One of the Married At First Sight NZ grooms has an outstanding domestic violence charge from the United States against him.
According to Stuff, who obtained court documents, Christchurch-born Chris Mansfield, who lives in Auckland, was arrested and charged on May 3, 2009, in Seattle, Washington, on a criminal complaint of domestic violence.
He pled not guilty to assault at an initial hearing and was released on US$950 (NZ$1500) bail. While he appeared at a pre-trial hearing on May 18 he was a no-show at the next scheduled hearing on June 15.
The case was supposed to go to a jury trial.
A warrant was issued for Mansfield’s arrest on charges of failure to appear on the domestic violence charge. A bail of $500 was attached to that warrant, which has never been paid.
That warrant is outstanding, as are the domestic violence charges, the Seattle Municipal Court confirmed to Stuff.
MediaWorks, Three’s parent company, has been contacted for comment and asked: Was Chris police checked for the reality TV show? Were any other checks on his character done, and will he be removed from the show now that this new information has come to light?
MediaWorks responded with the following statement: “MediaWorks were not aware of these allegations against Chris Mansfield until today. We are looking into it as a matter of urgency.”
The new season, which will be New Zealand’s third, is due to air in New Zealand at the beginning of September.
According to Three’s promotional information, Chris, 39, is a brand ambassador whose friends describe him as a “modern day Peter Pan”.
He’s “looking for someone to share his busy life with” and wants a partner who will be his “best friend, someone he can completely be himself with”.
He would prefer a partner with “a smile that lights up the room with eyes you get lost in,” and “ideally wants someone who is independent and confident”.
He values loyalty and honesty.
Married at First Sight Australia groom Daniel Webb during his wedding to Tamara Joy.
This is not the first time a MAFS groom has turned out to be not quite what he seems. In the last season of MAFS Australia, contraversial groom Daniel Webb was found out to have fraud charges against him. The discovery was made during filming.
The 35-year-old former rugby player and single father had been charged with aggravated fraud after taking part in a huge telemarketing scam on the Gold Coast, which reportedly robbed $20 million from innocent local families.
His last court appearance was on July 5th and his next will be on October 1st.
Dan was matched with 29-year-old Tamara Joy on the reality show but began an affair with bride Jessika Power. The pair broke up after show ended.
