BOSTON — On the same day his wife was last seen alive, Brian Walsh went to several pharmacies and hardware stores in Massachusetts to purchase heavy-duty cleaning supplies, a Tyvek protective suit and a knife, according to prosecutors.
He made these trips after early morning Internet searches, including “How long before the body starts smelling?” And “dismemberment and the best ways to dispose of the body.” Over the next few days, he continued to search for how to dismember a body with a saw, and did not report her missing until January 4, when his employer began searching for her and called the police.
Closing arguments are expected Friday in Walsh’s trial on first-degree murder charges. He had previously pleaded guilty to misleading police and improperly disposing of a body, on the day jury selection was due to begin.
His lawyers rested Thursday without calling any witnesses, despite speculation that Walsh might testify. His lawyers tried to raise reasonable doubt, admitting that he lied to investigators while arguing that he panicked after discovering Anna was dead after a New Year’s Eve gathering. With no body ever recovered, investigators were unable to determine the cause of death.
“When he went into the bedroom and started to sleep, he felt something was wrong,” defense attorney Larry Tipton told the jury during the first week of the trial, describing the moment Anna didn’t respond and “rolled out of bed.”
Meanwhile, prosecutors pointed to Walsh’s actions afterward as evidence of premeditation. Jurors were shown surveillance footage of him at stores such as CVS, Walgreens and Lowe’s purchasing items including hydrogen peroxide and ammonia. Jurors were also shown photos of tools that investigators testified had blood on them, including a saw and an axe.
When questioned, Walsh told police that Anna had left Massachusetts on New Year’s Day for a work emergency in Washington, D.C., although witnesses testified that there was no record of her booking a flight or boarding the plane. He did not contact her employer until January 4.
Prosecutors also linked him to items found at a garbage processing facility near his mother’s home, including an axe, a saw, towels, a Tyvek suit, cleaning agents, a Prada wallet, shoes like the ones Anna was last seen wearing, and a coronavirus vaccination card. Investigators testified that Anna also took out a $2.7 million life insurance policy and named him as the beneficiary.
Friends described Anna’s final weeks as emotionally tense. Jim Motlow, who spent New Year’s Eve with the couple, said they seemed “very in love,” although he later learned that Anna and another man had exchanged letters that night.
Another friend, Alyssa Kirby, told the jury that Anna appeared exhausted from traveling and stressed about her marriage. The two have become close recently, taking walks together and going to karaoke; Kirby cried when he showed them pictures. She testified that Anna considered moving her family to Washington and said that Brian often wondered if she loved him.
Kirby also recounted two messages from Brian shortly before Anna was reported missing – one at Christmas, when he asked her if she knew where Anna was, and another on January 3: “I know we did this a week ago, but have you heard from Anna?”