Boyfriend Among Two Arrested in Killing of Missing Woman Christina Downer

By Jordan Reyes. Nov 2, 2026

Nearly a year after Christina Downer was reported missing, Los Angeles police arrested her boyfriend and a second person on suspicion of killing her and concealing her death. The investigation included a cellphone washed ashore at Santa Monica Beach and a search of a Joshua Tree rental property.

Detectives arrested Delorean Bijon Brandon, 41, and Kaylee Nicole Markowski, 34, on October 29. Both were booked on suspicion of murder and held on $2 million bail each, according to police. The LAPD said detectives planned to present the case to prosecutors for a charging decision.

Downer, 38, was the sister of “Saturday Night Live” writer Jimmy Fowlie, whose public appeals drew attention to her disappearance. For the family, one detail was difficult to reconcile with the suggestion that she had left voluntarily: her dog, Rex, was still behind, along with her car and belongings.

A Welfare Check and Questions About Messages

Downer’s ex-husband requested a welfare check on December 18, 2025, after an extended period without contact. Brandon told responding officers that she had moved out several months earlier, according to the LAPD’s account reported by CBS Los Angeles.

Four days later, Fowlie shared a missing-person notice on Instagram. In another post, he described his sister’s attachment to Rex and said she had last been seen in Koreatown, according to Los Angeles Times reporting republished by the Charlotte Observer.

The communications timeline was less clear than activity on her accounts might have suggested. Fowlie said relatives had last spoken with her by phone on October 5, 2025. He reported hearing from her on November 26 and seeing social-media activity into December, but the family later questioned who had been using her accounts.

In an April 29 post quoted by NBC News, Fowlie said the family believed Downer’s phone and social media had been compromised before her disappearance. He alleged that whoever had the phone used it to request money and create a false account that she was going “off the grid.” Those were the family’s concerns, not a public police finding establishing who sent particular messages.

Phone Discovery Brought in Homicide Detectives

The LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division took over after Downer’s cellphone was found washed ashore at Santa Monica Beach. Authorities have not publicly released the full chain of evidence connecting the discovery to the two suspects.

Earlier in October, investigators searched a short-term rental property in Joshua Tree. NBC News reported that the search involved K-9 units and assistance from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. Police said they were looking for evidence but did not disclose what, if anything, was recovered.

In April, Fowlie had publicly said his sister was “no longer alive.” That family announcement did not establish that remains had been recovered. CBS reported after the arrests that it was still unclear whether Downer’s body had been found.

Police allege Brandon and Markowski were responsible for killing Downer, disposing of her body and concealing their involvement. The allegations had not been adjudicated, and the Los Angeles Times reported that it was unclear whether the suspects had attorneys.

Detectives asked anyone with additional information to contact the LAPD’s West Bureau Section at 213-382-9470. Anonymous tips can be made through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

References: Two Arrested in Christina Downer Murder Case; SNL Writer’s Missing Sister | Two Arrested on Suspicion of Killing SNL Writer’s Sister Christina Downer | 2 Arrested in Connection With Murder of Christina Downer, SNL Writer’s Missing Sister | Two Arrested in Death of SNL Writer’s Missing Sister | Charlotte Observer