BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A Melbourne man accused of beating his 71-year-old neighbor to death and burying her body outside the shed where he lived has officially been indicted on a first-degree murder charge, according to the state attorney’s office.
While Brian Karl Peters Jr. was arrested on multiple charges earlier this year, a grand jury indictment is required for first-degree murder cases. The grand jury heard testimony Tuesday from the Brevard Medical Examiner, a Melbourne Police Department crime scene investigator and detective and a witness before choosing to indict Peters.
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Records show Jo Ellen Johnson, 71, and Peters both lived on a property owned by the same landlord behind a former thrift store on Harbor City Boulevard but Johnson lived in the main building and Peters lived in a shed.
Before her death, Johnson, a retired school teacher, told friends that she was afraid of Peters and didn’t want to be alone with him because he’d been violent toward her in the past and made unwanted sexual advances, according to an arrest warrant drafted by the Melbourne Police Department.
Police said Johnson’s friends called them in early January saying that Johnson hadn’t been seen or heard from since Dec. 31, 2020 and they were concerned because she was very social and always kept in touch.
On Jan. 13, Melbourne police searched the area around Johnson’s home and she was discovered buried about 10 feet from the shed where Peters lived, records show.
Melbourne police crime scene investigators said Johnson was buried facedown, wrapped in a blanket with her hands tied behind her back. Dental records were used to identify the victim, police said.
Autopsy results showed Johnson was stabbed, beaten and showed signs of a possible sexual assault, the report shows. The medical examiner determined she died of blunt force injuries, according to the arrest warrant.
Peters was arrested by Virginia State Police on March 31. Investigators said Peters was found in a stolen car and was wanted for another murder in Pennsylvania — a 65-year-old man who was stabbed to death, according to police.
Peters remains in Virginia. The process to extradite him has begun but it’s not yet known when he’ll be transferred back to Florida.
Records show he’s facing charges of first-degree murder, tampering with evidence, grand theft, criminal use of personal identification and fraudulent use of a credit card.