COHASSET, Mass. — Brian Walshe was born into a Massachusetts family with “economic means” but his childhood was hardly considered “privileged,” according to more than a dozen character letters sent to a federal judge in September 2021.
Walshe plead guilty to selling fake paintings as if they were originals to a gallery in California in 2011 and an individual in France in 2015. Walshe has not seen any jail time for these charges but has been on home confinement.
[ 25 Investigates learns about Brian Walshe’s criminal background as search continues for his wife ]
Walshe, 46, grew up an only child with his mother, who is described to live a “reclusive lifestyle” and his father who was a renowned neurosurgeon in Boston and spent much of his time “partying with mere acquaintances.”
According to Walshe’s treating psychiatrist, Dr. Tittmann, “Brian felt neglected, unloved, and emotionally damaged from being used as a pawn by his parents in their acrimonious marital relationship.”
Walshe was sent to boarding school in Rhode Island and then enrolled at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburg, PA. However, in sophomore year Brian’s mental health continued to deteriorate so he dropped out of school and checked himself into the Austin Riggs Center, a psychiatric in-patient treatment facility that specializes in psychiatric patients who have failed at least one prior treatment.
“His depression, anxiety, and anger left him unable to function, according to Dr. Tittmann. “There he started his long battle to overcome his mental illness.”
As Brian’s wife, Ana Walshe wrote to the judge back in 2021, “Brian has been deeply affected by his childhood and relationship with his parents. He was taught to lie and hide. He was told that he was a loser, that his parents should not have had him, that he had no chances of making anything of himself in life, and that he was a lost cause.”
According to Brian’s mother, Diana Walshe, “My son is the ONLY reason I get up in the morning. He is the ONLY person to take care of me and he is always there.”
His mother details in the four-page letter that she relies on Brian for everything even bringing her to all her appointments, after multiple lung cancer surgeries and other health issues.
“Unfortunately, I do not have a good relationship with my daughter-in-law, perhaps due to cultural differences. Therefore, my son is the one and only constant in my life, taking care of me and ensuring I have some joy by seeing my grandchildren,” said Diana Walshe.
Walshe’s mother continues applauding Brian for being the main caregiver for all three of his sons, not mentioning Ana once.
“He cooks, shops, cleans, plays, communicates boundaries, and reads bedtime stories. If it were not for my son, my relationship with my grandsons would come to a halt,” Diana Walshe wrote.
Brian’s family and friends wrote he turned his life around after going through programs like the Boston Breakthrough Academy in 2020 following his arrest.
[ ‘I am not a threat’: Apologetic Brian Walshe aims to be loving, repay debt in 2021 letter to judge ]
His wife, Ana Walshe, who has been missing for nearly 10 days, wrote “Brian has expressed to me on many occasions his regret for his past actions. He has a big heart and he impacts everyone around him in a way that will surpass the present moment. He has been the leader to our family and an inspiration to all he comes into contact with.”
Ana also goes on to write that Brian had saved his mother’s life when she suffered a hemorrhage and her mother called him a “good and loving man.”
Brian Walshe has been charged with misleading a police investigation in connection with his wife’s disappearance.
[ Missing Cohasset mother: Timeline of events related to disappearance of Ana Walshe ]
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW