← Serialously with Annie Elise
Serialously with Annie Elise
343: Brian Walshe Trial: Secret Boyfriend, Diabolical Searches & an Explosive New Motive | Week 1 Trial Recap
00:43:03
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- [00:00]
Annie
You really want to be better with your finances. You try to put money away in savings. You look for deals. You wrote out a budget once a long time ago, yet you still overdraft from time to time. And you still have debt. The truth is, managing money is not easy. But Rocket Money can help. Rocket Money shows you exactly what you're spending every month. From there, the app helps you make a budget that meets your financial goals. The app even gives you real time alerts when you're about to go over your budget so you don't spend too much time with Rocket Money. You can also see all of your subscriptions at a glance and cancel the ones you don't want right from the app. Rocket Money can even try to get you a refund for some of the money you wasted. Plus, you can use the smart savings feature to start putting more money away. Rocket Money analyzes your accounts to determine the optimal time to stow away cash without going over your budget. Our members report that the Rocket Money app saved them more than $700 a year. Getting better with money doesn't have to be a pipe dream. Rocket Money can make it a reality. Go to RocketMoney.com cancel or download the app from the Apple App or Goog Play stores.
- [01:02]
Elise
Hey true crime besties. Welcome back to an all new episode of Serial Asleep.
- [01:26]
Annie
Hello, hello, hello.
- [01:27]
Elise
And welcome back to another all new episode of Serialist Lee with me, Annie, Elise, and Happy Friday. First and foremost, Happy Friday. This is a little bit different of an episode than we normally do. We obviously don't normally release episodes on Friday yet. I heard you guys in the comments on Headline Highlights. I like to consider myself, you know, a podcaster of the people, if you will. And so many of you are hooked on this Brian Walsh trial. Some of you who have been following the case for years, you have listened to our deep dive, have, you know, are fully just, you know, immersed in the case. But some of you who are seeing clips on social media this week of the trial because it is a wild one and are just now starting to, you know, dip your toe in the chaos that is Brian Walsh. And so what I want to do is first and foremost, what today's episode is is I'm doing a recap of all of the bombshells and major takeaways that happened this week in the trial. However, if you guys like it, if you guys are into this, then we will do this throughout the course of the trial. And I think that, and don't quote me on this, but I am pretty confident that the trial is slated to be four to six weeks. So if we do that, we will do a weekly recap every Friday, giving you the breakdown of everything going on. And yeah, so what I want to do for this first one before I just, like dive into everything that happened this week and I'm going to recap it and just give you the need to know, not the everything you could know, because I know you don't have a lot of time. You just want to know, like, what really happened this week, Annie? What do I need to know? But before we do that, for those of you who are brand new to this case, I will link the deep dive in the show notes for you so you can go listen to that, you know, this weekend while you're working out, while you're cleaning, whatever you want to do in the school pickup line. But I do want to just give a quick little nugget size recap of the case for anybody who's new and maybe anybody who needs a little bit of a refresher on the whole situation. I'm just going to tell you, you know, who Brian is, who I also refer to as Quagmire because that's what he looks like to me. He has the most rectangle face I've ever seen, who Anna Walsh was, how we got to trial, and every unhinged revelation that came out this week. So I've got my notes here. I've got, you know, my water down here, and we are going to just like dive into this. Now, first, I want to talk about Anna a little bit because obviously she is the most important person in this story. She is the person that everybody wants justice for. So Anna was born in Serbia, and she came to the U.S. in 2005. Now, when she arrived in the U.S. she started working in the hospitality industry. And then she eventually met Brian while she was working at a hotel in Massachusetts. So the two of them got married in 2016. They had three sons together who are now four, six and eight years old and seemingly had a great, you know, love story, happy family, three kids, all of the things. A few years later, Ana became a general manager of a very major real estate company. So then she started splitting her time between Massachusetts and then Washington, D.C. where this real estate company was headquartered. And she had a townhouse there as well that she would stay in whenever she traveled. So she kind of was doing it all. I mean, she was raising her sons, making huge career strides in her life, all while kind of jumping back and forth between two states for home and Work, balance. But Brian, on the other hand, was not doing it all. He was kind of, I don't know, I guess you could call him, I don't know what the other word would be. Just a fucking loser. Because in 2021, he ended up pleading guilty in federal court to three counts of fraud. This was for selling counterfeit Andy Warhol paintings, which very. Is very niche, I gotta say. But also, who thinks they can get away with something like that, right? I mean, I get it. Andy Warhol probably is not here to defend himself. Or it's not obviously is not here to defend himself. But like, how do you think you can get away with that in the art world? Obviously art people would know if something is counterfeit, right? But anyways, he thought he could get away with it. So he pleaded guilty in federal court and he was stuck on house arrest while he was waiting to be sentenced. So here you had Anna and arguably what could and should have been this power couple, but you have this like, loser on the other half of that. So fast forward to New Year's Eve, 2022. Ana, Brian and a friend had a really quiet dinner at home and everything seemed relatively normal in the Walsh household. But four days later, on January 4, Anna's boss and Brian both reported her missing. Now, according to Brian, Ana left early in the morning that day for in a ride share, whether it's an Uber, a lift, whatever it was, to catch a flight back to dc. She left in the morning, went to the airport and was going back to dc. However, once the police started like really actually looking into that story, it quickly fell apart because they didn't find any record of a ride share receipt or, you know, history, digital trail, and also no record of any sort of flight being booked. However, what they did find early days investigation was they found footage of Brian at Home Depot right after Anna allegedly left. And what was Brian buying at Home Depot, you may be asking? Well, he was buying $450 worth of cleaning supplies, which, look, I get inflation is high 1000%, don't get me wrong, and this sounds cliche, but I literally had to buy a gallon of milk the other day because we were out and my kids drink it at night. I was kind of like, when did milk get so freaking expensive? But $450 of cleaning supplies? I mean, that is freaking crazy. How many Clorox wipes do you need? It's just like insane. And also, let's not discount the fact that this is such abnormal stuff for a guy to be buying when your wife Just disappeared, right? It doesn't look good. And also here, I know I'm going on a little bit of a rant here, but just stay with me. This kind of just proves in my mind, and this isn't to shame any of you men listening, but like, guys don't know where you get cleaning supplies. I get. You can get it at Home Depot. But like, that is such a guy thing to do to go to Home Depot to buy cleaning supplies because that's the only store that you probably know of. Like, I don't know. And maybe that's just me because I don't buy cleaning supplies at Home Depot because I rarely go to Home Depot. But it's like there's a grocery store, there's cvs, there's Target, like, so it's just like this is such a fucking guy thing. But anyway, sorry, I mean, I know I'm going on a rant, it's Friday and I've got so many thoughts in my head. So anyway, because of that discovery, Brian ended up being arrested on January 8 for misleading the police. Because, remember, the ride. Share story fell apart. The flight story fell apart. It was. And that's when things really escalated because when the investigators searched the Walsh's family home, they found a bloody knife. And then when they checked the family's electronics, they found some absolutely jaw dropping Google searches. And we always say the Google searches, they will get to you. And. And these Google searches too arguably have been like the focal point in this case for years. And I'm. Don't worry, I'm going to break down exactly what those searches were in just a moment. I'm just trying to bring you up to speed. So roughly three weeks later, after Ana had disappeared, by January 8, 2023, she was still missing. And Brian was ultimately charged with her murder and with improperly moving her body. This on top of the initial charge of misleading police. Brian pleaded not guilty. And to this day, Anna's body has never been found. Which honestly, when you really break that down, that could be a huge problem for the prosecution because no body means they can't confirm time of death, cause of death, manner of death, and all of those things, they really do open up the door for reasonable doubt. Truly, there have been a lot of cases that have been successful with no body, but it just allows more of that doubt to creep in. And so of course with that, people did start wondering too, if there is no body, even now, years later, could she have just left on her own? Is she even dead? Some even early on referred to it as another, you know, quote, gone girl case. Which I don't like that because I feel like so many times people will jump to that. They did that with the Jennifer Doulos case in Connecticut. It was dubbed the gone girl case. We obviously know what happened with that case. If you don't, it's a horrible one. And her coward ass husband ended up taking his own life, but like was seen on CCTV footage dumping things all throughout the city with his girlfriend. It's horrible. I'll link the deep dive to that as well if I remember. But anyway, my point is a lot of the times in situations like this when, and it's only when a female goes missing, never when a male goes missing, which let's be honest, it's usually is the female who goes missing at the spouse's hands. But anyway, they. People so quickly in the media are jumping on it as the gone girl case. Right. So I don't think she did these Google searches herself. I don't think Anna did. But there were was of course speculation of could she have just disappeared on her own accord because it appeared based on. We'll get into more of these details soon. It appeared that she was planning on potentially leaving Brian, that she already had a new relationship brewing. So there. And it kind of, you know what, again, another rant. I'm sorry, but it also reminds me of Drew Peterson. Not to be confused with Scott Peterson. Remember when Stacy disappeared his wife and he's like, oh, she just probably packed a bikini and went off with her guy. Da da da, da da. It's like get a, get a grip. Be original for a second here. So anyway, years passed as we're building up to trial and then right before his trial was set to begin on November 18, 2025, Brian suddenly changed his plea for the lesser two charges. He admitted that he was guilty of misleading the police. And also in sorry, can't talk. And also improperly moving Anna's body, which that's really huge when you think about it because it kind of means that Brian will at least face some sort of punishment because the defense is basically admitting like, yeah, there was a body, Anna did die and he did move it. So not only does it shut down the whole like she just ran away theory, it immediately shuts it down, but it also starts to make you wonder like, okay, he is starting to assume some guilt, some responsibility. But I don't know, thinking through that it is good that he will face some sort of punishment for pleading guilty to those don't get me wrong, but based on so many cases I've covered, even when people are found guilty, whether they admit guilt or they're just found guilty of concealing a body, moving a body, unlawful disposal of a body, the punishment is obviously not nearly as severe as it would be for a guilty verdict on a murder charge. So it's like, yeah, maybe you're serving a couple years. I think I even saw one case where it was like 18 months for that, which seems so crazy, right? But it's obviously not what you would be serving for the actual murder charge. And so that's where it starts to get a little bit sticky with all of this. But so even though he admitted to guilt with those two things, he really dug his heels in and maintained that he was not guilty of murder. So his murder trial officially kicked off this week on December 1st. And here's the thing. Brian's trial is a massive deal in Massachusetts. I mean, it's a massive deal everywhere. And I'm seeing it go viral all over the place for many reasons. But in Massachusetts, it's huge because several of the investigators and the witnesses in this case were literally just in the hot seat because they were involved in the Karen Reed trial that was also in Massachusetts. He's actually Brian Walsh is in the same county and courthouse and all of these things, which if you're not familiar, obviously, Karen Reed, I'm sure you are familiar. She was accused of killing her boyfriend by hitting him with her car. However, her defense had argued that she was actually the victim because it was this huge, massive police cover up. She eventually was found not guilty of murder or manslaughter. And ever since then, people have wondered how that case may ultimately affect Brian's outcome because a bunch of the same investigators are involved in it. So that means that everybody has a ton at stake here, right? Ana's justice, Brian's freedom, the reputation of the entire Massachusetts state police force. I mean, they're all hanging in the balance. And something else, and I mentioned this on Headline Highlights this week, Thursday's episode, Michael Proctor. I know most of you know that name if you followed Karen Reed. He was the lead investigator in the Anna Walsh case. So it seems as though the defense is going to use that to their advantage to be like, hey, he was. He's been disgraced and fired and all these things from the state police force. But they can now use that because he's such a sleazebag, to be like, he doesn't do thorough investigations. There was shoddy police work all of these different things because his name literally taints anything that he touches. You know, and also, little fun fact, just some trivia here. Beverly Canoni, the judge over the Karen Reed case, was supposed to be the judge over Brian Walsh's trial. However, they ended up switching that out. So she's not. But just kind of shows you how closely intertwined these players are, right? So with all of that in mind, and now, you know, the quick backstory to bring you up to speed, let's get into all of the unhinged bombshells that happened this week. In the first few days of this trial. During opening statements, prosecutors had laid out evidence that they really do plan to present in this. They admit that, yes, it is circumstantial, but it still paints a pretty vivid picture of what may have happened to Anna. They talked not only about Brian's trip to Home Depot right after her disappearance and all that cleaning supplies where they. He also was caught on surveillance camera buying, get this, a hatchet and a hacksaw, which tell me why you need that right after your wife disappeared. But he was also caught on camera showing him tossing trash bags into a dumpster around the same time as she was missing. And when investigators searched trash bags that were found near his mother's home, they found several weapons. They also found Anna's shoes and her Covid vaccination card. So then we start to shift into not only the evidence of what they saw him buying, what was on surveillance, what was being disposed of, but we get into the motive of it. And according to the prosecution, there are no less than three separate reasons that Brian wanted Ana dead. First, Ana had millions of dollars in life insurance policies. And as we know, Brian was the sole beneficiary of those policies. And that matters a lot. Not in just like the general grand scheme of things. We know that money is oftentimes a huge motivator for people to take the lives of their spouses. But remember, Brian owed hundreds of thousands of dollars because of his art fraud case. So how was he going to pay that? He was on house arrest. He was kind of a loser, deadbeat. She, meanwhile, had all of this money. He was going to be the one who would get all of that money. So definitely a financial motivation there. Second, we learned for the very first time during this trial, there was some rumblings in the past few years, but now it has officially been brought into play. We know that Anna was allegedly having an affair with a man, specifically the man who sold her that townhouse in Washington, D.C. so retaliation, anger, Control, jealousy, all of these things, or couple them together, right? He's mad that she's having an affair and he wants her money. Third possible motive is that, like I said earlier and alluded, I alluded to the couple was apparently headed for divorce. Ana was planning to move herself and their sons all the way to Washington, D.C. and just get away from Brian entirely. So I think, honestly, if you look at all three of those separate motives, I mean, looking at them separately, they all are strong enough to, you know, independently be enough for a motive for murder. But they also all layer over top one another affair, money, taking the boys away in custody. It feels almost like a recipe for this catalyst that could just end up ultimately being this huge motive in all of it. Right? Not to say that they couldn't again, stand independently from one another, but combined, it's like. It is massive. So then came the defense's opening statement, which I have to say, it honestly shocked a lot of people because they didn't claim, obviously, that Ana ran away. They couldn't, based on him admitting that he disposed of her body. And they also didn't suggest that she ended her own life, which kind of was a surprise. I would feel like, okay, well, if they're admitting that he disposed of her body and lied to the police, how would he have come across her body? It seems like not the obvious choice or the smart choice, but, like, a good argument would be that she took her own life and that he panicked. But they didn't even try to suggest that she took her own life. They also didn't blame some mystery killer, somebody who came in in the night and killed her in her sleep. They didn't accuse the police of corruption like in the Karen Reed case, like so many people thought that they were going to do. But instead, they said something that absolutely nobody saw coming. They said that Brian came to bed after their New Year's Eve dinner with their friend, that he nudged Anna so hard that she fell directly off the bed. And because of that fall off the bed, she, quote, succumbed to her injuries or, I'm sorry, a quote, sudden and unexplained death.
- [19:56]
Annie
You really want to be better with your finances. You try to put money away in savings. You look for deals. You wrote out a budget once, a long time ago, yet you still overdraft from time to time, and you still have debt. The truth is, managing money is not easy, but rocket Money can help. Rocket Money shows you exactly what you're spending every month. From there, the app helps you make a budget that meets your financial goals. The app even gives you real time alerts when you're about to go over your budget so you don't spend too much time with Rocket Money. You can also see all of your subscriptions at a glance and cancel the ones you don't want right from the app. Rocket Money can even try to get you a refund for some of the money you wasted. Plus, you can use the Smart Savings feature to start putting more money away. Rocket Money analyzes your accounts to determine the optimal time to stow away cash without going over your budget. Our members report that the Rocket Money app saved them more than $700 a year. Getting better with money doesn't have to be a pipe dream. Rocket Money can make it a reality. Go to RocketMoney.com cancel or download the app from the Apple app or GOOG.
- [20:55]
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- [22:28]
Elise
I mean, hold on, I'M sorry. I have fallen off the bed by accident. My kids fall off the bed regularly. They're toddlers. How on earth does somebody fall off of the bed, get injured so badly that it kills them, and that they succumb to their injuries in this sudden and unexplained death? I just. I feel like I'm rolling my eyes so hard that I can see my brain. It makes no sense. But then that was their story. And according to them, Brian panicked and he tried to cover it up so that he could protect their kids. They claimed that Brian was so terrified of being accused of killing Anna and going to jail that. That he thought that disposing her body and lying about everything was a better idea. And the other surprising part of the defense's opening, I have to say, they told the jury that they would hear all about this story, which, as far as I can tell, the only person who can really tell that story for the jury to hear firsthand is Brian himself, which kind of has everybody wondering, I mean, especially me, is he actually going to take the stand and is he going to testify in his own defense? That feels extremely ballsy. But at the same time, I kind of feel like all of the evidence is stacked against him, that maybe it's just a Hail Mary, I don't know. It's also, though, incredibly rare in these very high profile murder trials, so everybody is definitely on edge waiting for that. So after opening statements, the prosecution's first witness was the police sergeant, Harrison Schmidt, and he was the lead investigator for the case. Now, Harrison testified that about 4 of the interviews that he did with Brian in the day days after Anna's disappearance were a little bit odd. See, in those interviews, Brian insisted that Anna had flown to D.C. for that work emergency and that he hadn't seen her since. He also stated that she left wearing a dress, a black jacket, hunter boots, and carrying her Prada bag. He said that he loved her, that he, of course, would never hurt her. He denied that they had any serious financial problems, but he did admit that he was frustrated about how little time Anna was spending with the family because of her busy job. So a little bit of, like, resentment brewing underneath. Now, the other big moment in those interviews actually had nothing to do with Brian and everything to do with another one of the state troopers who was present along with Sergeant Schmidt. And that was none other than Michael Proctor, which, honestly, every time I hear Proctor's name, it's like red flags go up. If you watch Stranger Things, you know, when Will gets, like, the goosebumps on the back of his neck, I feel like. That's what I feel like is what's. It's Vecna. Is his name Vecna? Is he coming. Is that Michael Proctor? Which is like honestly kind of same, but yeah. He was the lead investigator in Karen Reed, as I mentioned. And so it came out that he was sending his co workers those absolutely horrible, vulgar texts about Karen during that whole investigation. And it really showed just how biased he was with the defense. Right. Or against the defense, I should say. So exposing Proctor's conduct really did in Karen's case help convince the jury that she wasn't guilty. And like I said, it got him fired. But this case is different because it's not the defense necessarily who's like arguing everything. They're not even claiming police corruption or cover up. They even admitted that Brian lied in those initial interviews. But I don't know, it's just again, too close of ties. So as much of a complete loser douche canoe Proctor may be, and as vecta vecna as he may be, it may not end up even mattering here in the grand scheme of things. But next up for the prosecution was Trooper Nick Guerino, and he's an expert in phone data, which again, close players, close area. That name may also ring a bell because he also testified in the Karen Reed trial. He. He's also tied to a big murder case in Massachusetts, a third one, the death of Sandra Birchmore. We've covered that case extensively as well. Again, a lot of intertwined players in that case. So he claimed that he. I actually, I'm not going to talk to you really, about the Sandra case just because I don't want to get too far off on that. And I know I'll go off on a rant. So I just want to kind of talk with you a little bit about.
- [26:57]
What he had to do with Brian's case. But he talked about the Google searches that were found on devices in Brian's house, which I'm going to get to the full list of everything that was searched in just a minute. But for now, I do want to note that it was previously reported that those searches were actually made on the kids iPads, which kind of brought this whole, like, sinister element to it. People are like, he's searching these things on his own children's devices. Like, what kind of sick freak does that? However, in court, we learned that that rumor was not true. The searches were actually made on Brian's personal computer, but because of that, they happened to sync to his son's iPad, which I know I've mentioned these Google searches a lot without saying what they were. So I bet you're like, okay, Annie, come on. Like, let's get to it. Tell me what the freaking searches were. So here we go. Okay. And buckle up, because what he searched and clicked on around the time of Anna's disappearance, it is nothing short of absolutely diabolical and mind blowing. And there are a ton of them, so I can't read all of them for you, or we would literally be here all day. But here are some of the more crazy ones. Okay. On the morning of January 1st, so the day after that New Year's Eve dinner, Brian searched 10 ways to dispose of a dead body. Quote or in parentheses, not quote, if you really need to. How long before a body starts to smell? How long for someone to be missing to inherit? Is it possible to clean DNA off of a knife? Can identification be made on partial human remains? Best ways to dispose of body parts after murder six ways to dispose of a body Murder, murder, murder. How to clean blood from a wood floor. Want to get away with murder, question mark? Is it better to throw away crime scene clothes or wash them? Can the FBI tell when you accessed your phone? I mean, pretty diabolical, but one of the main things that sticks out to me is if you're trying to say that you nudged her off the bed and she fell and died of this sudden, unexplained death. Their quote and exact words, not mine, then why? And even if you are then searching frantically how to clean up, you know, and how to dispose of a body and all that, that would explain those searches, but it wouldn't explain the search of best ways to dispose of body parts after murder. Why would you even be throwing the word murder in those searches? And it wasn't just that search. It was six ways to dispose of a body. Murder, murder, murder. Want to get away with murder, question mark. So why would you be throwing the word murder in those searches? Right. Right, Brian. Right, Brian. So the next day, on January 2nd, Brian searched. How long do stores keep security footage? How to dismember a body. Hacksaw, the best tool to dismember a body. Details of dismemberment discussed in murder trial. Can you be charged with murder without a body? No corpse, question mark. No problem. Notable murder convictions without a body. Can you identify a body with broken teeth? Disposing of a body in the trash. And there was another one, and I should have actually mentioned it, with the teeth. One search he also had made that, I remember, stuck out to me, and I mentioned it yesterday in Thursday's episode. He also said, can you identify a body with partially broken teeth? Like, which makes me just think he was probably pulling out her teeth and maybe the root stuck, I don't know. And he was wondering if that could still lead to identification. Just sick. So then the day after that, on January 3rd, Brian searched. Can baking soda make a dead body smell good? Cleaning up blood without leaving a trace. Five tips. How long for a dismembered body to decompose? I mean, seriously, guys, you cannot make this stuff up. This is basically a list of things not to Google, okay? If you don't want people to ever suspect you of murder, definitely don't Google these things. Which, again, I get that the prosecution doesn't have a body, but, like, honestly, hello, hello. The writing is on the wall. These searches are literally the next best thing to having a body. They kind of just point this big neon flashing sign saying guilty murderer. Like, especially when you remember the defense's whole strategy was that she died of this unexplained medical event and he panicked and had to cover it up. Which, why wouldn't you see him Googling things then? Like, help my help my wife is unresponsive or fall caused death. Best hospitals near me. How did you CPR when somebody won't wake up? You're not Googling things with the word murder in them. So I don't know you. You also saw murder literally typed out three times in a row in black and white. Murder, murder, murder. So the defense, it obviously doesn't look good for Brian, but the defense insisted that these searches do totally make sense for somebody who's panicking and just trying to understand his wife's unexplained death. I get the defense has to defend, but, like, come on. They also claim that he started with that more general search term about death and then only added the word murder because the search engine suggested it to him. Which I'm curious if the jury is going to buy any of that because it feels pretty freaking far fetched to me. Now, Trooper Guarino also read some of Brian's searches from before Anna disappeared, which this really kind of gives us more of a glimpse into possible motive and maybe even narrowing it in a little bit. On December 26, the day after Christmas and five days before the New Year's Eve dinner, Brian searched on an adult video site, and he searched. And this kind of makes me laugh because it's just like, what a Freaking loser. But he searched cheating wife seduces another man to impregnate her. Which, look, everybody's gonna have their own kink and their own thing that they're into, but, like, this just screams desperado and loserville to me. Sorry. It does. He also searched best state to divorce for a man. And then he also searched Washington, D.C. divorce lawyers. So, I mean, it definitely seems like divorce was on Brian's mind, whether he was thinking of divorce or he knew that she was going to divorce him. So he was trying to search to get ahead of it. And he lived in Massachusetts, she was in D.C. so part of me is wondering, did he search Washington D.C. divorce lawyers? Because, you know, if you hire a divorce lawyer, they cannot work for your spouse after that. And that's what a lot of people do in high profile divorces. Actually, they, like, if I were going to divorce my husband tomorrow, not that we're high profile, but just going to walk you through the technique. I would search all of the best.
- [34:11]
Divorce attorneys in the Orange county and LA area. And I don't know if it. If just a consultation is enough or if you actually have to like, pay them a dollar or what it. But then I would go to all of them. I would have the consultation, pay them if required. Again, I don't know the exact regulation, and then I would only go with the one that I want. But because I already had met with all those other best attorneys, Jeremiah wouldn't be able to hire them. So the fact that he was looking at DC divorce lawyers kind of makes me wonder if that could have been a strategy here. Knowing him, knowing that she was going to be filing, I don't know. But anyway, it just seemed odd. Another piece of this, though, could be the complete opposite. It could be because he just wanted out of the marriage, or maybe not. I don't know. Who really knows. But according to the defense, the divorce was going to be mutual. And actually they said that it was going to be a strategy to protect their assets because of all of the money that Brian owed from that art fraud case. They even tried to support that argument by pointing out that Brian was also searching for expensive rings and luxury cars around the same time that he made those divorce searches. Basically implying that if he was shopping for fancy gifts for Anna, he definitely wasn't trying to divorce her. Which my argument to that would be, who's looking for luxury cars for your spouse? Really? It feels more midlife crisis to me. It seems more like you're searching at these fancy cars because you know you're about to come into a lot of money. And you are someone who clearly is motivated by money, which is why you tried to sell counterfeit paintings of Andy War. Andy Warhol artwork. Like, I get. Again, that the defense needs to defend, but hopefully the jury is seeing through this.
- [35:59]
Guest or Co-host
Okay. It's kind of embarrassing how bad I am at budgeting.
- [36:02]
Annie
Let me see your charges.
- [36:03]
Guest or Co-host
Fine.
- [36:04]
Annie
You spent over $600 on takeout last month.
- [36:06]
Guest or Co-host
I can't cook. You know this.
- [36:09]
Annie
Yes, I have had your disgusting food, but you're literally paying for a meal subscription on top of that.
- [36:14]
Elise
Whoa, wait, wait, wa.
- [36:15]
Guest or Co-host
That. That can't be right.
- [36:17]
Annie
Look, just get Rocket Money. It shows you all of your expenses in one place and even tracks your subscriptions. And if there's a subscription you don't want, which for you, there are a lot you don't need, you can just cancel right in the app with a few taps.
- [36:29]
Guest or Co-host
So you mean I don't have to call anyone to cancel? Nope.
- [36:33]
Annie
No hold times or anything. And they'll even try to get you a refund on some of the months of wasted money, which is a lot of money for you.
- [36:40]
Guest or Co-host
Okay. Okay.
- [36:41]
Annie
And if you thought I was done, I'm not. The app can also help you make a budget that works for your income. Anytime you get close to your spending limits, it alerts you so you know exactly where your money is going at all times.
- [36:52]
Guest or Co-host
All right, I'm in. What do I have to do?
- [36:53]
Annie
Go to RocketMoney.com cancel or download the app from the Apple or Google Play stores.
- [37:00]
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- [38:30]
Elise
Those absolutely wild searches, the next key witnesses were from Uber and Lyft, the ride share companies. And both of them confirmed that Ana never called for a ride share to the airport, not at any point between January 1st or all the way to January 8th, 2023. Another witness confirmed that Ana had two different life insurance policies that were worth over a million dollars. And like I said, Brian was the sole beneficiary. And we already kind of knew this, but what we didn't know is that it was Brian who originally wanted to take out a policy on himself. And when he was denied because of his federal art fraud case, the insurer kind of said, I guess, that he suggested applying under Ana's name instead. We also learned that Ana had to undergo extensive health testing to qualify for these policies. And she got the absolute best possible rating, the healthiest that you can be. Which begs the question, can somebody who is incredibly healthy just drop dead from some sort of unexpected medical event and fall to the ground just a few years after all of this testing was done? I mean, I suppose we have seen healthy people suffer from heart attacks that are unexplained aneurysms, things like that. But I don't know. I'm no doctor. It just kind of seems like all of this evidence is making a very clear picture. So then Davis Gould from the Massachusetts State Police crime lab testified about what he had found in Brian's car on January 9th. He found red stains on both front visors. The driver site. He also found red stains on the driver's side controls and in the mats in the trunk area, all of which tested positive for blood. He also found more than a dozen exam style gloves. So think like latex gloves. But Davis wasn't just in charge of the car. Shortly after analyzing the car, he was also called to help at a recycling plant. And there he found what prosecutors say were Anna's belongings. Her green boots, her jacket, and a black Prada handbag, all of which just so happened to perfectly match the outfit that Brian described to the detectives that she was wearing when she Supposedly left for the airport. They also found towels, tape, gauze, a robe, and slippers, all of which was covered in reddish brown stains. And if that's not horrifying enough, they also discovered a hammer, wire cutters, a hatchet, a hacksaw, and a tarp. Basically an entire dismemberment starter kit. And the worst of all, Davis and his team found what appeared to be hair, human tissue and skin, which, I mean, how absolutely sickening. Because if this is all true, not only did Brian murder his wife, but he dismembered her. He tossed her personal belongings, he tossed pieces of her body, just all of it in the trash in this recycling plant like they were nothing. And it also begs the question, where did he perform this dismemberment? Was it at their family home while their children were upstairs sleeping or playing video games, like, or at school? And then they came home from school. It's so sick. So later in the week on Thursday, we got another bombshell. William Fasto took the stand. And this is the guy that Ana was allegedly having this affair with. So he admitted that he and Ana became really close after he sold her that townhouse in D.C. and then they eventually did start an intimate relationship. According to William, they went out on a ton of dates. She regularly would spend the night over at his house. They spent the holidays together away from Brian and the kids, and they even traveled to Ireland together. So apparently, they were so serious that they even considered themselves exclusive. Except, you know, the tiny detail that not only was Ana still married, but he was still married as well. So naturally, this caused some tension in Ana and Brian's relationship, because, remember, she almost missed Christmas Day with the boys, and she was spending holidays with this guy, almost kind of starting this brand new family, which certainly I don't agree with. I think that if you want to get out of a relationship, like I will say, just get a divorce. But also, it's not. It's not an excuse for murder. Right now you have to think, too, it might seem a little bit weird for the prosecution to call a witness who makes Ana, let's just be honest, look a little bit bad. But remember, one of their big goals in all of this, the primary goal is to show that Brian had a motive for wanting Ana dead. And this long term physical, intimate, emotional affair with a guy in another state, someone that she was prioritizing above her family. I mean, that absolutely could be motive. And William's testimony also dropped a little bit of a second hint at motive, too. He said that in the Months leading up to her disappearance, Anna spent a ton of time decking out her D.C. townhouse with furniture. Kids toys, kids furniture. Just getting ready to move her sons there and move them away from Brian. So could that have been what finally set him off? She was going to literally start a new life with William. She was going to bring her kids there, replace Brian entirely. So did he just spiral and lose it because his life was. William was going to, like, step into the shoes of his life? I don't. I don't know. Later in the day, Massachusetts State Trooper Connor Keefe took the stand, and he testified that Anna's phone last pinged at a tower. Neil last pinged near a tower at the WALSH Home around 3am on January 2, 2023. So this is, again, just more proof and another reminder that she definitely was not already on a flight or in D.C. like Brian had said. And it wasn't just Anna's phone that he had tracked. He was also keeping an eye on Brian as well. And on January 5th, Brian's phone pinged at his mom's apartment, which. Okay, it's not a problem until you realize that it pinged specifically at the far corner of the complex, right next to a giant trash compactor. After that, Brian's phone hit a ton of different locations, including Lowe's, the hardware store, of course, the infamous Home Depot trip. And as if we hadn't heard enough from Brian's unhinged Google searches, he also testified about two more Brian searched. William Fasto and Anna Walsh found dead. Those two searches in quotes, which isn't, I guess, that wild under the defenses, like, he found her dead theory. Except for a tiny, tiny problem in all of this. He made Those searches on December 25, six days before the New Year's Eve dinner. So why would he be Googling about his wife dying days before she even went missing? Not even confirmed dead. I mean, to me, it screams premeditation. Also, why are you searching William Fasto, the boyfriend? It seems like he found out about it. Maybe he found out about it because it was the holiday. And remember who she was splitting time with became a point of contention. He discovered the boyfriend's name, I don't know, but screams premeditation to me. So it's only been one week so far, but honestly, it has been absolutely wild. And to me, still, the most shocking part in all this are those Google searches. I had heard some of them, obviously, before, but hearing the entire list read out loud in court, I don't know, it just hits different. It's insane. I can't imagine being that jury and just sitting there hearing all of this and think, you know, what's going through their brains as they're listening. I feel like my jaw would be on the floor. I'd be wearing my face and would not have a poker face. I just. That's why it's a good thing I'm never on a jury. So I don't know. I don't. I'm curious. I'm really curious. Do you. Do any of you listening buy the entire unexplained medical death event story that the defense is trying to spin, or do you think that they're just throwing whatever will stick, hoping that a Hail Mary happens. I don't know. And I'm wondering if you think that the prosecution is going to lean into one of the three possible motives or all of them as like this giant motive. And what, what do we think about Brian? Is he going to testify? I don't know. That will be wild. What do you think? So that's it for the recap for week one. I will. If you guys like this, let me know in the comments. Just say yes, yes, yes. And let me know on Spotify, Q and A, Apple reviews. And we can do these every Friday where I just give you like a nugget size recap of like the need to know. So, yeah, we'll see where this goes. I'm confident that the jury is going to get it right, but I have been wrong before Casey Anthony. So let me know what you guys think. All right, thanks again for tuning in to another episode of Serial Less Lee. I will be back on the mic with you first thing Monday morning with an all new deep dive into a case. Don't forget, subscribe to the YouTube channel. Hit the subscribe button if you haven't yet. That way you won't miss these updates as we do them or future episodes. And if you're listening on the podcast, make sure you're following the podcast so that you also don't miss these bonus episodes since they aren't in our regular release calendar. All right, guys, thank you so much. And until the next one, be nice. Don't kill people. Just get a divorce. Don't go to Home Depot for cleaning supplies and definitely stay the heck off Google. All right, bye.
- [49:04]
Guest or Co-host
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- [50:07]
Annie
Let me see your charges.
- [50:08]
Guest or Co-host
Ugh, fine.
- [50:09]
Annie
You spent over $600 on takeout last month.
- [50:11]
Guest or Co-host
I can't cook. You know this.
- [50:14]
Annie
Yes, I have had your disgusting food, but you're literally paying for a meal subscription on top of that.
- [50:19]
Guest or Co-host
Whoa, wait, wait, wait. That. That can't be right.
- [50:22]
Annie
Look, just get Rocket Money. It shows you all of your expenses in one place and even tracks your subscriptions. And if there's a subscription you don't want, which for you, there are a lot you don't need, you can just cancel right in the app with a few taps.
- [50:34]
Guest or Co-host
So you mean I don't have to call anyone to cancel? Nope.
- [50:38]
Annie
No hold times or anything. And they'll even try to get you a refund on some of the months of wasted money, which is a lot of money for you.
- [50:45]
Guest or Co-host
Okay? Okay.
- [50:46]
Annie
And if you thought I was done, I'm not. The app can also help you make a budget that works for your income. Anytime you get close to your spending limits, it alerts you so you know exactly where your money is going at all times.
- [50:57]
Guest or Co-host
Alright, I'm in. What do I have to do?
- [50:58]
Annie
Go to RocketMoney.com cancel or download the app from the Apple or Google Play stores.
- [51:04]
Guest or Co-host
Think about the last time you had a cancel subscription. There's probably some waiting on hold, some guessing at your password, some mind numbing small talk, and maybe after all that, you still weren't able to cancel it. Good news, it doesn't have to be this way, thanks to Rocket Money. Rocket Money tracks, manages, and can cancel your subscriptions for you. When you connect your accounts, you'll see a complete picture of all your reoccurring subscriptions all in one place. Rocket Money organizes your subscriptions by due date and notifies you when something's coming up, so you'll never be caught off guard when you get charged. If you see a subscription you want to cancel, Rocket Money simplifies the process. Instead of waiting on hold for an hour, you can cancel it right from the app. Rocket Money will even try to get you a refund for the money you spent on subscriptions you forgot about. Stop wasting your time trying to cancel subscriptions the hard way. Make your life easier, and go to rocketmoney.com cancel. That's rocketmoney.com cancel. Or download the app from the Apple app or Google Play stores.