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Beauty and the Geek star Tamika Chesser speaks at Port Lincoln hearing into assault, disorderly behaviour charges

Beauty and the Geek star Tamika Chesser speaks at Port Lincoln hearing into assault, disorderly behaviour charges

News.com.au31-07-2025
Former reality TV star and alleged murderer Tamika Chesser has fronted court again, where she greeted the magistrate and answered questions for the first time in court.
The 34-year-old woman appeared at Port Lincoln Magistrates Court on Thursday via AVL from James Nash House, a psychiatric facility.
She sported a shaved head and wore a blue sweater and greeted Magistrate Patrick Hill with a 'hello'.
Ms Chesser is facing allegations she murdered her boyfriend Julian Story at the pair's unit last month and then dismembered his body, but her appearance on Thursday was for three separate matters.
Police allege she behaved in a disorderly manner at a tobacco store on Port Lincoln's Liverpool St and at the Port Lincoln Police, both on February 14, 2025,
The police further allege she assaulted a woman on November 1 last year.
It is listed as a summary offence, meaning it is considered a low level of offending.
She is also alleged to have assaulted a police officer on June 20 this year, one day after she was arrested for the alleged killing of Mr Story.
Ms Chesser is an Indigenous woman and Justin Slater, a solicitor with the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, represented her in court.
He told Mr Hill he had ordered 'reports' into the charges.
'We are doing our own reports in relation to these matters,' he said.
He asked Mr Hill to adjourn matters until a charge determination had been made for Ms Chesser's more serious allegations and Mr Hill agreed to the request, setting December 18 at Port Lincoln for the next hearing.
When asked if she understood her hearing would be adjourned, Ms Chesser replied: 'Yep'.
Mr Slater declined to comment on the charges or Ms Chesser's condition after the hearing.
Thursday's hearing marks the second time Ms Chesser has fronted court, following her first appearance at Adelaide Magistrates Court last month on the murder charge.
Her case has generated widespread interest because of her glamorous former life and the brutal nature of the alleged killing.
Police allege Ms Chesser murdered Mr Story around midnight on June 17 and then removed his head.
Ms Chesser was then allegedly captured on CCTV in the hours afterwards walking with a bag, dogs and dressed in heavy clothing.
South Australian Police and SES volunteers fanned out across Port Lincoln to search for Mr Story's missing remains, but the search was suspended last week and Mr Story's head has not been located.
'We've exhausted all the areas of interest that have been made known to us,' Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke said.
'We will however go back and search if we receive specific information about where Julian's remains might be.
'But in terms of general searching in Port Lincoln, that has now stopped.'
Mr Story's body was found on the afternoon of June 19 following a small fire at the unit and Ms Chesser was arrested in the yard of the home.
Mr Story was a Port Lincoln local, while Ms Chesser had only recently moved to the area from Queensland.
Mr Story's cause of death is still being investigated and a motive remains unknown.
Two neighbours briefly interacted with Ms Chesser on the afternoon of June 19, court documents seen by NewsWire claim.
'He (the witness) observed smoke coming from Unit 3,' the documents state.
'He saw the accused (Ms Chesser) and asked what she was doing. The accused said 'nothing' and then took her dogs for a walk and locked the front door. The witness concerned that smoke or fire would spread to his property filled a bucket with water and entered Unit 3 through the rear door.
'In the bathroom of the unit, he located a bundle of clothing rags and debris which was smouldering. The witness doused this and repeated this with a second bucket of water.'
A second witness called emergency services, the documents state.
'He states he arrived home about 2 or 3pm and saw smoke coming from Unit 3,' the statement reads.
'He went out the back and spoke with witness 1 or told him he had extinguished a fire in the bathroom of the unit.
'The accused had returned from her walk and was now sitting in the communal garden of the units at the rear of unit 3.
'Witness 1 called emergency services and Ambulance staff were first to arrive.'
Police entered the unit bathroom and sighted the 'severely burned and disfigured' remains of Mr Story, the documents also state.
Ms Chesser starred in the second series of the hit reality TV show Beauty and the Geek in 2010, finishing in second place.
She has also worked as a model for a range of brands including Target and appeared in men's magazines including Ralph and FHM, a profile for her on Star Now states.
Her Instagram and Facebook social media profiles are filled with racy and glamorous images.
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