BOSTON (AP) — The husband of a missing Massachusetts woman was arrested Sunday for allegedly misleading investigators, according to the office of Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey.
Massachusetts State Police and local police took Brian Walshe, 46, of Cohasset, Massachusetts into custody after concluding they had “probable cause” to believe he had misled investigators into the search for his 39-year-old wife, Ana Walshe. She has been missing since New Year’s Day.
The announcement of Brian Walshe's arrest came after Massachusetts State Police and local police said in a joint statement that their ground search for Ana Walshe or evidence related to her disappearance concluded Saturday.
A specialized State Police unit trained in search and rescue operations, three K-9 teams and the State Police Air Wing searched wooded areas near Walshe’s home Saturday. State Police divers searched a small stream and a pool but did not find anything, the statement said. The Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council also helped with the search.
Walshe, the mother of three young children, was last seen a week ago in her Cohasset home, police said.
She was reported missing Wednesday by her husband in Cohasset and her employer in Washington, according to The Patriot Ledger. The couple owns a home in Washington and Walshe commutes during the week for work at a real estate company, her friends said.
While police searched for Walshe on Friday, there was a fire at a home in Cohasset she owned until last year. The home was sold in March. State Police and local investigators determined the cause of the fire was accidental. The current occupants escaped safely.
The investigation into Walshe’s disappearance is ongoing. Authorities returned to her home Sunday, while detectives from Cohasset and the State Police were also in Washington investigating, according to The Boston Globe.
Brian Walshe, is awaiting sentencing in a fraud case involving the sale of fake Andy Warhol paintings, according to court records. Cohasset police said Walshe’s disappearance and her husband’s case seem to be two very separate things, The Boston Globe reported.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Monday on the latest charges in Quincy District Court. It was unclear if Brian Walshe has an attorney and a phone number for him could not be found.
