Inset: Frank Bright (Honolulu Police Department). Background: The Honolulu home where Frank Bright allegedly killed his wife Aimee Takaki-Bright with a tomahawk (KHNL/YouTube).
A Hawaii man allegedly used a tomahawk to butcher his wife less than six months after marrying her — delivering “multiple chop wounds” to her head and neck inside the Honolulu home they shared, officials say.
Frank Bright, 38, was arrested last weekend on a charge of second-degree murder after his wife, Aimee Takaki-Bright, 43, was found dead inside their home on Sept. 4, according to the Honolulu Police Department. Bright appeared in court Tuesday and had his bail set at $1 million, according to local NBC affiliate KHNL.
Police officials held a press conference on Monday and described how authorities were called to the couple”s home, which they were renting, after getting a call from the property owner about the front door being open and “no one” answering him when trying to reach them.
“Items were scattered inside,” said Lt. Deena Thoemmes, with the Honolulu Police Department. “Both tenants’ vehicles were parked in the driveway.”
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Responding officers entered the residence and found Takaki-Bright inside with wounds to her face, neck, and back of her head.
“These injuries were consistent with both blunt force and the use of a bladed weapon,” Thoemmes told reporters.
A black tomahawk allegedly found near the victim had blood matching Takaki-Bright’s DNA, police said. An autopsy determined Takaki-Bright died from “multiple chop wounds,” and her death was ruled a homicide. Bright had been arrested the night before on “unrelated charges” of criminal trespassing and terroristic threatening. He was allegedly wearing blood-stained jeans and a bloodstained black glove, according to Thoemmes.
KHNL reports that Bright and Takaki-Bright were married for less than five months when he filed for divorce in August — saying they grew apart and no longer shared common goals or mutual support, according to court records obtained by the outlet. Bright was reportedly unemployed and Takaki-Bright was working at a local school.
Bright’s own mother filed a temporary restraining order (TRO) against him earlier this year after he allegedly threatened her and her husband, KHNL reports. Prosecutors said Bright allegedly pointed a gun at the couple and hit his mom over the head with it. In her TRO request, Bright’s mother said he allegedly suffers from depression.
Bright, who has not posted bail, remained behind bars Wednesday.
