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Amazon Prime Video's latest true-crime series, In Cold Water: The Shelter Bay Mystery, has brought back the murder of Laura Letts-Beckett, and the involvement of Peter Beckett, to the limelight. Dating back to 2010, this case remains shrouded in mystery as Peter continued to claim that Laura died in a drowning accident while the authorities accused, charged, and eventually convicted Peter of the murder.
In Cold Water: The Shelter Bay Mystery takes a long and hard look at the case over three 40-minute episodes, following it from its first report to its conclusion. The synopsis for the series, which is now available for streaming on Prime Video, reads:
"On a fishing trip in the Canadian Rockies, school teacher Laura Letts-Beckett drowns under mysterious circumstances, leaving her husband, Peter, as the sole witness."
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Peter Beckett was found guilty of the murder of Laura Letts-Beckett in 2017 during his second trial. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison. He appealed the decision, which was solely based on circumstantial evidence, and it was overturned. In 2021, he was released from prison.
Following his release, Peter moved to Central America and is now the captain of his own 4-bedroom sailing catamaran, which he also uses to take tourists out on adventures.
Who is Peter Beckett and what did he do?
Born in Hastings, New Zealand, in 1954, Peter grew up around water bodies and developed a passion for spending time in the water from a very young age. He was trained by his father in fishing, and he also engaged in several other activities like scuba diving and surfing.
He turned his passion into his profession as he grew up and started Unimog Adventure Tours, which helped tourists get the best out of their trips. On one of those tours in November 1995, he encountered Laura Letts. The two hit it off immediately and by the time Laura returned, the two were seemingly already hooked onto each other.
Peter Beckett was separated from his wife at the time and even had four children, which would have been a problem for Laura's family. However, he still visited Canada in 2002 after keeping the romance alive over the distance for years, and there he met Laura's family and impressed them with his personality. Soon, Peter moved to Canada to be for Laura and the two began building a life together.
As avid travelers, the couple took trips very often, and in mid-August 2010, the couple went to Shelter Bay for a fishing trip. On August 18, 2010, Laura allegedly fell off their boat while they were returning to the coast. Laura did not know how to swim and wasn't wearing a life jacket.
Peter Beckett claimed that he tried to jump in and save her but by the time he got her out, she was dead.
While the case seemed like an accident, soon clues started implicating Peter. One cousin of Laura's came forward to reveal that Peter and Laura had marital discord while authorities also discovered an insurance policy that Peter allegedly took out for accidental death sometime before Laura's death.
The fact that Laura had filed for divorce once before and had reportedly gone to the hospital alleging domestic violence only added to this. With all this evidence in place, Peter Beckett was arrested and charged for his wife's murder.
Where is Peter Beckett now?
Peter Beckett saw his first trial in 2016, years after his arrest. With all the evidence being circumstantial, his trial led to a hung jury. In his second trial a year later, he was found guilty of his wife's murder and sentenced to prison for 80 years.
Following this, he appealed the judgment, and his sentence was ultimately overturned. He was released from prison in 2021, following which he moved to Central America.
As of now, the 70-year-old is back in the water. He lives as the captain of his 4-bedroom sailing catamaran, and often takes tourists on adventures. He is wheelchair-bound now due to an untreated injury from his prison stint but he remains just as fascinated by water.
Amazon Prime Video's In Cold Water: The Shelter Bay Mystery will cover this case in more detail.
Learn more about the No. 1 Netflix show HERE
