Closing arguments begin in murder trial of Brian Walshe over wife’s disappearance

Surveillance video from a TJ Maxx in Norwell, Mass. showing Brian Walshe making purchases, is viewed as evidence during Walsh's murder trial, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (Mark Stockwell /The Boston Herald via AP, Pool)

BOSTON — On the same day his wife was last seen alive, Brian Walshe went to multiple Massachusetts pharmacies and hardware stores to buy heavy-duty cleaning supplies, a Tyvek protective suit and a utility knife, according to prosecutors.

He made the trips after internet searches early on the morning of Jan. 1, 2023, that included, “How long before a body starts to smell?” and “Dismemberment and best ways to dispose of a body.” Over the next several days, he continued searching for how to dismember a body with a hacksaw, not reporting her missing until Jan. 4, when her employer began looking for her and contacted police.

Closing arguments began Friday in Walshe’s trial on a charge of first-degree murder. On the day jury selection had been set to begin last month, he pleaded guilty to lesser charges of misleading police and improper disposal of a body.

His attorneys rested Thursday without calling any witnesses, despite speculation that Walshe might testify. His attorneys have tried to cast reasonable doubt, acknowledging he lied to investigators while arguing he panicked after discovering Ana dead following a New Year’s Eve gathering. With no body ever recovered, investigators have been unable to determine a cause of death.

“What could cause a loving husband and a loving father to do the things that you heard about in this case? Could it be something that was sudden, something that was unexpected, something that was unbelievable?” defense attorney Larry Tipton told jurors during closing arguments. “Something that only a medical examiner would have knowledge of, not a man like Brian Walshe?”

Tipton told jurors not to base their decision about whether Walshe killed his wife on the “upsetting and terrifying and at times, disgusting” acts he admitted to doing to her remains after she was dead.

“There’s evidence that he lied to police, there’s evidence that he searched the internet, there’s evidence that he disposed of the body, but there is no proof in all of the evidence that you’ve heard and been presented that he ever once thought about harming the woman he loved,” he said.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, have pointed to Walshe’s actions afterward as evidence of premeditation. Jurors were shown surveillance footage of him at stores like CVS, Walgreens and Lowe’s, where he purchased items including hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. Jurors also were shown photos of tools that investigators testified tested positive for blood, including a hacksaw and a hatchet.

When questioned, Walshe told police Ana had left Massachusetts on New Year’s Day for a work emergency in Washington, D.C., though witnesses testified there was no record of her booking a ride or boarding a flight. He did not contact her employer until Jan. 4.

At the time, Brian Walshe was at home awaiting sentencing in an unrelated art fraud case involving the sale of two fake Andy Warhol paintings.

Prosecutors also connected him to items found at a trash processing facility near his mother’s home, including a hatchet, hacksaw, towels, a Tyvek suit, cleaning agents, a Prada purse, boots like those Ana was last seen wearing and her COVID-19 vaccination card. Investigators testified Ana had also taken out a $2.7 million life insurance policy naming him as beneficiary.

Friends described Ana’s final weeks as emotionally strained. Gem Mutlu, who spent New Year’s Eve with the couple, said they appeared “very much in love,” though he later learned Ana and another man had exchanged messages that night.

Another friend, Alissa Kirby, told jurors Ana seemed exhausted by travel and stressed about her marriage. The two had recently grown close, walking together and going to karaoke; Kirby teared up when shown photos of them. She testified that Ana considered moving her family to Washington and said Brian often questioned whether she loved him.

Kirby also recounted two messages from Brian shortly before Ana was reported missing -- one on Christmas, when he asked if she knew where Ana was, and another on Jan. 3: “I know we did this a week ago but have you heard from Ana?”

Leah Willingham, The Associated Press