Ana Walshe case: Bloody knife found in Cohasset home, missing Massachusetts woman’s husband held
Brian Walshe, 46, the husband of missing Cohasset, Massachusetts woman Ana Walshe, 39, was arraigned in Quincy District Court on Monday morning.
Prosecutors stated Brian Walshe is on house arrest pending a $500,000 cash bail in relation to charges of misleading a police investigation.
According to prosecutors, there are records of Brian Walshe going to various commercial stores the day after Ana Walshe went missing, including Home Depot, Whole Foods and CVS, and he did not inform police of his whereabouts.
According to prosecutors, Jan. 2 video surveillance shows Walshe purchasing hundreds of dollars of cleaning supplies, including mops, drop clothes and various kinds of tape, from a Home Depot in Rockland. They also stated Walshe had told police he had only left the home in Cohasset on that day to get ice cream for one of his children.
Police also found blood and a damaged, bloody knife in the basement of the Walshe’s Cohasset home.
“He’s on surveillance at that time on Jan. 2, even though he said he never left the house,” a prosecutor stated.
“Police obtained a search warrant, and actually searched the house with crime scene services. During that time, they found blood in the basement. Blood was found in the basement area, as well as a knife, which also contained some blood,” the prosecutor added.
Prosecutors also said police were also not actually informed by Brian Walshe that Ana was missing, however, as previously stated; just Ana’s employer informed police of her missing on Wednesday, Jan. 4.
Ana Walshe’s phone was also pinged to be in the location of the Cohasset house on Jan. 1 and 2, prosecutors stated. Previously, it had been stated her cellphone and various financial cards had not been in use since Jan. 1.
Prosecutors also state Walshe was in Brockton and Abington on Jan. 1 and did not inform police.
“He’s been in the house with police almost 12 hours a day,” Walshe’s attorney’s stated.
Brian Walshe, 46, was arrested on Sunday, Jan. 8, for the charges after police “developed probable cause” to believe he committed the crime during their investigation into his wife’s disappearance, and his arraignment was in Quincy District Court. The District Attorney stated of the arraignment, “Additional facts may or may not be entered into the record at that time.”
- Read more: Brian Walshe, husband of missing Cohasset woman Ana Walshe arrested, charged with misleading police
According to officials, Ana Walshe, 39, was last seen around 4 a.m. on Jan. 1 by a family member, reportedly physically walking out the door to catch a rideshare to Boston Logan Airport for a 6 a.m. flight. Walshe was headed to her second home in Washington, D.C., where she works as a property management executive to handle an emergency on one of her properties.
Police said Walshe never boarded any flight out of Boston Logan, however. She had another flight previously scheduled ahead of the emergency for Jan. 3, officials stated, but she never boarded that flight either.
- Read more: Search for missing Cohasset woman Ana Walshe ends 2nd day with ‘negative results,’ police say
According to previous reports, Walshe was first reported missing simultaneously by her husband and her employer on Wednesday, Jan. 4. Police had initially stated it was not unusual for Walshe to not contact the home for extended periods of time, given her regular weekly commute from Washington, D.C., to Cohasset. She is the mother of three young children.
Walshe’s husband, Brian Walshe, previously pleaded guilty in an art fraud scheme to sell fake Andy Warhol paintings on eBay in April 2021. Police had initially stated those charges were not thought to be in connection with his wife’s disappearance.
Her husband was asleep when she left the home on Jan. 1, police said, and he had been the one to inform police of his wife’s rideshare to Boston Logan.
The woman reportedly had her license, cell phone and other personal belongings with her when she left, Cohasset Police Chief Quigley said in a press conference, and her cellphone was previously believed to have been turned off since Jan. 1. Police also stated Walshe’s family and friends, including her husband, had been cooperative in the investigation.