Prosecutors say Christina Downer was killed in September 2025, while a second defendant is accused of helping dispose of her body.
LOS ANGELES, CA — Prosecutors have charged the boyfriend of missing Los Angeles woman Christina Downer with murder and accused another woman of helping dispose of her body, more than a year after authorities say Downer was killed. Her body has not been found.
Delorean Bijon Brandon, 41, of Los Angeles was charged with one count of murder, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced Nov. 2. Kaylee Markowski, 34, of Los Angeles was charged with one felony count of accessory after the fact. Prosecutors allege Brandon killed Downer, 38, on or about Sept. 19, 2025, and that Markowski later helped him dispose of her body. The charges are allegations, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The charges followed the Oct. 29 arrests of Brandon and Markowski by Los Angeles Police Department Robbery-Homicide Division detectives. Police initially booked both on suspicion of murder, with bail set at $2 million each. The district attorney’s filing later separated the allegations, charging Brandon with murder and Markowski as an accessory after the fact.
Downer had been reported missing Dec. 18, 2025, after her ex-husband requested a welfare check because he had not heard from her for an extended period, police said. Brandon, who was identified by authorities as Downer’s boyfriend, told investigators that she had moved out several months earlier and left her belongings behind, including her vehicle and dog. An earlier LAPD missing-person notice said Downer had last been contacted by a friend through a text message on Dec. 10 and that her last known location was in the Koreatown area.
The investigation later moved to the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division after Downer’s cellphone was found washed ashore on Santa Monica Beach. Police said detectives eventually identified Brandon and Markowski as suspects in Downer’s death and in efforts to dispose of her body and conceal what happened. Authorities have not publicly detailed all of the evidence that led investigators to the two defendants.
Earlier in October, investigators searched a property in Joshua Tree in connection with Downer’s disappearance. Authorities did not publicly say whether evidence was recovered there. Downer’s remains still have not been located, and prosecutors have not publicly announced a motive for the alleged killing.
The district attorney’s complaint also charges Brandon with two felony counts of injuring a spouse in connection with alleged assaults against his wife on two separate occasions in 2022. Those counts are separate from the murder allegation involving Downer. Prosecutors said Brandon could face life in state prison if convicted as charged. Markowski could face up to three years in county jail if convicted of the accessory charge.
Downer is the sister of Jimmy Fowlie, a writer associated with “Saturday Night Live,” who had publicly sought information about his sister after she disappeared. The family’s search drew attention to the case as investigators continued trying to determine what happened to her. Police have said the homicide investigation remains ongoing.
Brandon and Markowski were scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 2 at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center, according to the district attorney’s announcement. Authorities had not disclosed in the sources reviewed here the outcome of that proceeding. Downer remains missing, and investigators have not announced the recovery of her body.
Author note: Last updated November 3, 2026.