Beaufort man charged in slaying case indicted on lesser charge

A murder charge against a Beaufort man brought in connection with the deaths of two people believed to have been killed at a Burton property late last year and in January 2016 has been dropped.

Instead, Olin Brown, 29, has been indicted an accessory to murder charge. The indictment came in August, according to the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

Brown was originally charged with murder along with his brother, Charles Brown, 28, in early January after the body of Titus Singleton, 28, was found burned inside a car Dec. 18 off U.S. 17 in Yemassee.

Nancy Kennedy, the Brown brothers’ mother, also was charged with accessory to murder in connection with Singleton’s death.

On Jan. 6, the body of Katherine Collier, 25, was found buried in a shallow grave on Charles Brown’s property at 18 Toro Lane in Burton. She was Charles Brown’s girlfriend, according to Capt. Bob Bromage of the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office. An autopsy concluded that Collier died of two gunshot wounds.

Kennedy and Olin Brown also were charged as accessories to murder in connection with Collier’s death, Bromage said at the time the investigation began.

According to 14th Circuit Solicitor Duffie Stone, after reviewing evidence and consulting law enforcement, the Solicitor’s Office presented Olin Brown’s case to the Beaufort Grand Jury last month, and he was indicted only on the charge of accessory to murder after the fact.

Stone said he was not willing to discuss further facts of the pending case.

According to Beaufort County Court records, Charles Brown still faces a murder charge, while Kennedy faces a charge of accessory to murder after the fact.

All three remain in custody at the Beaufort County Detention Center.

This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Beaufort man charged in slaying case indicted on lesser charge."