Los Angeles County prosecutors charged Delorean Bijon Brandon, 41, with first-degree murder in the death of Christina Downer, 38. Downer is the sister of Jimmy Fowlie, a writer for Saturday Night Live. Brandon’s former girlfriend, Kaylee Nicole Markowski, 34, faces two felony counts of being an accessory after the fact. Investigators believe Brandon killed Downer on or around September 19, 2025, though her remains have not yet been located.
Court records indicate a pattern of alleged stalking, threats, and domestic violence involving the two suspects in the months leading up to Downer’s disappearance. Both Downer and Brandon had sought separate restraining orders against Markowski, accusing her of harassment and blackmail. However, both cases were dismissed after the petitioners failed to appear in court, according to documents obtained by Los Angeles Magazine.
Authorities first learned of Downer’s disappearance in December 2025 when her ex-husband reported her missing, noting he had not heard from her for months. That same month, her brother Jimmy Fowlie began posting public pleas on Instagram, asking for information about her whereabouts. Brandon, who shared an apartment with Downer in Koreatown, told police she had moved out months earlier, leaving behind her car and a miniature pinscher named Rex.
The investigation intensified when Downer’s cellphone washed ashore at Santa Monica Beach, prompting the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division to take over. Court documents suggest that Brandon and Markowski used Downer’s phone to send messages, fabricating a narrative that she had voluntarily gone off the grid. Fowlie noted in an April Instagram post that the individuals in possession of the phone used it to hide the fact she was gone, ask for money, and create a false story.
In September 2024, Downer filed a restraining order petition against Markowski, alleging that the woman had been terrorizing her since December 2023. The court documents stated that Markowski threatened to break into Downer’s home, beat her, and use racial slurs. Downer also claimed Markowski stole her cat and a storage device containing intimate videos to use as blackmail.
In July 2025, Brandon filed a domestic violence restraining order against Markowski, alleging she targeted his vehicle and interfered with Downer’s job. A month later, in September 2025, Brandon sought another protective order, accusing Markowski of hitting and kicking him and threatening to shoot him in the head. A judge rejected this request and set a hearing for September 23, 2025. However, Brandon withdrew the request on September 18, 2025, and investigators believe Downer died within a day of that withdrawal.
The criminal complaint also detailed allegations of domestic violence by Brandon against a different woman, including the use of scissors during an assault. He is now charged with two felony counts of injuring a cohabitant related to the 2022 assaults. In a separate 2022 civil case, a woman filed a harassment petition against Markowski, which was dismissed for lack of prosecution.
Alyce LaViolette, a licensed marriage and family therapist and domestic violence specialist, explained that courts often examine specific details of allegations rather than the volume of complaints. She noted that protective orders alone do not always establish levels of danger, and that judges may not always recognize abuse even when warning signs emerge. Both defendants are currently held at the Metropolitan Detention Center with bail set at $2 million each.
Greg Risling, an executive assistant at the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, declined to comment on the open case. Markowski’s attorney, Arvand Naderi, also declined to comment on the pending case. Brandon is represented by the Alternate Public Defender’s Office. Anyone with information about the case is urged to contact the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division.
