Lords of Chaos conspirator to be released from prison on Saturday

One of Southwest Florida’s most notorious criminals is getting out of prison this weekend.

Peter Magnotti is one of the Lords of Chaos, a group of teens that wreaked havoc in Lee County in 1996. His release is set for Saturday.

In the 18 days leading up to the death of Riverdale High teacher Mark Schwebes, the self-titled Lords of Chaos torched a restaurant, blew up a historic building and robbed a diner.

They were caught one night trying to break into Riverdale High School by Schwebes.

Part of the group were supposed to meet Schwebes in the principal’s office the next morning, but instead, Magnotti, Chris Black, Derek Shields and ringleader Kevin Foster called information, got Schwebes’ home address, found his house and shot him when he answered his front door.

“Mark hasn’t been forgotten,” Pat Dunbar, Schwebes’ sister, told WINK News in 2021, 25 years after the murder. “The grief that I and the family feel about Mark’s death? Well, that grief will never go away.”

Part of that is because the family, led by Dunbar, is not getting the promised justice.

“You know, I’m glad my father has passed and isn’t seeing Magnotti being released early, but at the same time, my mom is still around, and she is, and so that makes it difficult,” Dunbar said.

Magnotti, now 44, is likely the only member of the Lords of Chaos who will ever get out of prison.

He was the first to take a plea deal to testify against the others. He was sentenced to 32 years after cooperating, the same age Schwebes was when he was killed, but he is now being released after 27 years.

“The family didn’t make this deal. The state did, and yet the state is the one changing the deal,” Dunbar said.

In Florida, prisoners must serve 85% of their sentence. The rest can sometimes be reduced because of good behavior or completing education programs.

“As far as why it was being changed, or who was making that decision for it to be changed? You know, we have no idea,” Dunbar said.

When WINK News spoke to Dunbar earlier this week, she said she doesn’t know where Foster’s sentence stands.

He is the one who pulled the trigger and also the only one who was sentenced to death.

“I would love to know what the next steps are … for all three others but especially for Kevin Foster,” Dunbar said.

Foster is still on death row working through multiple appeals.

Testimony showed it was Black’s idea to kill Schwebes. Black received life without parole.

The fourth, Shields, also got life without parole to testify against Foster.

He was Schwebes’s student and knocked on the front door that night so that his teacher would recognize his face and open it. Shields is the only one who has spoken to WINK News after sentencing, granting two prison interviews over the years.

“At first, during the night of the murder, I stood up against him, told him ‘no’ two or three times. ‘No, we’re not going through with this,’ until he pulled out the shotgun and said, ‘Yes, we are,'” Shields told WINK News in 2021.

In a statement to WINK News related to Magnotti’s release this week, Shields said, “It’s kind of depressing seeing him get out after all these years, and I am stuck with no end in sight, but I wish him no ill will and will say a prayer or two for him.”

Black spoke to WINK News for the first time after Magnotti’s announced release and wished him well.

“I have only good things to say about Pete. I am happy he is finally getting to leave this place and sincerely hope he has utilized his time well in order to acclimate to the incredibly different world that exists now,” Black said. “If I could tell him one thing, it would be to ‘live well,’ because he has a chance for a fresh start; he should NOT waste it. Not everyone gets one.”

For the Schwebes family, at times, all of this still weighs heavy.

“You know, in so many ways. It takes up too much headspace a lot of times,” Dunbar said. “It takes up a lot of emotional space in our life. Here it is 27 years later, and people still remember him. People still remember the impact of what happened, as far as to the community, so therefore, that tells you or should tell you what kind of special kind of guy he was.”

WINK News asked Magnotti and Foster for comment but did not hear back.

You can read Black’s full statement below:

“Mr. Cifatte, I have only good things to say about Pete. I am happy he is finally getting to leave this place, and sincerely hope he has utilized his time well in order to acclimate to the incredibly different world that exists now. I sincerely hope he will reach out to me to some extent because I have not heard any word from him in well over a decade, but have heard word OF him, and all of it positive. If he needs anything that I, my family, or friends can provide, all he has to do is ask. It has been a long ride for him, and he has had his share of tragedies along the way. I wish I could follow in his wake, but such does not seem to be likely for me. Of all of us that were involved, I believe Pete received the most “just” sentencing. If I could tell him one thing, it would be to “live well” because he has a chance for a fresh start; he should NOT waste it. Not everyone gets one. Good luck, Pete! Sincerely, Chris Black.”