Missing Massachusetts mother Ana Walshe's work in DC was a 'point of tension' with her husband

Ana Walshe's Washington DC job was a point of tension with her husband as the missing Massachusetts mom was seen without her wedding ring weeks before disappearing. 

Walshe, 39, who disappeared from her Cohasset home on New Year's, appeared in several of her latest Instagram photos without her wedding ring as it was reported the couple had a 'very tense Christmas.' 

Two weeks before her disappearance, the mom-of-three posed with Paul Wharton, a British gin entrepreneur, at his book signing in Washington DC. The two were locked in a tight embrace as they smile at the camera. Her ring reappeared days later when she posted a birthday tribute to her two-year-old on December 17. 

She was also seen without her ring in a few posts that were four to seven months before her disappearance. Walshe had visited her mother in Belgrade, Serbia, in November and her mother said she did not mention anything bad toward her husband at the time. 

In addition to her ring's disappearance, the couple's living arrangements had led to tensions right before the holidays as the couple had been living apart due to their jobs, a friend told The Boston Globe.

Their relationship became tumultuous from nearly the beginning. Prior to their marriage, Walshe called DC police in August 2014 to report that Brian had threatened 'to kill' her and a friend on a phone call. The case was later dropped when she declined to participate in the investigation. 

In the next year, the couple got married and eventually had three sons together and settled in Cohasset. However, as they grew their family, Walshe was growing her career and they ran into legal trouble. 

Brian pleaded guilty in 2021 to fraud after selling two fake Andy Warhol paintings for $80,000. Right before he was set to be sentenced, prosecutors accused him of failing to disclose some of Walshe's assets, including a Maserati and some real estate, according to The Boston Globe. 

Although Ana Walshe was never charged in the case, her eBay account was used to list the painting and one of the victims accused her of using her position in the hospitality industry as a way to gain the trust of the buyers.

In addition, Walshe's social media page rarely showed photos of her husband, but rather of her children and life in Washington. 

'When [we] see Ana, it’s usually just Ana,' Carrie Westbrook, a longtime friend, told the Boston Globe.    

In addition, another friend told The Boston Globe he never suspected any turmoil in the couple's relationship. 

'Up until recently, I never had any doubt that she was completely, completely in love with the man,' her friend Bojan Bacevic, 40, of Belgrade, Serbia, told the outlet. The two had known each other since elementary school and he said he didn't notice much of a change in her in recent months. 

'It seemed like she was at a place where she achieved what she wanted family-wise [and] work-wise. And she kind of wanted to live life a little bit more freely.' 

Additional friends also said there was 'no indication of anything' suspicious in the hours before Ana vanished, however, some did admit she had tried to sell her apartment and car for cash in December and was looking to sell other assets just before her disappearance. 

Walshe's Revere friends and tenants, Mike and Mandi Silva, told Fox News Digital the decision to sell her apartment where they lived was sprung on them and that she became uncharacteristically 'pushy' towards them over time.

However, a source said the 'proceeds from the sale of the Revere condo were going directly into the purchase of another investment property, and not to Ana herself.'

Another friend, Abdulla Almutairi, had texted with Walshe on New Year's Eve around midnight and then did not hear from her for a few days. He said he didn't think anything out of the ordinary until he was informed a missing person's report had been filed. 

Brian Walshe was arrested on charges of misleading an investigation.

The affidavit stated that 'the intentional, willful and direct responses to questions about his whereabouts on the days of Sunday, January 1, 2023, and Monday, January 2, 2023, were a clear attempt to mislead and delay investigators.

'The fact that he was asked a specific question, and he gave an untruthful answer that led investigators out of the area caused a clear delay in the search for the missing person, Ana Walshe.'

The judge set bail at $500,000 cash and the next hearing is scheduled for February 9, 2023.

Walshe pleaded not guilty to the charges on Monday, January 9.

Walshe's mysterious disappearance was subsequently treated as unsuspicious by police, without evidence of foul play.

But revelations over the last week have drawn international attention to the story.

Hours before her disappearance, Ana Walshe is understood to have written an 'eerie note' on a champagne box, wishing her husband 'courage, love and perseverance' in the new year.

The scrawled note, first transcribed by the New York Post, read: 'Wow! 2022…What a year! And yet, we are still here and together!

'Let's make 2023 the best one yet! We are the authors of our lives…courage, love, perseverance, compassion, and joy. Love, Ana.'

The other side of the champagne box read: 'Gem Ana Brian 2023!', referring to family friend Gem Mutlu who was in the Walshe's home on New Year's Eve, hours before the disappearance.

Brian Walshe first reported that his wife had taken an Uber or Lyft taxi journey to the airport to fly to Washington DC on January 1 for work.

Walshe reportedly planned to travel on January 3 but said she needed to fly earlier due to an emergency.

The police investigation was unable to confirm that Walshe had ever taken a taxi to the airport.

Husband Brian Walshe also told investigators he had been shopping for his mother on New Year's Day, but CVS surveillance was unable to support the alibi.

Walshe did not tell police he had spent about $450 in cash buying gloves, tape and cleaning supplies from a Home Depot in Massachusetts either.

Walshe was sighted wearing a black surgical mask and blue surgical gloves.

The trip was reportedly made during the time he was supposed to pick up his children from school, although the school was not open on January 2.

Ana Walshe was only reported missing - by her employer - on January 4.

Police then found a hacksaw, hatchets, parts of a rug, used cleaning supplies, and bloody trash bags in dumpsters at the Peabody transfer station on the other side of Boston.

Officials later announced that they had discovered blood in the basement of the Walshe family home in Cohasset, along with a damaged and bloody knife.