Ana Walshe: Timeline of missing Massachusetts mother’s disappearance
Police investigating the disappearance of mother of three Ana Walshe are trying to piece together the missing 72 hours between when she was last seen and when she was reported missing.
Ms Walshe, 39, vanished from her home in Cohasset, Massachusetts, in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
Her husband Brian Walshe told investigators she left to catch a flight to Washington DC to deal with a work emergency.
Concerned colleagues reported her missing on 4 January, and Mr Walshe was arrested days later for misleading the police investigation.
The following timeline dating back to Mr Walshe’s earlier legal woes is based on information from police statements, a criminal complaint affidavit, prosecutors and defence attorneys.
2018
Brian Walshe’s father Thomas Walshe dies while travelling in India in September.
The elder Walshe, a renowned neurologist, writes Brian out of his will after he had duped his father out of nearly $1m in a real estate deal, according to affidavits provided to the Plymouth Probate Court.
Brian Walshe tries unsuccessfully to have his father’s will declared void, and seizes his father’s expensive art collection, and sell his property, according to court documents.
Dr Fred Pescatore, a longtime family friend, writes in a sworn affidavit that Brian is deceitful and dangerous, adding he had “witnessed firsthand what Brian was capable of”.
“Brian is not only a sociopath, but also a very angry and physically violent person,” Dr Pescatore wrote.
On 31 October, Brian Walshe is indicted on federal charges of stealing two Andy Warhol paintings, offering them for sale on eBay and delivering counterfeits.
He initially pleaded not guilty to charges including wire fraud and possession of converted goods. In April 2021, he changes his plea to guilty and is placed under house arrest, and must receive permission from authorities in advance.
29 December 2022
Ana and Brian Walshe tell the tenants of a rental property in Revere, Boston that they are selling off all of their property portfolio, which included houses in Lynn, Marblehead and Cohasset.
Mike Silva, who lived at the address with fiancee Mandi, considered himself a close friend of the Walshes, said he was stunned by the news. A cash sale for their apartment had already gone through, he was told.
Friends of Ana Walshe say that she had promised a “big surprise” in the new year.
31 December
Friends gather at the Walshe’s Cohasset home to celebrate the new year.
Friend Gem Mutlu told CBS Boston that Mr Walshe had cooked an elaborate meal for guests and described the mood as “festive”.
“There was a lot of looking forward to the new year,” he told CBS Boston. “There was no indication of anything other than celebrating the new year, problems on hold.”
Mr Mutlu said they hugged goodbye and he left at around 1.30am.
According to a police affidavit, Mr Walshe told investigators that his wife had to fly to Washington DC early the next morning for a work emergency. The couple went to bed at around 1.30am.
Mr Walshe’s mother Milanka Ljubicic tells Fox News that her daughter made calls to several family members and friends at around midnight, and again at 1am.
None of the calls were picked up.
1 January 2022
Mr Walshe told investigators that he said goodbye to his wife at between 6am and 7am, and she hailed a taxi or ride share service to Logan Boston International Airport.
A babysitter arrived at the home in the afternoon, and he went out to get groceries at around 3pm, he told police.
Mr Walshe further stated that he went to visit his mother in Swampscott, Massachusetts, at 4pm. The trip took longer than he had expected as he said he had lost his cell phone, and claimed one of his sons had taken it.
He said he did some shopping at CVS and Whole Foods and returned at around 8pm. Authorities searched surveillance footage and could not find any evidence that he had been at either store.
2 January
According to prosecutor Lynn Beland, Mr Walshe was seen on surveillance camera purchasing $450 worth of cleaning products from a Home Depot store in Rockland. The items included mops, buckets, tarps and tape. Mr Walshe did not disclose this to police.
Ms Beland said that Ana Walshe’s phone had pinged on cell towers in the area of their Cossahet home on 1 and 2 January.
Mr Walshe is seen on surveillance footage at the Press Juice Bar in Norwell.
A reciept obtained by the news outlet showed Mr Walshe ordered three children’s size smoothies and two large peanut, banana and honey smoothies at 9.57am. The store is about 15 miles from the couple’s home in Cohasset.
4 January
Tishman Speyer, the real estate firm where Ana Walshe works, reports her as missing to Cohasset police.
Officers perform a welfare check at her home, according to the police affidavit.
Mr Walshe gives consent for them to search the property and gives an account of his movements over the previous few days.
5 January
Cohasset Police Chief William Quigley issues a statement saying that Ms Walshe is missing, and appeals for help from the public.
6 and 7 January
Investigators from Cohasset police and Massachusetts State Police begin a massive search operation to comb wooded area around the couple’s home.
A task force set up to check Mr Walshe’s movements on 1 January find no evidence that he was ever at the CVS or Whole Foods stores, as he had claimed.
8 January
The Norfolk County Prosecutor’s Office announces Brian Walshe has been arrested and charged with misleading a police investigation.
9 January
Mr Walshe is arraigned in the Quincy District Court, where a probable cause affidavit is released.
Prosecutor Lynn Beland says that officers found no evidence that Ms Walshe had taken a cab to the airport, or departed on a flight, on 1 January.
She reveals that a broken knife and blood were found in the basement of the couple’s home.
Mr Walshe had made misleading and conflicting statements about his movements on 1 and 2 January, which had impeded their investigation, Ms Beland said.
Ms Walshe’s disappearance is described as “suspicious”.
Mr Beland pleads not guilty. He is seen smiling as he is led from the court house. A judge orders him to be held in custody on a $500,000 bond.
The Walshes’ three young sons are placed in the care of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families.
10 January
Sources tell WBZ-TV that a hatchet, hacksaw and blood are seen at a trash refuse centre in Peabody.
The Norfolk District Attorney’s Office confirms in a statement that items of interest were recovered.
“Search activity conducted north of Boston yesterday resulted in a number of items being collected, which will now be subject to processing and testing to determine if they are of evidentiary value to this investigation,” a press statement says.
