Serial killer Charles Sobraj (The serpent) released in Nepal
In the news this week is the French Charles Sobraj, accused of killing more than 20 Western backpackers, including two Dutch people, in the 70s. He was released early from prison in Nepal after 19 years, where he was serving a life sentence for the murder. on an American and Canadian backpacker, in 1975. Many news media, including the Bangkok Post, Algemeen Dagblad and some English newspapers bring the story back to life.
Sobhraj confessed to killing 24 people but has been linked to 1976 murders in Thailand, Nepal, India, Afghanistan, Turkey, Iran and Hong Kong. Thai police issued a warrant for his arrest in XNUMX for the murder of six women. Their bodies were found on beaches in Pattaya, each time dressed in a bikini, earning him the nickname 'bikini killer'.
The American journalist Thomas Thompson wrote the bestseller Serpentine about the serial killer. The 'snake-like' way in which Charles Sobraj switched identities and managed to deceive the police and the judiciary, also explains the title of the BBC and Netflix-based hit series: “The serpent”.
That series The Serpent also received a lot of attention on Thailand blog at the time, starting with what the then Dutch ambassador in Bangkok, Kees Rade, wrote in his monthly blog in July 2019:
“I also had two special visits in recent weeks, both related to a controversial episode in the history of Southeast Asia. First of all, we received a large delegation from representatives of the BBC and Netflix at the beginning of July. They wanted to visit our compound to get an idea of the circumstances under which a young Dutch diplomat had worked at the embassy in 1975. This diplomat, Herman Knippenberg, had played an important role in the arrest of Charles Sobraj, one of the most notorious mass murderers in modern history. Sobraj is suspected of murdering at least 12, and possibly as many as 24, young Western tourists traveling through Southeast Asia. He has been imprisoned in several countries, has also escaped a few times, and is currently imprisoned in Nepal.
The life story of this Sobraj is so intriguing that the BBC and Netflix have decided to make a documentary series about it. They have been collecting material and interviewing key actors since 2014. They are not considering filming in our compound at the moment, but thought it was useful to get a taste of the atmosphere.
From them I learned that Herman Knippenberg himself, who now lives in New Zealand, was also in Bangkok at that time. Of course I immediately invited him, and on July 23 we spoke extensively about this special period. It was very interesting to learn first hand how his intense detective work and tenacity made it possible to connect Sobraj to a number of murders, not always with the encouragement of his superiors and little support from the Thai police either. cooperation, to put it mildly. I am very curious about the documentary itself!”
When the series aired in 2021, these two extensive stories were on Thailandblog:
Pretty interesting read and looking forward to a repeat of the series!
it is incomprehensible that such a man should be released at all
If you want to know what he looks like now.
https://www.hln.be/buitenland/vrijgelaten-franse-seriemoordenaar-the-serpent-ik-ben-onschuldig~a5e464