Watch CBS News

Family In Mourning After Stabbing Of Retired Stockton Police Officer

STOCKTON (CBS13) — A family is left in mourning after a retired Stockton Police officer was stabbed to death on Tuesday.

Police say Laurits "Pepe" Petersen, 75, was killed and a good Samaritan who tried to help stop the attack is recovering from a stab wound.

His son and daughter-in-law came to see the crime scene after viewing the retired Stockton Police officer's body at the hospital.

"I was able to see him, but I couldn't do the things I wanted to do—touch him and hold him, to tell him how much i miss him," Dennis Petersen said.

Petersen says he doesn't know why anyone would attack his dad.

"Please, when you see something, let the police know what you saw," he said.

Evidence markers dotted the street where the investigation into his death is still being pieced together. Petersen's silver SUV is one of three cars at the crime scene.

Police say a good Samaritan driving a sedan was also stabbed trying to save Petersen. The 59-year-old man is expected to survive his injuries.

The third vehicle, a blue SUV, is registered to the suspect in the attack, 59-year-old Rafael Watts. CBS13 obtained cellphone video showing a police K-9 unit taking Watts into custody.

He's now accused of killing a retired officer who is fondly remembered in the police department years after he served.

"He was a homicide detective that, when I first started, the young officers would look up to because one he was able to get information out of anybody, but two, most importantly he always had a special connection with the homicide victims families in the cases he investigated," Stockton Police spokesman Joe Silva said.

The 75-year-old retired cop who was killed on the same streets he served to protect is now at the center of Stockton's newest homicide.

Petersen served 30 years on the Stockton Police force from 1968 to 1998. After his retirement, he worked as an investigator with the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.