Charlotte man accused of murder not involved in deaths, officials say

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte man charged with two counts of murder could be out of jail within a few months.

Police arrested Joshua Brownlee several days after Matthew Brown and Mykeijaa Shanquial were found killed last June on Atmore Street.

A prosecutor said Thursday that they now believe Brownlee had taken money out of Brown's pockets after he was killed, but didn't commit the killings. She said the man who pulled the trigger was killed himself several days later.

After the hearing, Brown's widow said she believes someone else was involved.

“Just tell the truth and come out because at the end of the day you hurt us and his kids and you hurt the family,” she said.

Shanquial’s father said he is also convinced there are others who were involved and still haven’t faced justice.

“I still personally think that there's more than one shooter out there and they know who they are,” he said.

Brownlee’s attorney, Desmond McCallum, said the plea deal was the best answer to a case where there are no winners.

“It's very unfortunate and tragic that no one will be held accountable for this, but come the end of the day, Mr. Brownlee was just not the correct individual to be held accountable,” McCallum said.

Brownlee pleaded guilty to larceny and obstruction of justice, and was sentenced to a year in prison, but he has already spent most of that time in jail.

Cox Media Group