![]() ![]() He was given a life sentence.Īs in the Netflix series, it was Knippenberg's documentation that would help convict Sobhraj. The murders-American backpacker Connie Jo Boronzich and Canadian tourist Laurent Carrière-had occurred in 1975. In 2003, Sobhraj was arrested in Kathmandu for murder and traveling with a false passport. PRAKASH MATHEMA // Getty Images Where is Charles Sobhraj now? He immediately moved to Paris, embracing his public infamy. She died there in 1984.īy the time Sobhraj left Indian prison in 1997, the time frame needed for him to be tried in Thailand had lapsed. She had been diagnosed with cancer and was allowed her to return to Canada. Anyone with eyes and ears could see what was going on in this apartment.” However, the same Indian court that sentenced Sobhraj overturned Leclerc’s conviction. (It is believed that she did help Sobhraj drug at least one of his victims.) One victim later claimed that Leclerc “had to know about it. Leclerc had denied any knowledge of Sobhraj’s murders. ![]() Some speculate the escape was designed to add to his prison sentence and, therefore, avoid extradition to Thailand where he could be executed for his crimes. He escaped several years later by drugging prison guards, but was later arrested. The Indian government found Sobhraj guilty of only one murder, and he was given a seven-year prison sentence. In New Delhi, they were set upon by a French tour group after the couple had tried to drug them. The couple, however, later escaped.Ĭlick here to access Men’s Health MVP, including exclusive fitness and nutrition content. Knippenberg’s investigation led to Sobhraj and Leclerc’s arrest by Thai police. They could have easily belonged to others.” Inside his Bangkok apartment, we found a stack of passports and driver's permits. Personally, I think he might have killed many more. He had got away with so much for so long that he believed he was invincible. “It was all so easy for ,” Knippenberg would say later. During this time, Dutch diplomat Herman Knippenberg began independently investigating the death of two Dutch citizens, despite pressure from his superiors to stop. One French woman, however, did go to the British Embassy with the story. Sobhraj would later say, “As long as I can talk to people, I can manipulate them.” In 1975, Sobhraj was operating as a gem dealer in Bangkok. Sobhraj was eventually arrested in India in 1971, but he escaped jail by faking an appendicitis. The drugs would cause dysentery and incapacitate them. By this time, in the early '70s, he had begun drugging, robbing, and reportedly killing travelers. He later met Marie‐Andrée Leclerc who became his mistress and partner. Here’s the true story behind The Serpent. Knippenberg has even said in a recent interview that, at times, the series felt "dangerously close" to the real thing. While The Serpent fictionalizes some aspects of the history-mainly the dialogue, which, the series points out, is entirely made up-the underlying tale and its players are all very real. The BBC/Netflix series likely takes inspiration from the many accounts of Sobhraj’s killings, including Thomas Thompson’s Serpentine, which chronicles not just Sobhraj, partner Marie‐Andrée Leclerc, and apparent henchman Ajay Chowdhury's crimes, but also the harrowing investigation by Dutch diplomat Herman Knippenberg, who is, by all accounts, the hero of the story. ![]() The victims were all Western travelers visiting Thailand and the Indian subcontinent. Between 19, Sobhraj is believed to be responsible for between 12 and 24 killings. His story is one of deception and mass murder. ![]() After his release from jail in India in 1997, Sobhraj reportedly sold the rights to his exploits to a French producer for $15 million. The celebrity of Sobhraj has persisted for some time. In Netflix’s BBC pick-up, The Serpent, Tahar Rahim brings to cinematic life once again the story of Charles Sobhraj (alias for much of the series: “Alain Gautier”), the so-called “Bikini Killer,” who preyed on tourists traveling through southeast Asia’s “Hippie Trail” during the 1970s. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |