The Tribune reports that Peterson stood to lose money from the sale of the couple's home, a bar in Montgomery he owned and half of his police pension. Because of Savio's death, Peterson kept everything, including custody of their two children.
Last week, Peterson was charged with murder for Savio's February 2004 death.
Drew Peterson defends flippant remarks
Former suburban Chicago police officer Drew Peterson defended his apparently cavalier attitude about his arrest in the death of his third wife, saying that acting in a way people might consider more appropriate is "not me."
"There's no book written on how I'm supposed to act," Peterson told NBC's Matt Lauer during an interview aired on Friday's "Today" show.
"Would it be better if I hid my head down and tried to hide my face and hunched and had tears in my eyes? I mean, no, that's just not me," he said by phone from the jail in Will County, where he's been held since his May 7 arrest in the slaying of Kathleen Savio.
Since shortly after the 2007 disappearance of Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, Peterson has often made jokes to the media. He affected the same demeanor after he was named a suspect in Stacy Peterson's disappearance and after Savio's body was exhumed.
That continued after his arrest, when he joked with reporters, calling his jail-issue jump suit "spiffy" and the handcuffs "bling."
Peterson reiterated to Lauer what he has long said, that he had nothing to do with either the disappearance of Stacy Peterson or Savio's 2004 death.
Peterson, who has maintained he believes Stacy Peterson left him for another man, told Lauer he believes she is alive and most likely living outside Illinois.
He also said that while his two teenage sons know about his arrest, his younger children, ages 4 and 5, do not. He said one of his adults sons who is caring for all of them, has told the youngest children, "I'm just with the police right now, helping them."
Peterson is scheduled to appear in court Monday. His attorney is expected to ask the judge reduce his bond, which is now $20 million.
