A Tennessee man accused of murdering his new wife on their honeymoon in Fiji has denied confessing to the crime.
Bradley Dawson, 38, appeared in the High Court of Laukota on Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to the charge of killing 36-year-old Christie Chen in July.
The couple were on their honeymoon in a resort in the South Pacific, when the woman was found in a pool of blood in the bathroom, after allegedly being beaten to death.
Her body was discovered on 9 July, just two days after the couple had checked in. The next day, Mr Dawson was arrested after reportedly fleeing the resort on a kayak.
He was charged with one count of murder. Iqbal Khan, Mr Dawson’s lawyer, said at the time that the husband “maintains his innocence”.
An autopsy report later found that Chen died of multiple traumatic injuries, including head trauma.
If convicted, Mr Dawson faces life in prison.
On Wednesday, before the court hearing, Mr Dawson told ABC News that he regrets that he “could not protect” his wife.
The couple got married in February after what friends described as a “whirlwind romance”.
After his arrest, Mr Dawson had reportedly told the police that he got into a drunken fight with his wife in their resort room. This escalated to a physical confrontation, resulting in a shattered window and a cracked toilet, he said, according to the documents presented in court by the prosecutors.
Mr Dawson allegedly told the police: “Christie was next to the toilet. She was hurt. There was blood and a cut on her face.”
Mr Dawson said that he fled using a kayak after he “freaked out”.
But Mr Dawson’s lawyer questioned the prosecution’s claim that his client had admitted guilt in his wife’s death. He told the court that after his interview with the local police, Mr Dawson had refused to sign a statement containing a confession.
The defence also asked for Mr Dawson’s bail as he is “not in good health” and needed to consult doctors about his prescription medications.
A bail hearing for Mr Dawson has been set for 14 September.
