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A Tennessee man was convicted of beating his newlywed wife to death inside a Fiji-exclusive island luxury resort as the newlywed couple were on their honeymoon.
Bradley Robert Dawson, 40, was found guilty by the High Court in Lautoka on Thursday for the death of his bride Christe Chen Dawson after officials believe he attempted to flee the island nation, her family confirmed to WREG.
Christe Chen Dawson, 36, was found lying in a pool of blood with multiple traumatic injuries including blunt force trauma to the head inside her bungalow at the Turtle Island Resort on July 9, 2022
Christe Chen Dawson’s body was so badly beaten that her body could not be flown back to the US. Instead, her family had her cremated and her remains were brought back to her parents in Memphis.
The couple, who married in Feb. 2022, were having a heated argument the night before the murder, the Daily Mail reported at the time.
However, Dawson’s attorney Iqbal Khan told the outlet that despite gruesome reports of her death, “there is no way he can be convicted of murder.”
“On the evidence that they have presented so far, there’s no proof of the charge of murder with intention to kill or premeditation. Nothing of that sort whatsoever,” he said. “On the face of it, it looks like an accident.”
Bradley Dawson, then 38, was not found until a day after his wife’s death after he kayaked to a remote island a mile away from the resort.
Dawson was carrying several items including his passport and other personal belongings when officials captured the groom.
Because he was carrying his passport, High Court Justice Riyaz Hamza believed Dawson had intended to flee the country after committing the heinous murder, the Fiji Times reported.
He pleaded not guilty to murder charges and claimed his wife’s death was an accident.
At the time of his capture, Dawson was suspended from his position at the nonprofit, Youth Villages, where he worked in the IT department.
Hamza ruled Thursday that he believed beyond a reasonable doubt that Dawson was the sole person involved in his wife’s murder.
“For the aforesaid reasons I am of the opinion that the defense’s version cannot be believed and the same version is rejected,” he said, according to the outlet. “Having analyzed all the evidence in its totality, I am of the opinion that the prosecution witnesses were all truthful, credible and reliable in their testimony.
“From the totality of the evidence I am satisfied that the prosecution has disapproved the defense of provocation,” Hamza added. “Having considered all the evidence in its totality, I am of the opinion that the prosecution has proved the charge of murder against the accused beyond reasonable doubt.”
Christe Chen Dawson, a recent graduate from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center was working as a pharmacist at Kroger when she was killed.
The convicted murderer will remain in custody until his sentencing hearing on Jan. 27, 2025.