Former Australian reality star Tamika Chesser has pleaded not guilty after being accused of beheading her boyfriend.
Multiple Australian news outlets reported on Tuesday, August 11, that Chesser, 35, entered a plea of not guilty to murdering her partner, Julian Story, in their apartment, beheading him and burning his body.
Chesser has been held at James Nash House, a mental health facility in South Australia, since her June 2025 arrest and entered the plea via video link at Adelaide Magistrates Court. Her lawyer reportedly shared in court that they are seeking to examine her mental fitness to stand trial.
In June 2025, authorities responded to Chesser and Story’s home after a neighbor reported a fire. When Chesser was confronted, she reportedly claimed that “nothing” occurred and proceeded to take her dogs for a walk and lock the front door.
The police arrived and found Story’s dismembered body inside their apartment, ABC reported at the time. Chesser, meanwhile, was sitting in the backyard in a “catatonic and unresponsive state.”
“We know that after his alleged murder, Julian’s body was dismembered and while I won’t provide any further details about that at this time, I can tragically say that we have not recovered the head of Julian Story,” Detective Superintendent Darren Fielke, officer in charge of the Major Crime Investigation Section, said in a statement to ABC in June 2025.
The statement continued, “I can only imagine … the grief this news is causing Julian’s family. It is crucial that we locate Julian’s head so that his family has the opportunity to lay him to rest.”
In July 2025, a skull was found by a dog. South Australia Police reportedly confirmed in a September 2025 statement that the skull was Story’s.
Chesser was pregnant at the time she was arrested and charged with murder. In March, Australia’s 9 News reported that Chesser gave birth at James Nash House. The identity of her child’s father has not been publicly revealed.
She is set to appear in the Supreme Court for arraignment later this year, per People.
Chesser appeared on the 2010 season of Australia’s Beauty and the Geek. The show follows teams made up of a “beauty” and a “geek” that compete against each other in challenges, with the most successful couple winning a prize.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
