Serial Killer Robert Willy Pickton

Robert William Pickton was born on October 24, 1949, in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. Raised on the family pig farm alongside his brother and sister, Robert's early life was marked by hard labor and isolation. Their mother woul often send them to school in filthy clothes from working on their farm which led Robert to be called Stinky Piggy by his peers. Despite his mothers domineering nature and indiffernce to her childrens hygiene young robert was close to her, perhaps to have a defender from his abusive dad.
The Picktons were a strange family and kept to themselves mostly. The kids were often dirty and smelled of pigs. Robert, especially, was said to be quiet, always off in his own world. He struggled in school and after failing the second grade was moved to a special needs class. At home, the harsh reality of living on a farm took its toll when at 12 a calf that he had taken special care of and thought of as a pet, was butchered for meat while he was at school.
In 1963, when he was 14, Pickton dropped out of school and began working as a meat cutter, which he would do for 7 years before leaving to work at the family farm full time.
The farm was a harsh environment, with Robert and his siblings often neglected and left to fend for themselves. The passing of their father in 1978 and their mother in 1979 only deepened Robert's reclusiveness. As he grew older, the farm became a magnet for outcasts and drifters, setting the stage for the horrors that would later unfold.
In the 1990s, the Pickton brothers took advantage of the increased traffic and transformed part of their farm into a party venue known as the Piggy Palace that was granted non-profit status. Here, they hosted raucous events that drew crowds from all walks of life, including many of Vancouver's most vulnerable citizens.
The Piggy Palace became infamous. It was a place where people went to let loose, often attracting those living on the margins of society. It wasn't long before women, particularly sex workers from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, began to disappear after attending the wild parties.
Between 1997 and 2001, the number of disappearances continued to grow. Vulnerable women were lured to the farm, never to be seen again with the promise of money or narcotics. The police were slow to act, often dismissing the missing women due to their lifestyles.
Making matters worse, is that prior to his eventual arrest for homicide, Pickton would be arrested for attacking a woman named Wendy Lynn Estetter with a knife in March of 1997. However, because of her issues with addiction, Wendy was not considered a credible witness and the charges against him were stayed. This indifference to her claims foreshadows the eventual horrors that would take place in the following years.
The methods used by Pickton were brutal, typically they were either strangled or dispatched with a knife. Their remains were then put through a woodchipper and then fed to his pigs or send with animal parts to a nearby rendering plant. One of the most horrifying aspects would come out in 2004, the health minister would issue a warning to the area that he may have also mixed human meat with pork that was sold to the public.
Among the dozens of victims, six women stood out in the trial that ultimately convicted Robert Pickton. Their lives, though tragically cut short, are remembered by their families and the community.
Marnie Frey, born on August 28, 1973 in Campbell River, and spent a good portion of her childhood camping and fishing with her dad. Unforunately, she fell into addiction and left high school in the 11th grade. At 19 she had a daughter and she did whatever she could to earn money on the streets of Vancouver. She was last seen in August 1997, her family left to wonder what had happened to her for years. When police finally raided Pickton's farm, her DNA was found on a woodchipper and her jawbone and some teeth were the only pieces of her found intact.
Brenda Wolfe was born on December 25, 1957 in Lethbridge. Her vice was alcohol and her dependence stemmed in part from abuse she suffered at the hands of her fathers family. Drifting to Vancouver in 1996, Brenda worked as a waitress and bouncer at the Balmoral Hotel but continued to have problems as her common law husband also mistreated her. Brenda vanished in February 1999. A partial skull and some bone fragments were all that was recovered.
Georgina Papin, born on March 11, 1964 in Edmonton, was a devoted mother of seven children. Her family described her as a fighter who loved her children deeply, but who fell on hard times after cancer and addiction ravaged her life. She disappeared in March 1999 and some pieces of bone and teeth were found on Picktons farm 3 years later in 2002.
Andrea Joesbury, born on August 28, 1978 and grew up in Victoria. At 16 she ran away from home and lived in Vancouver's eastside with her boyfriend and the father of her child who was 20 years older than her. At the time of her disappearance, she was enrolled in a methadone program in an attend to get her life back on track and regularly spoke with her family by phone. Andrea was last seen in June 2001 and the only thing that was recovered from the farm was some pieces of bone.
Sereena Abotsway was born on August 19, 1971. Despite a tumultuous childhood in the foster care system starting at just 4 years old, she was known for her resilience and kindness. As an adult her hardship continued and she succumbed to addiction as so many of Pickton's victims which made it easy for the monster to lure her out to his farm. Sereena was last seen in August 2001 and the only parts of her that would be recovered were a piece of her jawbone and other small fragments.
Mona Wilson, born on January 13, 1975 in Kelowna. She moved with her mother to Vancouver when she was young, but was soon placed into foster care after her mother's boyfriend mistreated her. Mona dropped out of school in the 9th grade, and struggling with addiction she would earn money however she could sometimes washing car windows with her common law husband and at other times would earn money through darker means. She disappeared in November 2001 and a year later some partial skeleton remains were tested and came back as a match when the farm was raided.
In 1999, the Piggy Palace lost its non-profit status after Pickton failed to submit financial statements and was shut down. Authorities had already been suspicious of the illegal goings on at the farm and in February 2002, an intensive investigation finally brought the Pickton farm into the public spotlight. Acting on a search warrant related to illegal firearms, authorities uncovered evidence that pointed to something far more sinister possibly linking Pickton to the large number of missing women in the region.
There were personal items belonging to many of the missing women, and later, DNA evidence confirmed our worst fears. Robert Pickton had been systematically taking womens lives and disposing of their bodies on the farm.
The investigation revealed that Pickton had confessed to an undercover officer while he was behind bars, boasting that he had killed 49 women and planned to make it an even 50. Investigators found DNA from 80 different people on the farm indicating the number may have already passed 50. In December 2007, he was charged with 26 counts of homicide, but he was only convicted of six counts of second-degree murder while the other 20 were stayed as it would put an undue hardship on the jury which is a first for me. Pickton was sentenced to life with parole possible after 25 years which was the harshest sentence for these charges, though he is believed to be responsible for many more deaths.
During the investigation and trial more truly horrific stuff would come out that was found on the farm or told to investigators by acquaintances. A good example is the .22 revolver that was found that had an adult toy on the barrel with a single round fired. Pickton would claim the latex unit was a silencer but the truth is likely much more sinister and due to the way revolvers are designed an actual suppressor would be ineffective. A syringe was found that was filled with a blue liquid. Robert had told a friend that opiate addicts could be easily dispatched by injecting them with cleaning products and this could have been what he had used to do so. It seems like his depravity knew no limits and even if he had not sold human flesh as pork the fact that he fed his victims to his pigs taints any meat from the farm in the most disturbing way possible.
The aftermath of Pickton's crimes left a community shattered and grieving. Memorials and vigils for the victims became places of mourning and reflection, highlighting the tragic loss and the systemic failures that allowed such atrocities to occur.
Today, the Pickton farm stands as a haunting reminder of the evil that can lurk in the most unassuming places. The legacy of Robert Pickton is a dark stain on Canadian history, a tale of unimaginable horror, and a somber reflection on the vulnerability of the human condition.
But the story might not be over, in 2024 Pickton became eligible for day parole though it has not been granted, and some Canadian politicians are pushing for a change to the law so that sentences can be run consecutive in cases such as Pickton's. Under the current laws, he will be eligible to apply for full parole in 2027, 25 years after his 2002 arrest which is unthinkable after what he has done.
And it seems that the other inmates agree, in May of 2024, the 74 year old was attacked at the Port-Cartier facility by a 51 year old inmate and had to be put on life support. At the time of writing, Pickton was in a coma at a a Quebec hospital. True Crime, Crime, Evil, Canada, Serial Killer, True crime Documentary
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