Scott Peterson of Modesto convicted of killing his pregnant wife Laci, Fresno woman helped break the case

Graciela Moreno Image
Friday, September 15, 2017
Scott Peterson of Modesto convicted of killing his pregnant wife Laci, Fresno woman helped break the case
It was a case that captivated the nation--a beautiful young mother to be missing

Fresno, Calif. (KFSN) -- 911 dispatch: one to dispatch. Hi, can I help you?

Ron: Yes um, my daughter has been missing since this morning. She's eight months pregnant--she took her dog for a walk in the park. The dog came home with just the leash on.

911: What is your name?

Ron: My name is Ron. I'm her step-dad, her husband Scott Peterson is on his way over to the park to try to

911: What is your step daughter's name?

Ron: Laci Peterson.

"I remember the last time I saw Laci. She and I were sitting side-by-side and Scott was sitting in the floor, and we were watching TV and she said the baby was kicking, so I put my hand on her stomach because I'd never felt him kick. But she leaned over to me and she said mom, she said Scott doesn't like to do this. She said I've asked him about, you know, feel my stomach when um, when the baby kicks and he never wants to touch my stomach. That really, really bothered me, and that was the last time I saw her," said Sharon Rocha, Laci's mother.

It was a case that captivated the nation--a beautiful young mother to be missing, a frantic family and her husband, Scott Peterson, under intense scrutiny.

(January 6 phone call)
Scott Peterson:
Can I tell you how wonderful you are? That's easy to do. How thoughtful you are and amazing.

It turns out--there was another woman.

Amber Frey, I remembered asking him if he had ever been married, and he said no.

"She was obviously a girl who had been duped. She was a girl that thought she was going to meet a nice guy, and that nice guy turned out to be Scott Peterson--who was a married man with a missing wife, who took it to a whole other level in terms of deceit," said Ted Rowlands, reporter.

"She didn't know about Scott and Laci missing until her friend told her, "Hey, that guy you brought to the Christmas party--he's on TV every day," said Al Brocchini, former Modesto Police Detective.

"I went to the other room and called the Modesto Police Department hotline that they had. I was in shock. I mean I literally was in shock," said Amber Frey, Scott Peterson's former girlfriend.

Four months later, the bodies of Laci Peterson and her unborn baby boy are discovered.