Brian Walshe, the Massachusetts fraudster convicted of killing and dismembering his wife Ana, received a life prison sentence, plus another 22 years Thursday.
Walshe previously entered a surprise guilty plea for lying to police and unlawful disposal of a body during jury selection. Sentencing for all three took place at the same time, and Judge Diane Freniere gave him credit for about 1,000 days time served.
Brian made a series of incriminating internet searches on Jan. 1, 2023, which were presented in court, and included "how long for someone to be missing to inherit," "best way to dispose of a body" and "best way to dispose of body parts after a murder."
His attorney, Larry Tipton, said during closing arguments that his client "loved Ana Walshe, the mother of his three children" and claimed that there was "no evidence" of a murder.
Jurors disagreed.
Assistant Norfolk County District Attorney Anne Yas said Walshe killed his wife then tried to hide her body to avoid accountability.
"Ana Walshe is dead because he murdered her and he intended her death. And Walshe was not missing," Yas said. "Dying a sudden death from natural causes defies common sense. She was in great shape."
Prosecutors had alleged two potential motives in the slaying. The first was anger over an affair that Ana was having with a Washington, D.C., realtor, whose name Walshe had searched for.
The second was because he allegedly believed he would have a better chance of avoiding prison in an unrelated art fraud case if his wife were out of the picture, and he was the only caretaker for their three children.
Walshe chose not to take the stand in his own trial and his defense team rested its case on Thursday, Dec. 11.
Jurors were presented with evidence from a forensic scientist that DNA consistent with Ana's profile was found on a hatchet and hacksaw recovered from the trash.
Saman Saleem, a DNA unit supervisor at the state police crime lab, said several items found at a trash collection site in Peabody, Massachusetts, that had Ana's DNA on it, including pieces of a rug, a Tyvek suit, unknown tissue and slippers.
Brian's wife had a $2.7 million life insurance policy which he was the beneficiary of, court records show. He owed nearly $500,000 in restitution for his federal case.
Fox News' Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.