Peter Arne

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Peter Arne (September 29, 1920-August 1, 1983) was an actor best known for various performances in British film and television including supporting roles in the television series The Avengers as well as villains in Edward Blake's the Pink Panther series. In 1983, he was the victim of an unsolved murder as his body was found in his London apartment with his suspected murderer being drowned several days later.

Born Peter Arne Albrecht in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, Arne had a successful career playing supporting roles in both film and television before being cast as the character "Range" in the Doctor Who television episode "Frontios" in 1983. Shortly after returning from a costume fitting from the set, his body was found bludgeoned to death in his London apartment on August 1, 1983.

The prime suspect in Arne's murder, an Italian schoolteacher, had been living in a local park and was given food by Arne before drowning only a few days following the murder. Investigators later speculated the murderer was let into the apartment by Arne and, while he was there, became involved in a violent argument possibly due to Arne propositioning him or refusing to provide him with accommodations before taking a heavy log from his fireplace and killing him.

A neighbor identified the schoolteacher eating a jar of honey outside Arne's apartment building shortly before the actor returned to his apartment (a half eaten jar was later found by investigators in the apartment). Before police could apprehend the schoolteacher for questioning, his body was discovered after being washed up near Wandsworth bridge three days following the murder. After his bloodstained clothes were found upstream at Putney, police concluded that the schoolteacher had murdered Arne and, while in a confused state of mind, committed suicide.