Sergeant Harrison Smith, the lead investigator in the case of the disappearance of Belgrade native Ana Walshe (39), for whose murder her husband Brian (50) is accused, appeared yesterday as the first witness before the Norfolk County Superior Court in the US state of Massachusetts.
He spoke about how the conversations with Brian and witnesses went, and several conversations that he had with the now-accused man just before his arrest on January 7, 2023, were played in the courtroom.
The search for Ana began three days earlier, whose disappearance was reported on January 4 by her colleague, because she did not show up for work in Washington. The call to the police followed after he had previously called Brian, who told him that Ana had left for Washington on January 1, because something had come up at work. According to the indictment, Brian killed Ana on the first day of the new year, and then cut up her body, packed it in bags, and threw them into several dumpsters.
In conversations with Sergeant Smith, Brian said that his wife seemed to him to be under pressure during New Year’s Eve, which they spent with a friend.
– She had some problems at work, and she intended to visit a psychiatrist – Brian was heard saying to the Sergeant on the recording when he first came to his home in Cohasset. – The only problem we had in our marriage was that we didn’t spend time together. I think I put extra pressure on her to have more time with the family. We were financially well off, thanks to Ana’s job.
Brian then said that his wife told him before they went to sleep that she would have to leave early in the morning for Washington.
– All that sounds reasonable – Sergeant Smith said to Walshe during their first conversation.
Smith spoke to Brian four times before his arrest, and two weeks ago, Ana’s husband admitted that he had deceived the police all that time so they wouldn’t connect him to her disappearance.
Message
When investigators questioned Brian about his relationship with his wife, he told them that when he was arrested for art fraud in 2018, he wrote her a message in which he said that he might not be providing her with the life he had promised and that he would understand if she wanted to leave him.
During the first conversation, Sergeant Smith was interested in details about Ana’s habits, health condition, and travels…
– I don’t want to hide anything from you, if it could lead to finding my wife sooner – Walshe said calmly.
The police searched the house after the conversation ended. Smith said it took him about half an hour to go through the Walshe home. Among the things he noticed was a hole in the bedroom ceiling. He also said he looked at the “Volvo,” which had a plastic liner in the trunk.
The next day, January 5, 2023, Sergeant Smith said he began contacting friends and Ana’s family, as well as posting a missing person poster. He said investigators reviewed phone location data, as well as financial records. A search of the area, which included a K-9 team, was conducted in the wooded area behind the Walshe house. Recordings from cameras along the road from the house to the airport were also reviewed, and investigators checked Logan Airport data and ride-sharing apps.
Authorities went to the Walshe house again and questioned Brian for the second time. His mother, Diana, was with him that day. During that interrogation, one investigator directly asked him: “Did you do anything to hurt your wife?”
Walshe said he did not.
The investigator asked him if they had ever had any physical conflict. He also answered negatively to this question.
The defense claims she died suddenly
Brian’s lawyer, Larry Tipton, yesterday, on the first day of the trial, addressed the jury saying that his client did not kill his wife, claiming that Ana died suddenly while lying in bed, which caused Brian to panic.
– When he entered the bedroom, he sensed something was wrong – Tipton said, adding that Brian pushed her several times in a panic, causing her to fall off the bed. – He thought no one would believe him that she was alive one moment and dead the next. He searched the internet because he was struggling with the fact that Ana was dead. You will hear evidence in this case of a sudden, unexplained death. Sudden unexplained death is known in the medical and forensic community but is not well understood to this day.
Sergeant Smith, testifying, said he looked at the property again after talking to Brian again on January 5. He added that they found an iPhone in the “Volvo” that Brian said belonged to his oldest son, as well as a receipt issued at a store for household supplies.
A recording of a conversation held on January 5, which is claimed to be a key part of the investigation, was played in the courtroom. Police officers asked Brian if they could download the content of his phone, to which he hesitated, saying it was a huge amount of information. He then said he wanted to discuss it with his lawyer. The police assured him that they were not investigating a crime, but a missing person case.
– I am only interested in finding Ana, no matter what it takes – Brian said at the time.
MORE TOPICS:
Source: espreso.co.rs, Photo: Printscreen News Boston