MODESTO, Calif. – Scott Peterson (search) has admitted to family members and friends that he cheated on his wife, Laci Peterson (search), at least four times with different women, Fox News has learned.
One relative, who does not believe Peterson is guilty of murder, described him as a sex addict.
"He has a sexual problem and has a need to sleep with other women," the relative told Fox News.
Scott Peterson's family has contended that his wife was aware of the affairs, and that although she would get angry she'd eventually put them behind her. Peterson's mother has told relatives and friends that she knew her daughter-in-law was aware of at least one affair, and that she once saw the couple arguing over it.
Amber Frey (search), a 28-year-old single mother and massage therapist, came forward as Peterson's lover shortly after his arrest in April for the murders of Laci and their unborn child. She has maintained that she did not know that Peterson was married, and that she knew nothing about the murders.
Peterson has told his family that his relationship with Frey, who is expected to testify in his preliminary hearing, was "strictly a physical relationship."
Laci Peterson's family has said they don't believe she knew about her husband’s indiscretions, Frey included.
Fox News has also learned that Scott Peterson's parents have sold old cars and refinanced their house to help pay the $1 million cost of their son's defense by high-profile attorney Mark Geragos (search).
Testimony continued Tuesday in the preliminary hearing to determine if Peterson, a former fertilizer salesman, will stand trial on two counts of murder.
Peterson has read almost 10,000 pages of the discovery material in the case while he sits behind bars.
He also spends his days doing yoga and making items out of toothpaste and toilet paper in his cell, where he has placed four or five photos of Laci, including one of the young woman sitting in a toy car during her pregnancy, sources told Fox News.
A police officer said Tuesday that he saw a bucket and mops in plain sight in front of the Peterson home as officers began investigating his pregnant wife's disappearance.
The defense testimony is considered a counterpoint to a possible prosecution argument that Peterson mopped the kitchen after killing Laci Peterson on the night of Dec. 23.
Modesto officer Jon Evers, questioned by one of Peterson's lawyers, also said he never smelled bleach in the house. Other officers have reported detecting the scent of bleach in the kitchen.
Peterson, 31, told police he last saw his wife the morning before Christmas as he left to go fishing near Berkeley. He told them he returned to their Modesto home late that afternoon, shortly before family members reported Laci Peterson missing.
The bodies of 27-year-old Laci Peterson and her unborn son washed ashore along the San Francisco Bay in April, about three miles from where her husband said he was fishing.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Peterson.
On Friday, the couple's housekeeper, Margarita Nava, testified that she mopped the kitchen floor Dec. 23 with water and Pine-Sol. She said she put the mop outside to dry but put the bucket on top of the washing machine with rags that needed to be laundered.
Fox News' Rita Cosby and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox