CHARLES Sobhraj was a prolific serial killer who murdered young people during the 1970s.
But why is he called 'The Serpent' and the 'Bikini Killer'? Here is everything you need to know.
Why was Charles Sobhraj called 'The Serpent' and the 'Bikini Killer'?
Charles Sobhraj is a French serial killer who earned the nickname the 'Bikini Killer'.
He was called this because many of his victims were found dead in their bikinis.
The attire of the murdered tourists led to the killings being sometimes referred to as the Bikini Murders.
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He was also branded 'The Serpent', a nickname used as the title for a BBC One drama, due to his ability to 'slither' away from the police.
How many people did Charles Sobhraj kill?
The exact number of murders committed by Charles is unknown, but it's thought to be at most 24.
Charles killed hippies and tourists in Nepal, India and Thailand, and often took their money and passports.
He was noted as having a strong dislike of hippie culture.
He coerced people into helping him with his crimes, most notably Marie-Andree Leclerc, who denied knowledge of his murders despite many doubting the possibility of this.
Charles once said on his gift for coercing women: “If you use it to make people do wrong it’s an abuse.
"However, if you use that power to make people do right, it’s OK. Who’s to say what’s right and wrong?”
Where is Charles Sobhraj now?
After being released from prison in India in 1997 (though he escaped more than once during his sentence), he was allowed to return to France.
It's believed that he made escapes in order to get more prison time.
He was wanted in Thailand for five murders which would have likely led to him receiving the death penalty, but by remaining in prison he passed the 20-year time frame for which this could have taken place.
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Notoriously once back in France, he began charging obscene amounts for interviews and pictures which allegedly allowed him to amass wealth.
Who’s to say what’s right and wrong?”
Charles Sobhraj
He's been the subject of multiple films and books, as well as the new Channel 4 documentary, The Real Serpent, which puts his crimes under the spotlight once more with unprecedented access to the man himself.
In 2003 he was arrested again after reportedly using a false passport and for murdering a Canadian man and an American woman 28 years previous.
Police said they had a "suitcase full" of evidence to prove the charges.
In 2004 he was given life imprisonment.
But the French killer, 79, is now a free man after being released in December 2022 from a prison in Nepal, where he served 19 years.
He has even been seen sight-seeing in London in a crude disguise.
When is The Real Serpent on TV?
The Real Serpent: Investigating a Serial Killer airs on Channel 4 from March 19, 2024.
The three-parter will air each day until March 21.
All episodes will be available to watch from 9pm on the channel.
Monster Films said of their new project: “We first made contact with Charles Sobhraj in 2016 when he was in prison in Nepal.
"8 years in the making, this series provides an unparalleled insight into the life and crimes of the man the world knows as The Serpent.”
