He Confessed to Cutting Up His Wife's Body. Can Disturbing Series of Google Searches Prove His Guilt in Her Murder?

Brian Walshe, 50, told authorities his wife, Ana Walshe, 39, disappeared after leaving for the airport on January 1, 2023. However, during court proceedings on December 1, his lawyer asserted that Brian discovered Ana dead in their home around 2:30 a.m., challenging the prosecutions claims.

The following day, jurors were presented with disturbing online searches Brian allegedly performed in the hours after Anas death. Prosecutors detailed that in the immediate aftermath, Brian reportedly searched for phrases such as how to saw a body and how long before a body starts to smell.

Brian, from Cohasset, Massachusetts, faces first-degree murder charges related to Anas disappearance and presumed death. The mother of three has not been found. While he has pleaded not guilty to murder, he admitted in November to two lesser charges: unlawfully moving a human body and misleading law enforcement.

During opening statements on December 1, defense attorney Larry Tipton claimed Brian found his wife deceased in bed and panicked, which led him to conceal the incident. Tipton suggested Brians frantic internet searches reflected fear and confusion over protecting their children. Meanwhile, prosecutors suggested motives including Anas alleged affair and financial gain, noting Brian was the sole beneficiary of her $2.7 million life insurance policy.

Details of the searches, presented on December 2 in Norfolk Superior Court, included:

• January 1, 2023, 4:52 a.m.: best way to dispose of a body
• 4:55 a.m.: How long before a body starts to smell
• 6:24 a.m.: How long for someone to be missing to inheritance
• 7:48 a.m.: Nearby Lowe's stores
• 9:35 a.m.: can identification be made on partial human remains
• 9:59 a.m.: How to dispose of a cell phone
• 10:29 a.m.: My wife is missing what should I do
• 11:50 a.m.: Can I use bleach to clean my wood floors from blood stains
• 12:53 p.m.: Should I use hydrogen peroxide on blood stains in concrete

The following day, January 2, searches included:

• 12:27 p.m.: How to saw a body
• 12:33 p.m.: Hack saw the best tool for dismembering a body
• 12:47 p.m.: Can you be charged with murder without a body
• 1:12 p.m.: Can you identify a body with broken teeth
• 1:14 p.m.: Disposing of a body in the trash
• 2:01 p.m.: How to remove a hard drive from an Apple laptop

On January 3, he reportedly searched for Body found at trash station, Can a body decompose in a plastic bag, and Can police get your search history without your computer. On January 4, Brian contacted Anas employer, leading her to report Ana missing.

Previously, in February 2024, Brian received a 37-month prison sentence for involvement in a long-running art fraud scheme involving alleged Andy Warhol paintings. He was also ordered to pay $475,000 in restitution.

Resources for those experiencing domestic violence are available at the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or thehotline.org. Calls are free, confidential, and available 24/7 in over 170 languages.

Author: Zoe Harrison