Iowa City Man Charged with First Degree Murder in Wife’s Death
The husband of the late Director of Operating Budgets for University of Iowa Health Care has been arrested and charged in her murder this spring.
67-year-old Roy Browning, Jr., was arrested Monday night and booked into the Johnson County Jail on a charge of first-degree murder. The Daily Iowan reports he's being charged in the death of his 65-year-old wife JoEllen Browning on April 5 in Iowa City. An autopsy a few days after her death revealed that JoEllen had died of sharp-force injuries in her Iowa City home. DNA taken from under one of her fingernails belonged to Roy Browning, Jr.
The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports an investigation showed Roy Browning, Jr. had removed money from a joint account and placed it into an account with only his name. When JoEllen noticed something was amiss, she set up a meeting with their financial institution and informed Roy on April 4. Later that day, Roy bought gloves and towels at a paint supply store. Those materials have not been recovered.
An investigation also showed Roy had taken out a number of loans in another state, with a very high interest rate. A credit card under JoEllen's name was still being used after her funeral, a week after her death.
Booking information for Roy Browning, Jr. on the Johnson County Jail website shows his bond has been set at five million dollars.
According to KCRG, Roy and JoEllen Browning had been married for 42 years and had two children. JoEllen had planned to retire from her job with University of Iowa Health Care in early 2020.