'Bikini Killer' Charles Sobhraj to be freed from Nepal prison; a look at his life so far
Nepal’s top court has ordered release of serial killer Charles Sobhraj today, December 22. Who was Charles Sobhraj? Why is he considered one of the most notorious criminals ever? Here's a look
Notorious serial killer Charles Sobhraj, who spent close to two decades in Nepal prisons, is set to walk free in a matter of days.
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Born on April 6, 1944, Charles Sobhraj is a convicted killer who police suspect was responsible for a string of murders in the 1970 and 1980s. Nepal's Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered his release from prison, where he has served 19 years of his 20-year sentence, citing his age.
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Sobhraj preyed on Western tourists travelling on the jippie trail of South Asia during the 1970s. He was most active during 1972 and 1976. Sobhraj is linked to murder of at least 10 tourists in South and Southeast Asia.
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He received his first custodial sentence in 1963 for burglary in Paris. During 1973-75 he went on a crime spree in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, parts of Asia. Imprisoned many times.
Sobhraj had been lodged in a jail in Nepal since 2003 on the charges of murdering two tourists. After his arrest in 2003, Nepal police reopened investigation into the 1975 murders of 28-year-old American backpacker Connie Jo Bronzich and her Canadian friend Laurent Carriere.
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Sobhraj was a charismatic person who was fluent in several languages. He was handsome and charming, and he used these traits to get close to his victims.
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Sobhraj would befriend unsuspecting backpackers, help them make decisions about where to stay, shop, eat etc. Then he drugged and killed them.
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Charles Sobhraj was called the ‘Bikini Killer’ because many of his female victims were found dead in their bikinis.
He was called “the Serpent”, due to his snake-like ability to avoid detection by authorities and slipping away from their grasp. He escaped from three prisons in three different countries.
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Sobhraj planned his Tihar escape, and re-arrest because he wanted to remain in an Indian prison to avoid being extradited to Thailand.
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Sobhraj was born in Saigon to an Indian father and Vietnamese mother. His parents were never married and his father denied paternity.
