“Drowned Bride” Tina Watson’s Dad On Gabe Watson’s Conviction (Video/Photos)

Deceased Tina Watson’s father, Tommy Thomas, has had a rough five years after his newlywed daughter died while scuba diving with her new husband, Gabe Watson in Australia. Read more of Tina Watson, the “Drowned Bride’s” story below.

Australian court convicted Gabe Watson on charges of murdering Tommy Thomas’ daughter, Tina Watson. But Tommy Thomas still seeks answers to his daughter’s mysterious death.

“It has been a long five years. It’s been a painful five years,” Thomas said to Meredith Vieira from San Diego on Wednesday. “It’s good to see that Tina is finally going to get her day in court and the justice she deserves. That’s what we wanted.”

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In June, Australian police decided that there was enough evidence to charge Gabe Watson with Tina’s murder. Gabe Watson wasn’t formally charged until five months later for Tina’s murder and there is a trial date set for Feb. 3 in Townsville Colonial Court in Queensland. If Watson does not voluntarily appear to be tried, extradition proceedings could take many months more.

One big problem is that there is not a guarantee that the United States’ courts will order the extradition.

Gabe Watson refused to appear on the Today show, but his lawyer, Bob Watson, told TODAY, “Gabe is innocent of any wrongdoing relating to the demise of his wife.” He did not tell TODAY if Watson would appear for trial or fight extradition, but he has been quoted in a Birmingham, Ala., newspaper as saying, “It could be to our benefit to resist [extradition] and see if the American legal authorities side with us.”

Tina Watson’s father said their family has been through very tough times since his daughter’s murder. “It’s been very difficult for our family,” he told Vieira. “This has been all about trying to get the truth about what happened to our daughter and trying to get justice for Tina. As long as I’m breathing, I’ll be working toward that.”

Gabe and Tina Watson were married in Alabama on Oct. 11, 2003. Then just eleven days later, Tina was dead, the victim of a strange drowning while scuba diving with her husband on a shipwreck off Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Gabe Watson was a certified rescue diver. He explained to police that his wife got caught in a current and panicked. He went on to say that Tina tried to rip his mask off, and that he was unable to bring her to the surface, so he decided to return to the surface for help while she sank to the ocean floor. How romantic!

Gary Stempler, a diver on the expedition actually took a picture of Tina Watson on the ocean floor, some 100 feet below the surface, lying motionless on her back, her arms stretched upward as if reaching for help. You can see that photo below.

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Police ruled Tina Watson’s death an accident, but too many inconsistencies and changes in Gabe Watson’s story prompted the investigation to be reopened.

After re-enacting various possible scenarios in the water, they theorized that Watson grabbed his new wife in a bear hug and shut off her air supply until she drowned.

Watson then turned Tina’s air supply back on and let her sink to the bottom as he swam to the surface, purportedly for help, police said.

Police said that Watson changed his story 16 times during the lengthy investigation. Other divers among the more than 20 people on the expedition also questioned Watson’s account. One of them, Ken Snyder, told NBC News that on hearing Watson’s story, he replied, “Gabe, that didn’t happen, and you better come up with something else because that story didn’t happen.”

Thomas told Vieira that 65 witnesses testified and more than 100 exhibits were presented during the four-week hearing earlier this year that led to Watson’s being charged with murder. Thomas attended the entire hearing and said he will be in Australia if Gabe Watson is tried.

“Part of wanting to get to the truth of what happened to Tina was being there and hearing firsthand what they saw and heard,” Thomas said.

Tina Watson was on 26 years-old when she died. Tina did have a life insurance policy, but she reportedly had rejected her husband’s request to name him the beneficiary. He filed a claim after her death, but received no money from the policy, Thomas has said.

Tina’s family have said that Watson, a former high school football player, had shown a bullying and controlling side after he and Tina were engaged. Alabama newspapers have reported that Gabe Watson has a business manufacturing bubble-pack.

Thomas said he has spoken to his former son-in-law just once since his daughter’s death on Oct. 22, 2003.

“That was a couple of weeks after the funeral,” he told Vieira. “It was actually the day before Thanksgiving, in his attorney’s office at his attorney’s request. I haven’t spoken to him since. That’s been over five years ago now.”

Wow! Crazy story and extremely sad for Tina Watson’s family. Let’s just hope justice is served on Gabe Watson’s ass!

Images: PR

Source: news

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