Brian Walshe, the husband accused of murdering and dismembering his missing wife, is scheduled to appear in court in Massachusetts on Wednesday.
Brian Walshe, 49, reported his wife Ana Walshe, 39, missing on January 4, 2023. She was last seen by a family member in her Cohasset home between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. on New Year’s Day.
He was arrested four days later for misleading the police. He was later charged with murder and improper conveyance, or transport, of a human body. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Prosecutors claim that Brian beat Ana to death and dismembered her, then disposed of her body.
Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool and Cohasset Police
They allege that Brian searched Google for How long before a body starts to smell,” “Dismemberment and the best ways to dispose of a body” and “Can you be charged with murder without a body.”
Investigators found blood, a bloody knife and tarps during a search conducted at the Walshes’ home.
At a dumpster near Brian’s mother’s apartment complex, officials found garbage bags containing rugs, cleaning products, the boots Ana was last seen wearing, a hacksaw, her purse, a piece of a necklace she owned, towels and a COVID-19 vaccine card in her name.
Authorities have not found Ana’s body.
Prosecutors also claim that Brian suspected his wife was cheating on him. He also allegedly searched “Best state to file a divorce for a man.”
The last hearing in the case was held on June 24. Walshe was not present at the proceeding. During the hearing, prosecutors said they would be receiving DNA lab results by the end of the month.
Walshe has been held without bail at Norfolk County Correctional Center since his arrest in January of 2023. A date for his trial has not been set yet.
Norfolk Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone is presiding over the case. Cannone is also presiding over the Karen Read murder retrial.
Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool
Read is charged with second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a collision resulting in death. She is accused of hitting her boyfriend John O’Keefe, who worked as a Boston police officer for 16 years, with her car and leaving him to die in 2022.
Her first trial began on April 16 and ended in a mistrial on July 1 after the jury stated it was deadlocked on the fifth day of deliberations.
Read’s retrial is expected to begin on January 27.
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