If you look at Christe Chen and Bradley Dawson’s wedding pictures, you would never guess that their marriage would end in a brutal murder just months later.
Christe Chen, 36, and Bradly Robert Dawson, 38, tied the knot in February after a whirlwind romance. Their wedding photos show them looking smitten while staring into each other’s eyes.
Chen, the pastry chef turned pharmacist, wore a long flowing gown, and smiled brightly as she headed into her future.
But things went awry when the couple went on an exotic honeymoon in Fiji 5 months later. Dawson allegedly killed Chen on July 9 at their resort hotel.
Friends of the couple describe their relationship as a “whirlwind romance.” They got married on Feb. 18 shortly after declaring their relationship.
The next day, they hosted an intimate reception for 20 people at a historic inn in their hometown of Memphis.
Their decision to get married took their friends and family by surprise.
Nevertheless, they seemed very much in love. A photographer at the reception took photos and captioned them writing, “Yesterday, Christe & Brad were given a gorgeous spring day to celebrate their nuptials amongst their closest family and friends at the beautiful James Lee House. Christe and Brad’s joy radiated all over their faces and was so much fun to capture on camera.”
Friends of Chen said she was eager to have children with Dawson and spend the rest of her life with him.
Dawson, who works for a children’s nonprofit, is currently being detained in Fiji on a murder charge. He will remain in custody for 14 days before returning to court on July 27.
“I am in shock,” Chen’s friend Rena Schomburg was quoted as saying. “I just texted all my friends and my husband telling them I hope it’s not real. But my husband told me it is real. She was so excited to get married and have babies.
“It’s so sad. She didn’t have a bad bone in her body.”
Dawson’s attorney would not confirm how Chen died but insists his client is innocent.
