Australia Australia - Peter Jones, shot 1994, quadriplegic 17 years, died 2011

Peter's Sister

Verified insider - Peter Jones case
Joined
Oct 23, 2014
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
In the early hours of October 9th 1994, at Teralba in New South Wales, my brother, Peter Brenden Jones, was shot. The offenders (two) turned off the power to lure him out of the house (his fiancee was left inside alone) and then they shot him twice, once in the shoulder and once in the neck. His fiancee rang for an ambulance and police after hearing the shots. Peter died a number of times; on the driveway, twice in the ambulance and then again at hospital, but was revived by the amazing medics each time. As a result of his injuries, he became a C4 quadriplegic. This all happened five weeks before his wedding. The wedding went ahead on the date, in intensive care, but lasted only a year. Peter lived for 17 years as a quadriplegic. He was unable to remember the events. His fiancee saw nothing. Exhaustive inquires by Lake Macquarie Police found virtually nothing. There was no reason for this attack found. They had just moved house but the previous occupants were found to have no connection so police assumed it wasn't mistaken identity. Peter was a metal fabricator, sport mad, had just bought a puppy, was looking forward to his wedding and his life. There was nothing in his life to explain such a vicious and targeted event. In 2011 Peter succumbed to the effects of quadriplegia and died in hospital. His life was very different to what he and his family had expected. My life and my children's lives were devastated by what happened to him. And still nothing...
Someone must know something. Please, if you know anything, or remember anything, please get in touch with Toronto Police, or me I guess.
 
I am so sorry for your loss. What a senseless crime. I hope someone here can help you find out who did this, or at least a theory.
 
Even though you have not been verified with websleuth as a relative. I will post as if you have been. Since your the sister and had a close relationship with your brother. What can you tell us about his relationship with his wife to be? How long did they know each other before getting engaged? Were there any problems that your brother told you about? Was it the physical condition of your brother that made the marriage end after a year?

Cut the power, he came outside and was shot and left for dead, yet no other attempt was made on his life after this. So it was a one time thing and not something that HAD to be done. Almost like a assassination attempt

Can you supply any links about your brother? Any photos from the time of the crime? Any visual aids at all?
Do you have the police report?
 
How do I get verified as a relative? Sorry, I'm obviously very new.
Peter and his fiancee were very much in love, madly even. She had gone against her family to be with him. They had been together three years, had just bought a house and moved in together. She was VERY thoroughly investigated afterwards but nothing was found. She was only 19 when it happened, its hard to believe she would have had the resources to organise something like this. It was his condition that led to the marriage breaking up. She was just too young to cope, even though he had carers looking after him, she just couldn't deal with it. She has remarried and has kids now. (yes, I'm bitter - hard not to be!).
I don't have the police report or photos. It happened in 1994 so the newspaper articles are not online although I believe they are available at the local newspaper office. None of the family talked to the press at the time so there wasn't a lot of publicity after the initial report. I believe two cigarette butts were found at the scene as well as the bolt from the shotgun. These were all tested for DNA 10 years later but results were "inconclusive" whatever that means. Nothing else was found. No one saw a car or anything. It was just after midnight in a really quiet semi-rural suburb. As far as I know, police pursued mistaken identity and found nothing. They looked at links to organised crime or drugs - nothing. They looked at the pub where he drank -nothing. Previous unsolved crimes (there was a pretty well-known one) - nothing.
Thanks for your interest.
 
Hello Peter's sister & welcome.

A couple of questions from me, the police usually work from the inside out and Peter's 'X' was cleared but you mentioned she went against her family to marry Peter. Did she have any siblings, relatives or ex boyfriends who were against her relationship with Peter?

Hopefully Peter received a lump sum from victims of crime compensation which should have paid out the house and kept him living in a comfortable manner. I'm sure his 'X' couldn't claim it in the divorce, if so, where did the money go?

http://newsstore.fairfax.com.au/app...&cls=198&clsPage=1&docID=NCH110614AN4H62JE2GE
 
No ex-boyfriends, she was only 16 when they met. One brother, he was only 14 in 1994. Parents, not serious suspects as far as I know (well off, respectable, middle aged).
Peter received $30,000 as compensation as a victim of crime. It was not quite enough to buy a vehicle that his motorised wheelchair would go in. Family paid the difference. House was sold at a substantial loss. He lived the rest of his life on a disability pension in a dept of housing flat - poor, in other words. So, in answer, there was no money. None.
 
How old was Peter when he was shot and what was his employment?
16 is young, how old was she when they married?
Sorry for the questions but I'm trying to get some ideas for you.
 
Peter was 24 when he was shot - he was a metal fabricator (sheet metal worker). Fiancee was just 20 when they married.
 
Peter's sister, I am so very sorry for your loss, and your dear brother's pain. Welcome to Websleuths, and I hope you don't mind us asking the hard questions, sometimes that's what we do, as respectfully as possible, to try to work out what happened. Or at least some sensible theories.

I have to agree with Mr. T.. it sure sounds to me like a targetted crime, in that they turned off the lights to lure him out (presumably messed with the fuse box) before shooting him twice. But if all you've said is accurate, then its a mystery indeed as to why they would target your brother that way.

Had he driven through/worked in any rough areas at the time? I have been unfortunate enough to pass (quickly! and quite peripherally..) through certain social circles, where calling someone a name for cutting you off in traffic could be a death sentence, if it was said to the wrong person. Some people are just sociopaths that way.. and as there was more than one offender I doubt it was just somebody with mental problems. That says to me, it was a sane, organised effort rather than just someone off their meds, if you know what I mean.

If he for 100% sure had no gambling/drug/loan shark problems, or the like, I can only think that sort of very direct, planned attack was meant for somebody else, or something like what I described above, he'd somehow ticked off a psycho and they'd followed him home to see where he lived. Sadly, people that awful do exist, and sometimes live in neighborhoods you would not expect them to..

You can become verified by messaging one of the admin, Trish or Salem or someone.

I wish I could be of more direct help, but if you just need somewhere to talk,think out loud, or some general support, I and no doubt other WS'ers will be here for you.
 
I found a few more articles:

http://newsstore.fairfax.com.au/app...cls=3135&clsPage=1&docID=NCH110702965V46GPTEE

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/468792/forgotten-victim-shot-twice-by-mystery-attacker/

So sad. He seems like a nice bloke.

It was interesting that the attacker chose the back yard, not the front yard...Peter's sister, do you remember what the fencing was like, around the yard? Was the back door used more frequently than the front door, for entry? (I have lived in houses where that happens, for convenience). And how did police establish there was more than one attacker? Where was the fuse box?

The guy with the balaclava on sat out there, smoking, waiting.. with a gun. Waiting for what? Maybe for the neighbours to go to sleep? To get his nerve up? I wonder what his criteria was, for that wait...

Then he blacked out the lights, and used a noise to lure Peter out the back... not the front, where I'd expect a getaway car to be waiting. The balaclava *plus* darkness, plus back yard attack is interesting. I'll have a think on that.

edit: it seems there was a few hardcore crim types in the general area.. not that I am saying these two thugs had anything to do with peter's shooting, but this is the type of person I was thinking of in my previous post:

http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1458275/mates-long-on-cunning-short-on-brainwaves/

Look at the level of violence in their attacks, a heinous murder over some low-level pub argument.. I'm sure police did all they could to track Peter's movements around the time he was shot, and I'm sure he would have mentioned it if he recalled a random aggressive incident.. but it's a possibility. It need not have happened that same week, either. I recall one 'interesting' individual I met, boasting of 'getting' a guy months after an argument.. over nothing much.
 
Fencing was a wood paling fence 5 feet tall, except at the front. Pretty common in that area and houses of that age (1950's). His fiancee heard two men talking - I think that's how they established two attackers. Also Peter was young, fit and strong so they assumed more than one. Fuse box was on the wall near the back door. Thanks for finding more articles. I didn't read them at the time and have little wish to read them even now. It never gets better. No such thing as closure but a taste of justice would be nice.
You are right that it seems so deliberate and planned. I know the police thought for months that Peter was a big drug dealer and that was why. I wish it had been that simple. Then I could understand and feel that he had understood the risk he was taking. But he was just a lovely ordinary guy with a new puppy and five weeks away from his wedding.
 
Mistaken identity + Peter owned the house only 6 weeks. :thinking:
Had the previous tenants/owners', friends and family been questioned to see if they were being targeted or harassed?
Had he purchased a second hand car that the previous owners had enemies & that car may have been followed back to Peter's new home.
These questions would have been followed up by the police while everything was 'warm' and I think it would be impossible for you to answer now but maybe, sometimes a question could jolt a memory.
I'd love to help you have closure.
It's been an unfair road for you and your family.
 
Than you, Peter's sister. It must be hard, rehashing all of this over and again.. but it's a difficult crime to get one's head around for sure. I believe you 100% when you say Peter was not a big drug dealer, etc. The only other reason I think of for someone coming after him is that he owed money, but sharks don't usually kill people, they want to be paid sooner or later, so they break legs, not kill... That sort of murder generally happens over rip-offs, someone seeing too much, talking too much, talking to police, putting someone in jail.. maybe sleeping with the missus of some major , that sort of thing. Your brother doesn't sound like he was mixed up in anything like that. What were his friends like? Were any of them notably off the rails?

The fuse box 'round the back makes sense too, that's why they were around there. That's how they knew for sure he'd head out the back, where they wanted him. :(

It makes little sense, except for what the cops concluded, mistaken identity. TGY has asked some good questions regarding that. Something tells me that these guys were not too bright.. the one with the gun let Peter get close enough to grapple him, which seems amateur (your brother was very brave!). Just some dumb thugs, sent round to the wrong place.. Maybe they got the numbers mixed up, or like TGY said, the car.. though the ruse seems like something they'd maybe done before, or heard about.

What actually seems off to me is that they'd wait about smoking, lurking, pull a ruse -- why not just kick the door in. They had masks on... Idk, something bothers me, there. I don't know what, yet, just something.

What I'm wondering now is how they got around back, how they escaped (gate, over the fence) and whether anyone heard a car peeling away.
 
Yes it was followed up at the time. No car purchased and the previous owners of the house were a couple in their 70's who had lived there blamelessly for over 30 years.
Thanks for your interest
 
I'm not believing the mistaken identity yet. If this was a drive by and the suspects seen someone that looked like the person they wanted to shoot than OK maybe mistaken identity.......But this was up close and personal. They looked at the guy. Waited on him to come out. Only way i see of mistaken identity was if they were giving a description of the guy and went by that and the address and just shot whomever male came out of the house.........I think he was the intended target and they had the person they wanted to shot in there sites.................

But for the life of me, I was going to ask how do we know they had on masks, or he grabbed the gun etc etc. I thought no one seen anything. Then just now it clicked HE told what happened. NEVER dawned on me he was able to tell what happen. Strange on my part to think that.

I have one yes or no question for you. If you don't know its OK. I was just curious.
Did she remarry someone she went to school with? Someone she had known for a long time?
Thank you for your answer in advance.
 
No she married five years later - someone she met at a job she got after they divorced.
And yes, Peter remembered quite a bit of what happened, unfortunately.
 
There was no gate at the side (although Peter was planning on putting one in because of the puppy). No one heard or saw a car. The road has a rail line and footbridge at the end - the police concluded that the car was probably parked over the other side of the tracks and they took the bridge.
You are so right that it is difficult to understand. Some things seem so professional and some so amateur.
There was an unsolved murder in a nearby suburb in Dec 1992. A young man called Mark Alley was beaten to death. You can google it, but some sites have the dates wrong. One lead that went on for a while (until Peter was well enough to be questioned) was that Peter might have known Mark or known something about his murder, as they drank in the same (very popular) pub. But Mark Alley was a small time drug dealer and Peter didn't know him or know anything about his death - didn't even remember it! (very self-involved these young people!!!). I think the police ended up thinking that it didn't matter if Peter didn;t know anything - someone only had to THINK he knew something. But it went nowhere and both cases are unsolved still (although the police are sure they know who killed Mark but can't prove it).
It is hard to go over it, I have had such trouble sleeping again since I've posted. And my boys were so damaged by what happened (they were 9 and 5 years old) that it is a very very painful group of memories. But its worth it if someone comes forward or remembers something or thinks of something that wasn't thought of at the time.
Thank you all
 
I understand that the horrific memories are resurfacing.
I would be overjoyed if we could help you find closure for your family.

Could you please have a read of this article? there is two year separating these crimes but I wonder if they were on the loose in 1994. These clowns were in the area at the time of Peter being shot.
Peter being a metal fabricator could there be a connection with a scrap metal yard? Did he do any banking or have any responsibility with work, say manager?

"Under the pump and in need of quick cash, Hart rammed a woman off Racecourse Road at Teralba as she was delivering $5000 cash to a scrap metal yard so the yard could pay their suppliers.

Another car sped up behind, before the woman had a gun pointed in her face and the bag full of cash taken".

ALSO-"The pair viciously displayed their true colours with the horrific 1992 murder of Simon McHugh, bashing him unconscious before throwing his broken frame off the Barnsley weir to drown.

McHugh's heinous crime was simply being a little drunk and possibly making a pest of himself to a few patrons at the old Bellevue Hotel on Hunter Street".


http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1458275/mates-long-on-cunning-short-on-brainwaves/
 
Yes I've seen this but they were in jail at the time of Peter's shooting.
 

Staff online

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
191
Guests online
2,261
Total visitors
2,452

Forum statistics

Threads
589,946
Messages
17,928,016
Members
228,009
Latest member
chrsrb10
Back
Top