Kriti Mehrotra
Investigation Discovery’s ‘Web of Lies: The Candyman’ is an episode that delves deep into the tale of Jovan “Joe” Collier AKA Peter Zimmer, with a particular focus on his manipulations as an adult. After all, not only did he slaughter his entire family in Wisconsin at the age of 14 in 1983, but he was also arrested for harassing several of his former partners in Florida as well as in Texas in 2009 and 2014, respectively. Amongst them is Candy Williams, the first of his unwitting and entirely blameless psychological victims. Now, let’s find out more about her, shall we?
Who is Candy Williams?
When second-grade school teacher Candy Williams met Jovan “Joe” Collier on a sunny Florida beach back in late 2005, she genuinely thought she’d met the man of her dreams. “It was a whirlwind,” she told ABC’s ’20/20′, adding, “We hit it off that day… It was really quick. He was very charming, [a] smooth talker, sweet, you know, funny.” Thus, the fact that Joe had painted himself as someone who’d lost his parents in a car crash and suffered as much loss as she had in her family only made them move fast, especially since she knew the pain of being alone.
Within three months, Joe had moved in with Candy, and they started to plan for a future together, going as far as to talk about marriage. “I was looking for someone to share my life with,” she said. “I was just missing a significant other that I really wanted.” That’s why she supported all his ambitions and stuck by him even though he would often leave to visit friends, ex-wives, and his children out of state. However, none of this ever bothered Candy because she thought he was trying to be a part of something more, that is until she found his profile on a racy dating site in 2009.
Candy immediately called off their relationship and kicked Joe out, only for him to begin harassing her via hundreds of e-mails, which varied from obsessive to threatening. She actually got a restraining order against him after he pulled a knife on her in public. Still, it allegedly didn’t stop Joe from stalking her at all hours of the day. That’s when Candy learned of his twisted past and the fact that he was the one who’d killed his adoptive parents, leading her to grow even more afraid. Thankfully, though, he was arrested soon after for sending her a dead piglet and posting her details online.
Where is Candy Williams Now?
Joe Collier pleaded guilty to aggravated stalking in connection to Candy Williams’ case in May 2010 and received a 3½-year sentence in prison. Nevertheless, since he was released in just two years, she never really got the chance to be at peace, particularly because his subsequent arrest in 2014 on similar charges in Texas didn’t result in a long-term prison stint either.
Candy believes that she was lucky to survive Joe but that somebody, someday, might not be, and that thought looms over her head like a dark cloud. Despite that, she is determined not to let him win by living her life to the best of her abilities, which from what we can tell, is still in Florida. Candy may not be a teacher anymore, but she seems content with where she stands today.
Read More: Where is Joe Collier (Peter Zimmer) Now?
