given much of a chance in life. Born to alcoholic parents, he had been raised in a dumpy green duplex on the outskirts of Wallaceburg, Ontario. His parents were more interested in drinking than raising their children, and Peters grew up in an environment of neglect, spousal abuse, and criminal behaviour. Having been completely ignored, he was understandably slow to learn at school, and dropped out before grade seven. Instead of losing himself in books, Peters simply became lost. He found himself on the wrong side of the law in 1979, when he was sentenced to a four-year term at Millhaven maximum-security prison for pointing a firearm. While inside, the angry young man took two shop teachers hostage with a pair of scissors, earning himself an extra three years of incarceration.
By 1985, Peters was back on the streets of Sarnia, Ontario. His favourite haunts were strip clubs, where his handsome face and flirtation skills helped him bed many exotic dancers. The man with the blond hair and serpent tattoos soon earned a reputation for having a thing for handcuffs and S&M. Little did these women know the extent of his kinkiness. When he wasn’t feasting his green eyes on a stripper’s flesh, Peters was phoning local women and threatening to torture them and slice off their breasts. A police wiretap was put on two variety stores where female employees had received his menacing calls. Cashier Patti Armstrong remembers a voice on the other end of the phone hissing, “Women don’t have the right to live.” Yet Peters absolutely adored his mother — a fact which he made no secret of, whether to strippers or his fellow family members. In this way, he was like a laboratory ape, clinging to a wire substitute for nurture.
The Snake Swallows Itself
Though Peter John Peters originally refused to discuss his motivation for the London murder, police soon learned a vital clue from his former parole officer Natalie Black. For a time the two had been lovers, and she had helped him find his apartment and a position as a caretaker. Black had broken off her relationship with Peters two months before his crime spree, leaving him angry and dejected. He had attempted to temper his emotions by becoming romantically involved with Charlene Brittain. However, according to Detective Gary Harding of the London Police Service, Charlene had backed off when she learned of his criminal history. Peters pleaded with her to reconsider, but when she came over to his apartment to speak with him, they became engaged in a bitter argument. Unable to cope with the prospect of another woman abandoning him, he had decided to possess her in the only way he could: by strangling her to death. Of the Albert Philip murder, Peters said little, other than that he was in a “blind rage” and needed to steal a car.
Faced with twenty-nine charges from St. Catharines to Sault Ste. Marie, Peter John Peters travelled from one Ontario courtroom to the next, pleading guilty and recounting his frenzied crimes before a series of shocked jurors. As Peters sat in the prisoner’s dock, Sandie Bellows read an emotionally charged victim impact statement that reduced the judge to tears. When he asked Sandie if there was anything else she wanted to say, she turned to Peters.
“I would like to know why. Why you did this to me, John? Why did you feel you had to do this to me?” Peters’s response was surprisingly flat: “I don’t know.” When the dust cleared, Peter John Peters was handed three life sentences and shipped off to Kingston Penitentiary. The big bad wolf was not the only one who got what he deserved. For his bravery in rescuing Sandie Bellows, Alan Pike was awarded a citation by the Ontario Provincial Police. He was the first retired officer in the history of the organization to receive this honour.
While languishing in prison, Peters legally changed his name to John Cody, hoping to avoid notoriety in the event of his parole. He blew his chances in 2007 when, after
By 1985, Peters was back on the streets of Sarnia, Ontario. His favourite haunts were strip clubs, where his handsome face and flirtation skills helped him bed many exotic dancers. The man with the blond hair and serpent tattoos soon earned a reputation for having a thing for handcuffs and S&M. Little did these women know the extent of his kinkiness. When he wasn’t feasting his green eyes on a stripper’s flesh, Peters was phoning local women and threatening to torture them and slice off their breasts. A police wiretap was put on two variety stores where female employees had received his menacing calls. Cashier Patti Armstrong remembers a voice on the other end of the phone hissing, “Women don’t have the right to live.” Yet Peters absolutely adored his mother — a fact which he made no secret of, whether to strippers or his fellow family members. In this way, he was like a laboratory ape, clinging to a wire substitute for nurture.
The Snake Swallows Itself
Though Peter John Peters originally refused to discuss his motivation for the London murder, police soon learned a vital clue from his former parole officer Natalie Black. For a time the two had been lovers, and she had helped him find his apartment and a position as a caretaker. Black had broken off her relationship with Peters two months before his crime spree, leaving him angry and dejected. He had attempted to temper his emotions by becoming romantically involved with Charlene Brittain. However, according to Detective Gary Harding of the London Police Service, Charlene had backed off when she learned of his criminal history. Peters pleaded with her to reconsider, but when she came over to his apartment to speak with him, they became engaged in a bitter argument. Unable to cope with the prospect of another woman abandoning him, he had decided to possess her in the only way he could: by strangling her to death. Of the Albert Philip murder, Peters said little, other than that he was in a “blind rage” and needed to steal a car.
Faced with twenty-nine charges from St. Catharines to Sault Ste. Marie, Peter John Peters travelled from one Ontario courtroom to the next, pleading guilty and recounting his frenzied crimes before a series of shocked jurors. As Peters sat in the prisoner’s dock, Sandie Bellows read an emotionally charged victim impact statement that reduced the judge to tears. When he asked Sandie if there was anything else she wanted to say, she turned to Peters.
“I would like to know why. Why you did this to me, John? Why did you feel you had to do this to me?” Peters’s response was surprisingly flat: “I don’t know.” When the dust cleared, Peter John Peters was handed three life sentences and shipped off to Kingston Penitentiary. The big bad wolf was not the only one who got what he deserved. For his bravery in rescuing Sandie Bellows, Alan Pike was awarded a citation by the Ontario Provincial Police. He was the first retired officer in the history of the organization to receive this honour.
While languishing in prison, Peters legally changed his name to John Cody, hoping to avoid notoriety in the event of his parole. He blew his chances in 2007 when, after
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