Memphis husband on trial for murdering pharmacist wife during Fiji honeymoon learns fate

A Memphis man accused of murdering his newlywed wife while the two were on an idyllic honeymoon in Fiji was found guilty Thursday.

Bradley Robert Dawson, now 40, was convicted in July 2022 of murdering his new wife, Christe Chen Dawson, 36, after authorities found her brutally mutilated in the couple’s luxurious honeymoon suite at the Turtle Island Resort in Yasawa .

The 36-year-old victim was found squashed and slumped between a small space next to the toilet and the wall in the suite on July 9, badly beaten and covered in blood at the remote $3,500-a-night Turtle Island Resort. where only 14 guests can stay at a time.

The next day, Dawson was arrested at Matacawalevu Village with his passport and personal belongings.

Fijian Court Judge Riyaz Hamza believed the fact he had such items on him at the time of his arrest indicated the 40-year-old intended to flee after committing the heinous act.

“For the above reasons, I am of the opinion that the version of the defense cannot be believed and the same version is rejected,” Hamza said.

“Having analyzed the evidence in its entirety, I am of the opinion that the prosecution’s witnesses were all truthful, credible and reliable in their testimony. On the whole of the evidence I am satisfied that the prosecution has rejected the defense of provocation.

“After considering the evidence in its entirety, I am of the opinion that the prosecution has proven the charge of murder against the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Dawson, now 40, was arrested the day after the fatal assault when police found the Memphis resident with his passport and personal belongings.

Dawson has insisted his wife’s death was an accident. He will be sentenced in Fiji on January 27

Dawson has insisted his wife’s death was an accident. The Memphis resident will be sentenced in Fiji on January 27.

An attorney for Chen’s family, Ronald Gordon, said her body was so badly damaged that she could not be embalmed and her parents had to cremate her before returning her ashes to the United States.

He added that she had such deep cuts on both sides of her head, near her eyes, that the embalming fluid may have leaked.

The tragic murder is said to have occurred after Chen Dawson shared a drunken argument with her husband after she caught him ‘inappropriately dancing’ with someone else at a party, DailyMail.com revealed.

The couple, who met in November 2021, married three months later after a whirlwind romance. Chen was previously engaged, sources said.

She was Dawson’s second wife. According to a marriage registry, he was married for the first time in Fiji in September 2019. It is unclear when he divorced his first wife.

Chen was found dead just two days after checking into the elite private resort, which her parents – who were regulars there – had paid for.

The night Chen died, she and Dawson had attended a party – called “family fun night” – with island staff and other guests on the beach, where both were “very drunk.”

The 36-year-old was found squashed and slumped between a small space next to the toilet and the wall inside the suite, badly beaten and covered in blood at the remote $3,500-a-night Turtle Island Resort, which accommodates just 14 guests . guests at the same time

The Turtle Island Resort is located on a private island off the coast of Fiji

Witnesses told DailyMail.com that tensions arose between the couple when Dawson began behaving inappropriately with someone else at the party.

“They enjoyed themselves and drank quite a lot, but towards the end they looked restless,” said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

It is understood the couple then left the party and their argument continued on the beach before returning to their private bungalow around midnight where the fight continued.

“Not long after, guests in the bungalow next door said they heard an argument, a loud scream and then silence,” a source told DailyMail.com.

DailyMail.com revealed that Chen was found bloodied on the bathroom floor by a personal butler around noon.

According to a post-mortem examination report, she had suffered multiple traumatic injuries to her body and shoulders, lacerations to her face and blunt force trauma to the head.

A source told DailyMail.com that the lid of the toilet tank was cracked and broken. The couple’s personal butler found her body crushed and slumped between the small space between the toilet and the wall, badly beaten and covered in blood, according to sources.

An attorney for Chen’s family said her body was so badly damaged that she could not be embalmed and her parents had to cremate her before returning her ashes to the United States.

Chen’s parents arrived in Fiji days later after being notified of her death by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at midnight.

It is understood they also viewed her badly damaged body at the Lautoka Mortuary before she was cremated.

Chen worked as a pharmacist at Kroger, while Dawson worked as an IT professional for Youth Villages, a nonprofit organization that helps children.

She had previously worked as a baker in Colorado before moving to Tennessee to study pharmacy.