Husband to be charged with murder in disappearance of Ana Walshe
COHASSET, Mass. (WJAR) — The Norfolk County District Attorney said Tuesday that Brian Walshe will be charged with murder in the disappearance of his wife, Ana Walshe.
The 39-year-old Cohasset woman has not been seen since the beginning of the year.
"A continued investigation has now allowed police to obtain an arrest warrant charging Brian Walshe with the murder of his wife," District Attorney Michael Morrissey said in a minute-long video.
Morrissey did not give any details on what led to the murder charge, and he didn't say if Ana Walshe's body has been found.
"Additional details of the investigation and the evidence that supported those charges are likely to be presented at arraignment, but will not be disclosed at this time," Morrissey said.
Prosecutors said Brian Walshe's arraignment in Quincy District Court would be Wednesday.
According to the Associated Press, a person who answered the phone at the office of Walshe's attorney, Tracy Miner, said Miner would have no comment. She has previously said he has been cooperative.
Brian Walshe, 47, was being held on $500,000 bail after pleading not guilty to misleading police investigating the disappearance of his wife.
Ana Walshe was last seen on New Year's Day at the couple's home in Cohasset, an affluent coastal community about 15 miles southeast of Boston.
She was supposed to take a ride-hailing service to Logan International Airport for a flight to Washington, D.C., where she often worked, but authorities said there is no evidence she ever got into a vehicle or on a flight.
Ana Walshe was reported missing several days later by her employer in Washington, where the couple has a home and to which she often commutes during the week for work at a real estate company, authorities said.
Her cellphone has not been used and there has been no activity on her credit or debit cards, police have said.
Authorities have searched the family's home as well as a wooded area near the home. The couple has three young children.
Prosecutors said in court that Brian Walshe was seen on surveillance video buying $450 worth of cleaning supplies at a home improvement store the day after his wife was last seen. Police also found a broken knife and blood in the basement of the couple’s home, prosecutors said, although they did not say whose blood it was.
Investigators also spent time last week searching a trash processing facility and a condo complex north of Boston where Brian Walshe's mother lives where they found items that may be related to the investigation.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.