"Jennifer was a devoted mother, a dear friend to many, a woman who was deeply loved," Kevin Steele, the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office, said.
The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office said on Thursday that a man has been charged with first-degree murder in relation to the murder of Jennifer Brown, 33, the mother from Limerick Township who went missing at the start of January.
For the death of the mother, Blair Watts, 33, of Hunsberger Drive in Royersford, has been charged with murder and other associated offenses. He is also charged with destroying her body. "Jennifer was a devoted mother, a dear friend to many, a woman who was deeply loved," Kevin Steele, the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office, said, per CBS, adding, "Her life was cut short at 43 years of age."
Steele revealed at a news conference on Thursday that Brown was murdered inside her house before her body was dumped on January 18 in a Royersford forested area, where it was found partially buried by authorities later. Detectives later inspected her residence for probable cause, and discovered "several black and white marble pattern plastic pieces within the carpet." This puzzled the detectives. "At first, we didn't know what they were," Steele said.
We drove to Chester Co. to talk to people who live & work near this building.
— Grace Griffaton (@GraceGriffaton) February 10, 2023
Police say Blair Watts had wanted to turn it into a restaurant.
Jennifer Brown had given Watts money to do so. Now, she's dead, & police say Watts is the man who killed her.
Details on @69News @ 1030 pic.twitter.com/ejMDzxpwsl
Steele shares that the small plastic fragments from her house were extremely helpful to the police. Later, it was discovered that these were pieces of a broken hair clip, and the remainder of the clip was discovered close to Brown's body, allowing investigators to connect Watts to the homicide. "That became significant to say this likely happened in her house and then she was taken to this shallow grave," Steele said.
Watts, according to the investigators, was Brown's friend and business partner. At the end of January, the two intended to debut "Birdies Kitchen" in Phoenixville. Late in August, Brown and Watts formed a business partnership. The day before Brown was reported missing, Brown made 2 financial transfers totaling $17,000 to Watts' accounts.
Brown had not been seen since January 3rd. Although the precise manner of Brown's death is still unknown, Steele said that there may have been an argument before the murder. "There's no gunshot, there's no knife and no toxicology that would explain her death," Steele said. However, he added, "But you have broken ribs while she was still alive and that leads to the conclusion this was a homicide by unspecified means.
Blair Watts charged with the murder of Jennifer Brown. It really was her business partner and friend all along. Thought it was sketchy that he dropped her son off at the bus stop without his medication. Now his children and hers have lost a parent. Montgomery County,… https://t.co/uIFLX8Ex5Q pic.twitter.com/ihSqBTSg4d
— Rose (@901Lulu) February 9, 2023
Watts discussed Brown's disappearance with the local media while she was still missing. In January, he claimed to have "nothing to do" with her disappearance in an interview with NBC Philadelphia. "Just because I'm the last person to see her, that does not mean anything," he said. "It seems like I'm being the one poked at. And it's frustrating because I'm the first person that was one calling the police, trying to kick down windows. Trying to find my friend. Trying to make sure her son is covered."
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Cover Image Source: Facebook | Montgomery County District Attorney's Office
