'Supposed friend and business partner' accused of killing Pa. mom found in shallow grave

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. (TCD) -- Police arrested the "supposed friend and business partner" of a woman who was reported missing and later found dead in a shallow grave in January.

Jennifer Brown’s friend Blair Watts reported her missing to the Limerick Township Police Department after she was scheduled to pick up her son from a bus stop Jan. 4 but failed to show up. Police reportedly found her car, wallet, keys, and cellphone at her residence, and said her phone had not been used since that day.

According to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, investigators located Brown’s body two weeks later, on Jan. 18, in a shallow grave. The autopsy showed Brown had three broken ribs, but her cause of death was homicide by unspecified means.

Watts, the friend who reported her missing, was arrested on charges of first-degree murder, third-degree murder, theft by unlawful taking/disposition, and access device fraud.

Watts and Brown reportedly planned to open a restaurant together called Birdie’s Kitchen. The day before she was reported missing, Watts reportedly received $17,000 in money transfers, though it was "never part of a written agreement between Brown and Watts." Watts reportedly found a spot he wanted to lease for the restaurant, but in December, the property owners told Watts they were not going to give him the space.

On Jan. 4, Watts reportedly went to the property and told the owners he had enough money for the lease.

The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office said Watts had a spare key to Brown’s home, and cellphone data placed him at her residence the day she disappeared. Brown’s 8-year-old son reportedly spent the night of Jan. 3 at Watts' home to "give Brown a break." Watts reportedly picked her son up from school that day and said she was at the grocery store. They allegedly went to Brown’s house, and Watts went inside and took her phone while her son stayed in the car.

Investigators who searched her home initially did not see any signs of a struggle, but detectives "found several black-and-white, marble-patterned plastic pieces embedded within the high-pile carpet just outside of the kitchen where the cadaver dog had indicated the presence of human remains."

The plastic pieces matched a hair clip found in the shallow grave with Brown.

When Brown’s body was found, Watts told NBC Philadelphia, "I have nothing to do with anything. Just because I’m the last person to see her, that does not mean anything."

MORE:

• Blair Watts Arrested for Murder of Jennifer Brown - Montgomery County District Attorney's Office
• DA ASKING FOR PUBLIC’S HELP IN LOCATING MISSING PERSON: 43-YEAR-OLD JENNIFER BROWN OF LIMERICK TOWNSHIP, 1/6/2023 - Montgomery County District Attorney's Office
• Montgomery County Mother Found Dead More Than 2 Weeks After Disappearance, 1/18/2023 - NBC Philadelphia
• Missing Pa. mom who never picked up son from bus stop found dead 2 weeks later, 1/20/2023 - TCD