Los Angeles Police Department homicide detectives searched the Joshua Tree area on Friday for evidence related to the disappearance of Christina Lynn Downer, the sister of "Saturday Night Live" writer Jimmy Fowlie. The search began months after Fowlie claimed police had informed the family that Downer was dead, a statement the LAPD has publicly disputed.
An LAPD spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital that detectives from the Robbery-Homicide Division initiated the search on Friday morning. Authorities did not disclose the specific location within the Joshua Tree area or the type of evidence they sought. During the operation, an LAPD media relations officer stated that investigators could not confirm whether they were looking for human remains, a suspect, or other items, nor could they confirm if search dogs were deployed. It remains unclear what led investigators to Joshua Tree or if the department has altered the official classification of the case since its previous public statements.
Downer, 38, disappeared from the Koreatown area of Los Angeles in late November 2025, leading to a missing-person report filed in December. In late April, Fowlie posted on Instagram that the LAPD had told his family Christina was no longer alive and that the case had transitioned from a missing person investigation to a homicide case. He wrote that police had notified the family of her death and that the investigation had officially shifted to a homicide status. He added that the family's prayers had shifted from finding her safely to seeking truth and accountability for those responsible.
The LAPD contradicted Fowlie's account at the time, maintaining that Downer had not been located and the case remained a missing-person investigation. "Although the circumstances of her disappearance are suspicious, Ms. Downer has not been located," the department said, noting that detectives would continue investigating until the case was resolved.
Fowlie also alleged that an individual or group in possession of Downer's cellphone used it to conceal her disappearance and create a false narrative that she had voluntarily gone "off the grid." He claimed the phone was used to ask for money and to hide the fact that she was gone. These allegations regarding the phone's usage have not been publicly confirmed by the LAPD. Fox News Digital has reached out to Fowlie for comment.