Tamika Chesser, a former contestant on the popular early aughts reality show Beauty and the Geek, has given birth while in custody as she awaits trial in a high-profile homicide case involving her late boyfriend. The child was born while Chesser remains under supervision in a secure mental health facility in South Australia.
According to People, Chesser was already pregnant at the time of her arrest in June 2025. The identity of the child’s father has not been publicly disclosed. She is currently being held outside Adelaide and is scheduled to return to court in April as legal proceedings continue.
Chesser first gained public attention through the Australian edition of Beauty and the Geek, a reality television format originally created by Ashton Kutcher that pairs socially outgoing contestants with academically inclined partners in a competitive, team-based setting.
The franchise, which debuted in the United States in 2005, has since expanded internationally and has often been framed as both entertainment and a social experiment.
The charges against Chesser stem from the death of her partner, 39-year-old Julian Story, whose body was discovered in the couple’s Port Lincoln apartment in June 2025. Police were called to the residence after a neighbor reported a fire.
According to court documents, the neighbor encountered Chesser, who reportedly said “nothing” was wrong before leaving the scene with her dogs.
Investigators later described the scene as “confronting,” stating that Story’s body had been dismembered. His head was initially missing, prompting an extensive search.
Detective Darren Fielke told reporters at the time that recovering the remains was “a really important aspect for us” so the family could lay him to rest. Authorities later confirmed that a skull believed to be Story’s was recovered on July 31, 2025, after being located by a dog in nearby scrubland.
Before her arrest, Chesser had worked as a model and appeared in publications including Playboy and Ralph.
