Serial killer Robert Pickton, who was convicted of killing six women and bragged about murdering 49 others, has died after being assaulted in prison. Pickton, 74, was serving life in prison with a maximum parole eligibility period of 25 years at Port-Cartier Institution in Quebec when he was attacked by another inmate on May 19. The Correctional Service of Canada confirmed his death on May 31 and said it is conducting an investigation into the assault.
Pickton's crimes came to light after police began investigating the disappearances of dozens of women, many from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The remains or DNA of at least 33 women were found on his pig farm in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. During his trial, prosecution witness Andrew Bellwood testified that Pickton told him how he strangled his victims and fed their remains to his pigs.
The families of some of the victims have campaigned against a police application seeking to destroy evidence related to cases against Pickton, claiming it could be useful if DNA technology can eventually tie him to the murders of other women. Pickton released a self-published memoir in 2016 but it was quickly removed by Amazon.
Police were criticized for not taking the cases seriously because many of the missing women were sex workers or drug users. Vancouver police have since apologized for their handling of the cases and have established a missing persons unit to address issues related to marginalized communities.
Pickton's victims included Sereena Abotsway, Mona Wilson, Andrea Joesbury, Brenda Ann Wolfe, Georgina Papin and Marnie Frey. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday.
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