A Canadian couple who moved to Scotland ended up in a brutal case of femicide when 41-year-old Aren Pearson stabbed his girlfriend, Claire Leveque, 25 times in the neck and chest. As the case unfolded, Pearson’s mother’s witness account of his zombie-like behavior on the day of the killing was key to his conviction.
According to the BBC, the couple moved to Scotland in 2023, and Pearson is believed to have been abusive even then. Police now describe their relationship as “violent and controlling.” When Pearson first took the stand, he pleaded not guilty and claimed that his girlfriend had stabbed herself multiple times after catching him talking to her father about her drinking problem. It’s a strategy that would sound absurd if it hadn’t already succeeded elsewhere — such as in Philadelphia.
