Peter Ludvigson's unenviable criminal record was outlined during a lengthy sentencing hearing in provincial court in Nanaimo on Monday, Sept. 26. (Nanaimo RCMP)

By Ian Holmes

property crimes

Relentless prolific offender sentenced in Nanaimo for egregious crime spree

Sep 26, 2022 | 4:05 PM

NANAIMO — A man revolving in and out of jail for most of his adult life will remain behind bars after pleading guilty to 11 offences in the mid-Island area.

Peter Jonathan Cameron Ludvigson, 47, was sentenced on Monday, Sept. 26 in provincial court in Nanaimo after a judge accepted a joint sentence recommendation linked to a long list of primarily property crimes last fall and early this year.

He was given a two-year provincial sentence followed by two years probation.

Ludvigson’s highest value theft was a 1970’s model gold Rolex watch he swiped from a business in Nanaimo on Townsite Rd.

The watch, brazenly stolen last December in front of an employee was never recovered.

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It was valued at around $7,000 to $8,000, court was told.

Other crimes in Nanaimo by Ludvigson involved him distracting staff and stealing a cashier’s key at the Shoppers Drug Mart on Fifth St. then walking out with upwards of $800 worth of lottery tickets.

Court was told the offender, deeply mired in drug addiction, conned a Nanaimo Canadian Tire employee by convincing the worker he had already paid for maintenance work which was serviced at the business.

Ludvigson, who supplied a fake name for the car work, also walked out of the department store with several goods with the duped employee believing Ludvigson already paid up.

The offender left the department store with an electric scooter, battery and shelter tent and drove away.

Ludvigson pleaded guilty to several brazen and poorly executed thefts at businesses in Courtenay and a hardware store in Port Alberni during the same period. Many of the crimes were captured on surveillance video.

On multiple occasions Ludvigson was arrested by police only to be quickly released then a cycle of new offences occurred.

Tens of thousands of dollars worth of stolen goods at multiple retailers were lost as a result of Ludvigson’s crime wave.

Expensive power tools were his favoured target.

On Jan. 6, 2022 Ludvigson was arrested when he was found by police, unresponsive in a vehicle parked near Nanaimo Airport, with about 10 grams combined of cocaine and crystal meth.

Court was told the offender was released on bail in late January only to disregard his curfew the same day and was promptly returned to jail.

“The tamper alarm on the electronic monitoring device was activated at one point, so it appeared to be completely ineffective monitoring of him on bail. So the police located, arrested him, took him into custody and he’s been in custody ever since,” the Crown’s Neal Bennet told court.

Bennet expanded on Ludvigson’s excessive criminal record which started in the early 1990’s in Nanaimo when the offender was a youth.

Ludvigson has a steady record of property crimes throughout his adult life, including offences in Alberta.

Bennet tallied about 50 convictions for theft on Ludvigson’s long criminal record, while his crimes also included break and enters and possessing stolen property.

“It’s extremely disheartening, Your Honour, it’s absolutely relentless in terms of property crime. With only a couple of gaps, Mr. Ludvigson’s pattern appears to be sprees of property offending followed by periods of custody.”

Bennet acknowledged Ludvigson does not have any crimes of violence to his name.

Defence attorney Stephen Taylor told court his client “has been ravaged by drugs” and continues to be plagued by illicit substances.

“I don’t have a lot of B&E clients in their 50’s,” Taylor told court. “I’m hoping that Mr. Ludvigson has aged out in this latest spree and has learned his lesson and just get to work.”

Taylor noted Ludvigson has made progress dealing with addiction issues while in custody this year through treatment programs and counselling.

Taylor said his client is highly embarrassed by his behaviour, including stealing a charity jar from a Courtenay business.

He noted Ludvigson does not remember some of the crimes he was sentenced for.

While referencing the joint submission, judge Brian Harvey told Ludvigson his punishment could have been far worse.

“You’re an extremely fortunate man given this record and given your age,” judge Harvey said.

Ludvigson did not formally address the court during the virtually conducted sentencing hearing.

He will remain in custody at the Vancouver Island Regional Correctional Centre in Saanich for a further eleven months due to pre-trial credit.

Ludvigson was also handed numerous conditions as part of two year probation, while he was also handed a $1,000 fine and two year driving ban.

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ian@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes