Who Is Robert Pickton?
Posted January 22, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s an unfortunate by-product of nearly every high profile murder trial – the attention gets showered on the accused, while the victims are often shunted into the background.
It’s certainly understandable in the case of 56-year-old Robert William Pickton. The man who could be Canada’s worst serial killer is accused in 26 murders – and those were only the cases investigators were able to substantiate legally.
So who is this otherwise obscure little man who ran a remote pig farm in Port Coquitlam, B.C.?
His family has a long history in the city, a working class town east of Vancouver. His grandfather settled there in the early 1900s and bought farmland, which his son Leonard subsequently inherited.
He, in turn, left the land to his offspring. There were three of them – an older sister, Linda, a younger brother named Dave and Robert himself, sometimes called “Willie” by acquaintances.
When the government decided to buy the property to make way for a highway, it started a cycle that caused the family to go from fairly poor to suddenly well off.
They bought what would come to be known as “The Piggy Palace” with the funds, selling off some of that to developers looking to construct schools, parks and homes near the new road. That brought in even more cash.
Dave Pickton became famous for the parties he would throw at the property. “I’d see Willie but it was Dave everybody knew,” confirms longtime resident Dave Sheppard. “Everyone used to party with Dave.”
“Everybody” included prominent local politicians, musicians and even reporters.
But while Dave became well known for his charity, his elder brother wasn’t good with money, often being taken advantage of by people looking for a handout. “Willie’s goofy, Dave’s smart,” Sheppard shrugs.
The accused killer would often while away his days working the land or at his brother’s gravel and demolition business.
He would often be seen scavenging nearby golf courses for lost balls, giving them away to friends or fixing up cars that had been bought for scrap.
Neighbours indicate the family worked 16-18 hours a day, with one referring to Robert as “a good-natured little bastard.”
Pickton wasn’t terribly religious and was never known to use drugs or alcohol. He also never had a steady girlfriend, once telling a family friend he didn’t want to be “tied down.”
There are reports his health has deteriorated since his arrest in 2002, with some locals insisting he has kidney and liver problems. They fear he won’t survive the long trial.
But in all the background, there doesn’t seem to be anything that would indicate why a man who lived a seemingly aimless but harmless life might suddenly venture out on a course of mass murder.
It’s a dilemma lawyers and the evidence will have to prove in court, as what could be the longest and most expensive trial in Canadian history begins.
And while everyone feels for the families of the victims, there are fewer sympathizing with the Picktons themselves.
“Our name has been tarnished,” Linda remarked in a 2002 interview. “It has a humbling affect on us. Any good you’ve ever done in your life has been destroyed.”
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