From dream to nightmare. An American man in his forties was found guilty on Monday of murdering his wife in the Fiji Islands, reports Associated Press. The couple, who had just gotten married, went there to spend their honeymoon.
The facts date back to 2022. The couple had booked a room in a luxury hotel located on an island in the Yasawa Islands archipelago. One evening, an argument breaks out between the newlyweds and calls out other vacationers and members of the staff.
The next day, Christe Chen did not show up for breakfast or lunch. An absence which worried the hotel staff, who made the decision to enter the room. They discovered the lifeless body of the 36-year-old woman.
Her husband, Bradley Robert Dawson, is nowhere to be found. He was eventually found on a kayak a few hours later, fleeing towards a nearby island. At the time of his arrest, the 40-year-old man had his passport in his pocket as well as other personal effects, which immediately put investigators on the trail of the escape.
Shortly after Christe Chen's discovery, a lawyer representing her parents indicated that the young bride's body was so damaged that it could not be embalmed and repatriated to the United States, her country of origin. She was therefore cremated.
Placed in detention in Fiji, Bradley Robert Dawson denies the facts. He faces life imprisonment. Found guilty this Monday, he will know the weight of his sentence in January 2025.
