Bloody Knife Found In Home Of Missing Cohasset Woman: Prosecutors

COHASSET, MA — A bloody knife was found in the basement of the home that a Cohasset woman who was last seen New Year’s Day shares with her husband, who bought $450 worth of cleaning supplies before she was reported missing, a prosecutor said in court Monday, according to the Boston Globe.

Brian Walshe, 47, pleaded not guilty after he was arrested Sunday and arraigned Monday on a charge of misleading police who were investigating the disappearance of his wife, 39-year-old Ana Walshe, officials said.

Brian "provided statements relative to his movements and activities after his wife's disappearance that were not substantiated by investigation," which included purchasing a tarp and cleaning supplies, the District Attorney's Office said Monday.

The judge imposed a $500,000 cash bail and ordered Brian to return to the Quincy District Court on February 9.

Officials said Ana, who works in property management, was last seen at her home shortly after midnight on New Year's Day.

Ana planned to travel using a rideshare service to Logan Airport around 4 a.m. January 1 for a trip to her second home in Washington D.C., Cohasset’s police chief said. Police added that they were unable to confirm whether she ever got in the rideshare vehicle, but can confirm that she never boarded a plane for any airline this week.

Cohasset police previously said that Brian was being “fully cooperative” in the investigation and was asleep when she was supposed to leave for her trip.

Extensive searches were conducted all weekend in the woods near the Walshe home on Chief Justice Cushing Highway, where the couple have been living with their three children, the Globe reported. At the end of the day Sunday, an investigator was seen carrying a large plastic container with evidence from the house, according to the outlet.

Ana's Washington D.C. townhouse, where she commutes several times a month for work, has been searched with no signs of Ana, police said. Authorities did, however, find her vehicle in its usual place in D.C.

A two-alarm fire broke out Friday afternoon at a property formerly owned by Ana in Cohasset but was not deemed suspicious and was attributed to damaged piping connected to a natural gas fireplace insert, officials told the Globe.

Authorities added that Ana's phone has been off and she has not used any debit or credit cards since January 1.

Police said Ana is 5'2" tall and weighs 115 pounds, with brown hair, brown eyes, and an olive complexion.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Cohasset Police Department's Detective Harrison Schmidt at 781-383-1055 x6108 or email hschmidt@cohassetpolice.com.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.