Casefile True Crime - Case 127: Killer Petey

Episode Date: October 12, 2019

Brazilian born Pedro Rodrigues Filho first felt the desire to kill at the age of 13. It wasn’t long before he gave into his desires and claimed his first victim. Over the years that followed, Pedro���s thirst for violence grew. He soon became one of Brazil’s most prolific serial killers, with his crimes earning him the nickname of ‘Killer Petey.’ --- Episode narrated by the Anonymous Host Episode researched and written by Eileen Ormsby Creative Director: Milly Raso For all credits and sources please visit casefilepodcast.com/case-127-killer-petey

Our episodes deal with serious and often distressing incidents. If you feel at any time you need support, please contact your local crisis centre. For suggested phone numbers for confidential support, please see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website. Pedro Rodriguez Filou, or Pedrino as he came to be called, was born on June 17, 1954. He had a misshapen skull due to a deliberate kick his mother, Manuela, had received to her pregnant belly from her husband, Pedro Rodriguez Sr. Given the level of violence their father inflicted upon their mother, Pedrino and his

seven younger siblings were lucky to be born at all. The Rodriguez children grew up on a farm in the Brazilian municipality of Santa Rita do Subacai, south of the state of Minas Gerais. Although the family was poor, they did not experience the extreme poverty that afflicted much of rural Brazil during the 1950s and 60s, at which time impoverished citizens were often viewed as disposable. Crime was commonplace, clean water was mostly diverted for crops, and a lack of sanitation led to diseases for which there was no money to treat. A common saying in the area was that God must exist, because the devil certainly did.

Pedro Sr. worked hard for a meager salary as a night security guard at a local school, and was considered an agreeable man until he drank alcohol, which brought out his violent temper. Manuela was a religious disciplinarian who was quick to punish her children and unafraid to administer beatings. Her eldest, Pedrino, would often accompany her to church, but he never understood what the pastor was saying and would sometimes fall asleep, earning him a thrashing. Pedrino's grandfather, Joaquim, whom Pedrino described as a simple gentleman, became his mentor, teaching him skills he needed in order to survive, including how to swim, plant, harvest, hunt, and defend himself.

Joaquim took Pedrino to his job at the butchery and taught him how to carve up an ox carcass, which served Pedrino well when he later started work at a chicken slaughterhouse. Joaquim coached Pedrino to become a, quote, worthy, correct, and just man. He grew into a tough teenager, and although he was smaller than most boys his age, he was determined and fearless. Pedrino's most defining characteristic was his deep resentment of injustice. In 1967, Pedrino was 13 years old and violence was a part of his daily life. He saw it at home, in the streets, and at his work, where animals were slaughtered without any regard to humane

practices. On one occasion, he took his cousin's horse for a ride without asking, and in return, received a forceful punch to the face. Shocked, Pedrino looked directly at his much older and larger cousin and said, I'm going to kill you. His cousin laughed and hit him again. Other family members who heard about the altercation laughed at Pedrino for being weak. Over the following weeks, he found himself consumed by feelings of revenge and injustice. Pedrino's grandfather worked at the local sugarcane mill, and one day, Pedrino and his cousin were assisting him.

The two were responsible for feeding the sugarcane through the press, a machine consisting of two rollers that crushed the brown juice out of the stalks. Pedrino waited for the right moment before calmly shoving his cousin into the press, pushing him with all his might in an effort to force his body through the rollers. His cousin's arm was mangled up to his shoulder, but the rest of his body jammed up against the machine. Pedrino tried pushing his cousin's head into the rollers, but it was the wrong size and shape, causing the rollers to spin against it without grabbing hold. Pedrino then grabbed a pair of pruning shears and began stabbing his cousin, hoping to cut him up enough to force him

through. Workers overheard the screams and raised the alarm. The boy's grandfather came to the rescue and turned the machine off. Pedrino spent several nights in jail, but as his family depended on him, they informed the police that no charges would be laid. As Pedrino was a minor, the police agreed to let him go. He was made to clean the blood and flesh off the sugarcane press as punish which took him four weeks to complete. He felt no remorse for severely wounding his cousin, instead telling the tale with amusement, saying it gave him pleasure and he had righted an injustice. A year later, Pedro Sr. was accused of stealing food and stationary from the school where he worked during his nightly patrols. He blamed the daytime guard for the crimes, but was fired with

no severance pay and branded a thief, making it impossible for him to get another job as a security guard. Unemployed, he was unable to provide for his family and they had to get by on the money Manuela made as a cleaner and laundress. Pedrino took to the jungle with his grandfather's rifle, hunting monkeys to sell for their pelts, which would be turned into fine leather. Things only worsened for his family and Manuela often broke down in tears. Pedrino sincerely believed the school's daytime guard was responsible for the theft and that those in a position of power refused to listen to his father's side of the story. The headmistress and the deputy mayor who had the power to hire and fire the school guards took the word of the

daytime guard without analyzing the evidence. Pedrino packed his grandfather's 36 caliber rifle, ammunition, a machete and a tent into a green army backpack and went camping in the mountains for 30 days. He only hunted what was necessary to survive, cautious not to exploit the woods or mistreat the wildlife. He later explained in his autobiography Pedrino Matador, I didn't go there to live or to hide from my problems. When I got the guns, I had a plan and I already knew what I was going to do. I was going to get revenge. He returned to civilization and one night lay in wait outside the deputy mayor's house, watching as a jeep rolled up the drive. The deputy mayor emerged from the vehicle and

turned in surprise at the sound of a gunshot. Pedrino fired again, killing the mayor instantly before fleeing the scene. Although the murder gave him a feeling of righteousness, he still seethed over his father's unfair treatment. A month later, Pedrino went to the school and waited in the storeroom where the daytime guard started his day. When his target arrived, Pedrino pointed the rifle at him and ordered him to sit in a chair in the middle of the room. He looked the guard in the eye and asked, did you see what you did? It destroyed my family. My brothers are starving because of you. Is it fair that you did this?

Realizing who he was, the guard began to sob, apologize, and beg for his life. Pedrino shot him twice, then covered his body with furniture and boxes. He set the pile on fire and fled. He took refuge at his godmother's house in metropolitan Sao Paulo, where he met a local woman known as Buti. The widow of a well-known drug trafficker, Buti was a gangster who used her beauty and influence to attract adolescents and children to her criminal organization. She welcomed Pedrino into her home, where she engaged him in sexual activity, despite the fact that he was only 14, and put him to work trafficking and dealing drugs. Although he had little experience,

Pedrino's relationship with Buti enabled him to take on a higher position within the criminal hierarchy, but older and more experienced dealers were jealous and unwilling to recognize his authority. The girlfriend of one of his rivals warned him to watch his back and be prepared for an ambush when he least expected it. Shortly after, some of the other boys invited Pedrino to a local lagoon to escape the heat and smoke cannabis. As he walked down the incline toward the water, he noticed his companions were armed and acting strangely. He pulled out a gun and ordered them to drop their weapons, demanding to know why they were planning to kill him, but they turned and fled. Pedrino shot at them, killing two and severely injuring another.

He came to be known as Pedrino Cartuchera, or Cartridge PD, due to his weapon of choice, a two-shot, 12-gauge, sawn-off, pipe shotgun. Pedrino worked with two friends whom he trusted. The trio watched out for each other, taking it in turns to stand guard while the other two slept. Together, they carried out numerous crimes, including one in Jacareye, an industrial town located between the cities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. They were supposed to collaborate with a drug dealer who went by the name China, but Pedrino took an immediate dislike to him, deeming him a bully and a cheat, and decided to rob him instead. The trio stole China's drugs and guns, shooting one of his men in the process

and injuring China and his brother. Pedrino then sold the items to a dealer he respected. He soon found himself the prime target of Brazil's notorious death squads, which were vigilante groups comprised of off-duty police officers and other members of the state security forces. They roamed the streets with the aim of ridding the slums of crime, killing drug dealers, vagrants, and street children, with covert approval from the military government and invariably without consequence. In an effort to hide from both the death squads and his enemies, Pedrino became transient, sleeping in cars, cemeteries, and churches. He attended a drug transaction with his boss, Bouty, but the meeting was ambushed by police after they were tipped off by rival dealers.

A shootout ensued, and Bouty was killed. 16-year-old Pedrino was seriously injured, but managed to escape, taking refuge with extended family. They introduced him to Condomblema Cumba, a religion considered by some to be witchcraft or black magic. A core belief of the practice is that good and evil are irrelevant. Worshippers are taught to fully embrace and accomplish their life purpose, but are reminded that any harm inflicted on another person will come back to the person who caused the injury. Rituals included offerings, ceremonial dancing, and animal sacrifices. Blood is used in many of the rituals, as it is believed to represent life's pure essence and is considered the most sacred and symbolic substance.

Pedrino willingly joined the religion, and his hair and eyebrows were shaved as part of his indoctrination. His initiation ceremony took place in a deserted quarry at midnight, overseen by a dozen believers who danced to drum beats. He was required to kill a cat and drink its blood before placing its entrails all over his body. The carcass was then filled with seeds and buried. Pedrino believed the ritual had possessed him with powers of invincibility. He returned to the site a week later to dig up the cat's body and remove the seeds within, which had since hardened into beads. His uncle threaded them into a necklace and placed it around Pedrino's neck, warning him to never take it off. In his autobiography, Pedrino wrote,

From then on, the cops opened fire, but the bullets didn't hit me. The enemies attacked, and I defended myself with ease. Nothing would stop me. Before, I was afraid, but after the ceremony, it was as if nothing could affect me. From that moment on, Pedrino saw himself as a defender of the weak and vulnerable. He hijacked food trucks to feed residents of slums, burned shops if he believed the owners had cheated customers, and killed men who harmed women. His penalty for cruelty to animals was to inflict the same acts on the perpetrator. He stole from drug dealers he deemed bad, and sold their product to others he considered righteous.

He moved to Campo Grandi, a neighborhood in the west of Rio de Janeiro, where he fell in love with a girl named Maria her parasita Olympia. Maria soon became pregnant, and the young couple moved into a modest shack. Pedrino continued his vigilantism, regarding it as legally wrong, but morally just. When Maria was seven months pregnant, Pedrino arrived home to find that she had been murdered, along with their unborn child, and the man appointed to protect them. The killers had used Maria's blood to scroll the words we will get you on the wall. By this point, Pedrino had so many enemies that he couldn't immediately conclude who was responsible, and spent more than a year trying to find out, sometimes torturing informants for information.

His inquiries went nowhere, until he stopped at a bar one day and was told a young woman from the Parayiba Valley who drove a jeep was looking for him. Pedrino discovered she was the ex-wife of China, the drug dealer he had encountered and confronted two years prior. She showed the scars, bruises and burn marks China had inflicted across her body, and revealed that it was him who warded Maria's murder. Pedrino was frustrated that he hadn't suspected China sooner, given their hostile history. He found out that China's brother was getting married the following Saturday, and recruited two friends to go with him, ordering that every man in attendance be shot. He warned that no women or children were to be harmed, stating,

if you shoot them, you are going to have to deal with me. The wedding celebrations were in full swing when Pedrino and his friends snuck in pretending to be invited guests and knocked on the door to the reception hall. An older man answered, and Pedrino told him, I am an honored guest of China. I believe the most awaited guest of the night. Pedrino and his cohorts burst into the venue, ordering all women and children upstairs. China came at Pedrino with a revolver, but Pedrino shot him in the chest with his trademark 12 gauge shotgun, killing him instantly. They continued shooting indiscriminately, stopping when their ammunition ran low, and then calmly walked through the carnage and to the bar

for a drink. In total, seven men had been killed, and 16 others were injured. The only woman hurt was China's mother, whose arm had been wounded in an attempt to protect her son. Pedrino would later claim that the injury was her own fault. News of the wedding massacre spread, earning 18-year-old Pedrino the nickname Pedrino Matador, which translated to Little Pete the Killer or Killer P.D. His unbridled and merciless obsession with retribution made him a fearful figure, but some commended him for his reputation as a protector of women and children. Pedrino adopted the lifestyle of a cashed-up gangster and initiated a polyamorous relationship

with twin sisters. He reveled in his notoriety and the fear his presence had among those he considered scum, saying, I had money, morals, respect, and power. He worked to make sure criminals were more afraid of him than they were of the death squads. Adding to the plethora of body art he'd already accumulated, he tattooed the words I kill for pleasure on the inside of his right forearm. On his left arm, he tattooed Maria's name and the inscription I can kill for love. He would later tell journalist Herberto Cabrini on television news program connects our reporter that he killed every day during this period. If a day went by without killing someone, he became agitated. He told the reporter,

I would summon the devil. It was a ritual. It was like, it's yours. This body is yours. This blood is yours. He drank the blood of his victims, believing it made him stronger. Brazilian law enforcement embarked on a manhunt to track Pedrino down. As a result, several of his trusted associates and friends were killed, causing his paranoia to grow. He trusted no one and constantly felled as though police were closing in on him. On May 24, 1973, Pedrino was having a drink at a bar where the father of his twin girlfriend's worked. Unbeknownst to him, the twin's father had alerted police of his presence and they soon stormed the building. Pedrino was wounded in the subsequent gunfight. Before he lost consciousness,

he heard the officers screaming for his death. He awoke chained to a hospital bed surrounded by nurses, police and reporters to witness the moment killer Pedi was formally charged with murder. He spent 25 days recovering in the hospital, completely restrained and under 24 hour guard. When he was well enough to be transferred to prison, he was provided with the option of going into protective custody or general population, where the friends, brothers and sons of many of his victims were serving sentences. Pedrino chose to go into the general population. He basked in his newfound celebrity, but was disappointed upon learning he would only be charged with 18 homicides, telling the court,

only that it cannot be that little. Pedrino insisted he had killed more than 100 men, but was convicted of only 14 murders and given a sentence of 126 years in prison. When transferring Pedrino to the jailhouse, officers put him in the back of the police wagon with a serial rapist. By the time they reached their destination, Killer Pedi had claimed another life. Brazilian prisons are notorious for being some of the toughest and most violent in the world. In the early 1970s, conditions were particularly overcrowded, unsanitary, unsafe and inhumane, with infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and dengue fever spreading easily. The average life expectancy for a prisoner was low, and it was almost unheard of for an

inmate to survive in jail for 15 years without dying of disease or at the hands of an enemy. A raraquara prison in Sao Paulo, where Pedrino would be serving his time, was one of the roughest, with brutal bashings occurring daily and deaths almost as frequent. Dozens of prisoners were sometimes held in a single small cell where there was not even enough room to lie down. Prison guards were considered insensitive, crude and indifferent. The worst of them were sadistic or corrupt and willing to accept a bribe to break rules. The underpaid and outnumbered staff largely left prisoners to their own devices. Guards would hand over the keys to internal locks to whichever inmates were running the show, with their own job

confined to securing the outside of the prison. Weapons, drugs and even women were smuggled in on occasion. For most inmates, the only way to stay safe was to join a gang that provided protection. Gang warfare pitted criminals from different cities against each other and the resulting battles would often end in prisoners being decapitated or disemboweled in displays of power. Pedrino entered prison young even by Brazilian standards, where half of all male prisoners were aged between 20 and 29. Even though the grim reputation of regional prisons was well known, he was completely unprepared for what awaited him. In his autobiography, he wrote, By the time I went through processing, I began to understand what I would go through.

The cell was small. There was no mattress. There was nothing. Just the frozen concrete floor. There was no shower. It was just a water nozzle. There was no toilet. There was only a hole in the floor. As the newest arrival, Pedrino's sleeping area was closest to the toilet hole. From the moment he arrived, his crimes, reputation and to no deriety made him the target of other prisoners. With the help of a cellmate, Pedrino fashioned a knife by sharpening a spoon into a coin that he carried with him at all times. When he first entered the prison yard, five men surrounded him while other inmates silently watched on. Reports differ over what happened next, but three of the men who ambushed Pedrino were killed

and the remaining two were badly wounded. It quickly became known that Pedrino would kill without hesitation. When he wasn't using makeshift shives or illegally obtained weapons, he relied on his bare hands to break fellow prisoners' necks. He taught himself martial arts and trained himself to withstand pain, punching the walls of his cell until they were covered in blood. He plotted his murders methodically, often befriending his target over weeks or months by sharing food or belongings with them and even lowering dead offenses by hugging them, before striking when they least suspected. Pedrino's mother and grandmother came to visit every week. One night after a visit from his mother, he went to sleep early while his cellmate stayed

up drinking, snorting cocaine and gambling. Pedrino woke up to use the toilet and noticed some of his cellmates were acting strangely, turning down the radio as he passed. The next day, he caught prisoners sneaking glances at him in the yard and noticed they abruptly changed their topics of conversation when he approached. He headed to the gym area to begin his two-hour workout, which involved lifting makeshift weights fashioned from plastic bottles filled with water tied to either end of a broomstick. During his workout, a guard approached and summoned Pedrino to the prison director's office. The director informed him that his mother, Manuela Rodriguez, had been hacked to death by a machete while she slept.

Reports of the murder had been broadcast on local radio, which the inmates had heard, but no one wanted to be the one to tell him. Pedrino's father, Pedro Rodriguez Sr., had been charged with the murder and taken into custody. Pedrino accepted the offer to see his mother in the morgue before her burial. As he stood over her coffin, he vowed to avenge her death. A week later, he was told his paternal aunt had visited the prison and left a cake for him as a peace offering. Pedrino divided the dessert among his soulmates and the stray dogs that some of the prisoners kept as pets. Soon after, one puppy started vomiting and another collapsed. One of his soulmates also began vomiting. The cake was tested, revealing it had been laced with poison.

Pedrino was interrogated and transferred to another penitentiary, the same one where his father was being held. Although, Pedro Rodriguez Sr. was locked away in a different section of the prison for his own safety. One day, Pedrino called a guard to his cell under the guise of being ill. Using a knife he had managed to acquire, he threatened the guard and took away his gun and keys. He used the gun to shepherd other guards into a cell, locking them in before making his way to the block where his father was being held. The other inmates promptly scattered. Pedro Sr. did not attempt to run, but instead stood in the corner near a wall. As Pedrino approached, his father said,

You are right, my son. The pair grappled and fell to the ground. Pedrino climbed on top of his father and stabbed him 22 times. One blow more than Pedro Sr. had administered to his wife. Pedrino had promised his deceased mother one final act of vengeance. He removed his father's heart, placed it on the ground, sliced off a piece, and put it in his mouth. It was tough and chewy, and Pedrino couldn't bring himself to swallow it, so he spat it out onto his father's body. A few seconds later, Pedrino made his way back to his cell and released the guards he had locked away. He handed them the knife and gun and allowed himself to be handcuffed and taken away. Although Pedrino knew he would likely remain in prison for the rest of his life, he felt he

shouldn't have to exist alongside criminals he deemed unworthy of living. Following his self-imposed moral code, he continued to target rapists, pedophiles, and men who murdered women or children. He was given the nickname the Punisher after the Marvel Comics vigilante character who employed lethal methods in his campaign against crime. Pedrino mostly kept to himself, but occasionally befriended and protected other inmates, such as a prisoner named Cloudu. When Cloudu was due to be released, he promised he would help his protector escape. Pedrino gave Cloudu the address to his grandmother's house, where he would be welcomed and provided with assistance. There, Cloudu became romantically involved with Pedrino's sister, Silvana.

However, one night, Pedrino's brother disrespected Cloudu, hitting him and accusing him of having a sexual relationship with Pedrino in prison. Consumed with rage, Cloudu fired his gun indiscriminately, accidentally killing Silvana and wounding her friend. Cloudu was sent back to prison, where Pedrino reassured him that he bore no grudge for his sister's death and resumed his role as Cloudu's protector. One day, Cloudu was studying in his cell when Pedrino approached. Without saying a word, he pulled Cloudu's head back by the hair and used a knife to violently decapitate him. Pedrino later stated he was satisfied his sister had been avenged. Quote, he was my friend, but I just had to kill him. I'm justified.

When he wasn't lifting weights, practicing martial arts, or killing his fellow inmates, Pedrino learned to read and write. He started receiving fan mail and love letters from the public, along with letters asking him to write the wrongs his fellow inmates had committed on the outside. If the writer seemed genuine, Pedrino would oblige the request, refusing to accept any money. He claimed to receive up to 50 letters per week, including several marriage proposals. He ignored most of the romantic requests, but started corresponding with a female prisoner, and the two developed a relationship. They wrote to each other regularly for years, and finally met in person when the woman was released.

Prison psychiatrists diagnosed Pedrino as a psychopath incapable of feeling remorse or sympathy, in addition to suffering from paranoia and antisocial personality disorder. During a psychological evaluation in 1982, Pedrino's greatest motivation in life was detailed as a violent affirmation of self. Although, psychologists believed his rage was targeted solely on those who committed wrongdoings, and he was otherwise harmless to law-abiding society. Like many serial killers, Pedrino collected newspaper clippings about his life and crimes. During his prison term, he faced trial for several murders. He described his motivation for one as, quote,

I did not like his face, and said that another of his victims snored too much. Pedrino later told reporter Humberto Cabrini that he was just being flippant with the court, and his motivations were much more complicated. He explained one murder occurred when he and another inmate were housed in a private hospice room after a prison riot. There, Pedrino received a visit from his girlfriend, and as the couple became intimate, Pedrino noticed his roommate was staring. He ended up killing him for his disrespect and rudeness. The squalor, boredom, and idleness of Brazil's prison system exacerbated Pedrino's

psychiatric problems and paranoia, prompting him to kill for increasingly pointless reasons. He served his time in nine different institutions, continuing his killing spree in H1. The details of his most horrific attack are questionable, as the only public record appears to be Pedrino's account of the event years later, during an interview with the journalist Humberto Cabrini. After one of his friends was killed as a result of what Pedrino believed to be lies spread by a transgender inmate, he claimed to have rampaged through a section of a prison where transgender inmates were held, taking 16 lives in retribution.

Pedrino claimed the blood-curdling screams of his victims was so intense that he lost his hearing for three days. By this point in time, 71 murders had been definitively attributed to Pedrino and his cumulative sentence totaled 400 years. In 1985, authorities decided to transfer him to a psychiatric ward, ordering he was to have no contact with other patients. Pedrino was transferred to Talbate Maximum Security Prison and Psychiatric Treatment Center, approximately 80 miles outside Sao Paulo. The center had a custom-built annex designed to house inmates considered too dangerous to be kept in the general prison system. Prisoners spent most of their day in tiny individual cells and were only allowed out

to eat and exercise under strict supervision. These methods were so effective that Pedrino stopped killing. Instead, he distracted himself by reading, writing letters, playing solitaire, and repeatedly punching the wall of his cell until he was given a bag of sand as an alternative. In Pedrino's dreams, his victims sometimes visited him in the form of animals such as snakes, panthers, tigers, rats, and monkeys. He always knew exactly which creature represented which victim, and in his dreams, he would kill them again. His father appeared the most. Pedrino later told journalist Roberto Cabrini, he would appear to be a snake and, in my dream, he attacked me, biting me, and I would hold him

and tell him, I killed you, that's right, and I will kill you again, and I would crush the snake that was speaking. It was a snake, but it was my father speaking. In the early 1990s, a former plastic surgeon named Hosmen Ye Hamos was transferred to Taupate. Hamos had been sentenced to 53 years for airplane theft, car smuggling, and murdering his personal pilot and flight attendant. According to Pedrino, Hamos snitched to the wardens about a younger prisoner's plans to escape, and when Pedrino approached him in the lunchroom to discuss the matter, Hamos hit him in the mouth. Pedrino launched an attack, knocking Hamos to the ground and holding his foot on his neck, but guards quickly intervened. From then on, Pedrino was restricted

to weeding alone in his cell and the feud between the two prisoners escalated. Pedrino claimed a fellow prisoner once handed him a piece of cake through the bars of his cell, and when he bit into it, his mouth started to bleed. Realising the cake had been poisoned, he quickly swallowed a whole can of powdered milk to detoxify. He was certain Hamos sent the cake, but never had the chance to confront him. Hamos was eventually released and resumed practicing plastic surgery. From 1992 to 2002, Pedrino was kept in complete isolation and only had contact with the guards, whom he was always polite and respectful to. He was only permitted to be in the exercise yard alone, under supervision by two guards who were prepared to shoot him if

he stepped out of line. Public interest in killer Pedi was still strong, and daring journalists continued to visit him on occasion. To one, he remarked that the prison staff had no reason to fear him because he only killed scoundrels. In August 1996, during a televised interview from inside the prison, reporter Eduardo Fostini asked Pedrino if he would kill again should he ever be released. He responded calmly, yes, I would have to. To put it simply, I'm a murderer. I always have been. In 1998, another notorious inmate arrived at the prison. Motoboy Francisco de Cisperera was a serial killer better known as the Park Maniac. Posing as a talent scout for a modeling

agency, he had lured female victims to São Paulo's State Park where he proceeded to rape and torture them. He also strangled 11 of his victims to death and was sentenced to 268 years for 20 attacks. A visiting journalist asked Pedrino what he thought about the new inmate, to which he responded. Today, my biggest dream is to be alone with him. My dream is to break that neck. What he did should not be done. He killed a lot of helpless girls. I hate rapist murderers. Pedrino's declaration to kill the Park Maniac made national headlines. In response, the prison director released a statement assuring the public there was no way he would make good on his threat, telling the press. Even if Pedrino can get out of the cell,

he will not know where to find Francisco. In addition, the two were always accompanied by prison guards. During visiting hours on December 17, 2000, a Tao Batae inmate managed to smuggle a gun in and opened fire on prisoners from a rival gang. Amid the ensuing chaos, inmates assumed control of the facility and took 23 hostages, including four children. Over the course of the standoff, prisoners negotiated the transfer of 10 inmates to another facility, releasing hostages in small groups in return. News filtered through that prison gangs were taking advantage of the situation to exact revenge on their rivals, with several murders taking place. The Park Maniac was amongst those reportedly killed as he was missing from his cell,

leading to speculation that killer Petey had gone through with his threat. All of the hostages were at least unharmed one day later, reporting that their captors had treated them well throughout the ordeal, and that Pedrino had brought them food and kept them comfortable. The following day, the State Prison Administration Department announced that the Park Maniac, Francisco de Cisperera, had not been killed during the uprising as initially reported. Pedrino later told reporters that he wanted to murder the serial killer during the rebellion, but he had been busy looking after the hostages. His failure to carry out the murder was met with disappointment from much of the public.

In the early 2000s, Brazilian authorities gathered to discuss a rare but significant problem. Article 5 of the Brazilian Constitution stated that nobody in Brazil could be sentenced for the term of their natural life in prison. The Brazilian Penal Code had been created when life expectancy in the country was 43 years and had not been updated since. The maximum sentence the code allowed an individual to serve was 30 years for all their crimes combined, regardless of the sentence given or crimes committed. Unless they died before completing their time, all prison inmates were to be released at the conclusion of the 30-year limit. Therefore, Pedrino Rodriguez Filou, who had been sentenced to a cumulative 400 years,

became eligible for parole in 2003. Although Pedrino had been convicted of 71 murders, he claimed to be responsible for at least 100. In a 2003 article titled A Monster of the System, journalist Ticardu Mondonza wrote, He likes to bolster his fame by telling other stories, many of which we cannot be sure whether they happened or not. Like many serial killers, his tales often blend reality and fantasy, and most of the corpses he is proud to have produced were never found. However, Mondonza noted that record-keeping in Brazilian prisons in the 1970s was chaotic, and authorities and journalists had to rely on witness testimony to determine what likely occurred

inside. The article concluded, Therefore, it is probable that Pedrino has killed less than he says but more than appears in his file, in a display of inefficiency of the police and the judiciary. Pedrino had previously admitted to a reporter he would continue to kill if he was ever released, an assertion that carried no semblance of regret or remorse. He told journalist Eduardo Fostini, The things I do are good for society in my opinion. I'm killing my enemies and people who rape, who kill children, who kill family men. Do they deserve to live? Tell me. They don't. In the year leading up to his proposed release date, Pedrino was returned to the state penitentiary, where he behaved as an exemplary inmate and became the cleaning coordinator.

He stated that he had no enemies and didn't plan to kill anyone, unless he came across the park maniac. Pedrino looked forward to his release. Although he was entering his fifties, he still looked young and had kept fit. He planned to return to his family on the outside and earn a living working in a slaughterhouse, like he did when he was a boy, admitting that he didn't know how to do much else. He was unaware that police, prison authorities and politicians were meeting to discuss ways they could keep him locked up. At the 11th hour, a judge found an item in the criminal code that could be interpreted as stating that crimes committed after the commencement of a sentence could be considered new and separate, enabling Pedrino's sentence to be extended by another 14

years, postponing his potential release to 2017. Although this interpretation could be challenged in higher courts, Pedrino didn't have a lawyer and remained oblivious to the plan to prevent his liberation. Journalist Ticardu Mendoza visited Pedrino the month of his proposed release and found himself in the awkward position of knowing Pedrino's fate before he did. He wrote, He believes he will be released on the 25th. In fact, this will not happen. His sentence was extended because of the crimes he committed behind bars. Pedrino could even appeal the decision, but he doesn't know about it. Pedrino eventually heard the news and managed to find someone to help him lodge an appeal. It was successful, and on April 24, 2007,

Pedrino Rodrigues Filou was released from prison after serving 34 years, four more than the current law admitted. The Brazilian prison system didn't provide any sort of re-socialization program, and at least 70% of released prisoners went on to re-offend. In addition, former inmates were not monitored following their discharge, leaving Pedrino to his own devices. He moved into a pink cottage in a remote area of the country to live a quiet life with his new pet Labrador. He attended church in a small village nearby and worked as a caretaker on a farm, with his neighbour describing him to reporters as a hard-working, serious, and religious man. Authorities were eager to re-arrest Pedrino from the moment he was released,

but didn't know where to find him. After an anonymous tip-off to the Civil Police Division of Criminal Investigations, he was tracked down to a farmhouse in Cambuyu in Brazil's south. On the morning of September 15, 2011, he was arrested and charged in relation to six riots that occurred during his incarceration, including the deprivation of liberty of a prison officer. Pedrino was also in possession of a loaded 38-caliber revolver, violating the terms of his release and earning him another charge. He didn't resist, entrusting his dog to his neighbour as he was led away. Dozens of reporters were waiting at the police station. One asked, Do you think you've already paid for your crimes? Pedrino nodded and replied,

I've paid for my crimes. He fell back into his familiar prison routine of working out, reading, and fostering his celebrity status. Fan mail arrived constantly and he received more visitors than ever, including news reporters, filmmakers, and authors who wanted to document his life. He was compared to fictional serial killer Dexter Morgan from the television series Dexter, who regarded himself a vigilante dispensing justice where the system had failed to do so. In a 2012 prison interview, Pedrino told journalist Marcelo Hazend he hadn't killed anyone he thought he shouldn't have, saying that he didn't believe in regrets. On December 6, 2017, six years after his second arrest, Pedrino was once again released.

At 64 years old, he still looked youthful, due in part to a strict fitness regime that started every morning at 4am. Though he wasn't convicted of any murders during his second incarceration, in an interview with journalist Roberto Cabrini for the TV show Connects Our Reporter, Pedrino said the last murder he carried out was, quote, about five years ago. He clarified that it wasn't committed in prison, and when pressed further, he refused to discuss the matter, saying, it's kind of complicated. Pedrino told Cabrini he would not kill again unless someone were to harm his family. He maintained a close relationship with one of his sisters and her family, and often joined

them for dinner. He also attended church regularly, certain that God had forgiven him for his sins, and expressed the desire to marry and have a son and a daughter. But he still had enemies, detailing an incident that occurred in Santa Catarina where he was almost killed but managed to escape when his opponents left to get reinforcements. He claimed he did not seek revenge. Pedrino has since embraced social media, where his story has taken on a life of its own. He has been dubbed the Dexter serial killer, and his admirers believe he rid the world of evil and protected those unable to protect themselves. In Brazil, less than 10% of murders are solved, and many Brazilians think Pedrino was the vigilante they needed. He has amassed

two and a half thousand friends on Facebook where he posts motivational quotes, videos demonstrating his culinary skills, and pictures of new tattoos covering the ones from his past. Maria's name has been covered with a feather, which Pedrino explained. I erased it because she no longer exists, she is no more. His most infamous tattoo, which read, I kill for pleasure, is replaced with an image of a scorpion, one that read, revenge, now says, love. Pedrino has written and released the first part of his autobiography, Pedrino Matador. Right from the start, he appears to mix fact and fiction, falsely claiming to be born at the stroke of midnight on October 30 as if to portray himself

as some sort of Halloween omen. He is an unreliable narrator, confusing his stories from one telling to another. He is prone to exaggeration and boasts of incidents and crimes that may or may not have happened. The inconsistencies only seem to fuel his legendary status in Brazilian folklore. A rap song has been written about him, he is available for motivational talks and interviews, and is currently working on a documentary with director Bruno Santana. He now claims he wants to leave Pedrino Matador, killer Petey behind, telling reporter William Cardozo, I don't want to be known by that name anymore. But the title has become his brand. His YouTube channel, which has 83,000 subscribers and over five and a half million views,

is called Pedrino X Matador, and states, In this channel, you will know and follow the life of the greatest serial killer in Brazil. Pedrino Matador was sentenced to the largest penalty ever seen in Brazil. He beat the record for survival in jail and beat the record time arrested. There had never been another detainee that spent so much time behind bars. The idea for this channel came from his friend Pablo Silva and is intended to show the crime does not pay. He often uploads several videos a day and doubles in live streaming. The videos are produced by his friend, 30-year-old Pablo Silva, and feature messages from Pedrino about crime and God. Archive footage of old interviews reports on the crimes he is morally

opposed to, publicity for his book, and snippets of his day-to-day life. He shares lessons for young people about the dangers of crime, warning them that illicit drugs and activities such as vandalism, skateboarding, disrespecting elders, and lying to parents are all against his code of conduct. A celebrity in his hometown, when out in public, he is often stopped by police who want to shake his hand and fans requesting a selfie. Pedrino claims he craves a quiet life, living on a farm with a dog surrounded by trees and animals. He says he no longer dreams about the men he is killed and believes he is living proof that psychopaths can be rehabilitated. In 2019, he told Roberto Cabrini for The Connect's Hour reporter,

In this world where we are now, I'm not taking anyone's life. I'm cured. The hour-long interview tried to find some degree of humanity and repentance in Pedrino, but he remained emotionless throughout. He remarked, I don't regret it because the people I killed weren't worth a shit. The people I murdered weren't even worth the food they ate. If I didn't kill them, they would kill me. They would kill other people who didn't deserve to die. Cabrini asked, Do you sometimes feel like a temptation, a will to kill, to which Kilopidi replied, Yes, but it fades away.