also found on many of the items discovered.

Now, investigators said they have enough evidence to support both of those new charges.

“We now know, what we’ve known for a long time, there’s no such thing as a perfect murder,” Wendy Patrick, a career trial attorney, said. “There’s always circumstantial evidence. Forensics, in particular, tell the story the victim cannot.”

However, police have not said whether they found a body.