One of the most notorious serial killers of all time in India, Charles Sobhraj mother was a Vietnamese and his father was a Sindhi businessman. His life has been the subject of many books, t movies and he still enjoys the life of a celebrity, sitting in his cell in a Kathmandu jail.
Nicknamed "the Serpent" and "the Bikini Killer" for his skill at deception and evasion, he allegedly committed at least 12 murders. He was convicted and jailed in India from 1976 to 1997, but managed to live a life of leisure even in prison. After his release, he retired as a celebrity in Paris.
He returned to Nepal and was arrested and tried there. He was sentenced to life imprisonment on August 12, 2004; the Supreme Court of Nepal convicted him and ordered life imprisonment on 30 July 2010.
While Sobhraj is widely believed to be a psychopath, his motives for killing differed from those of most serial killers.
Sobhraj was not driven to murder by deep-seated, violent impulses, but as a means to sustain his adventurous lifestyle.
That, as well as his cunning and cultured personality, made him a celebrity long before his release from prison. Sobhraj enjoyed the attention, charging large amounts of money for interviews and film rights; he has been the subject of four books and three documentaries.
His search for attention and his overconfidence in his own intelligence are believed responsible for his return to a country where authorities were still eager to arrest him.
Currently his lawyers have been appealing to the French government to look into the matter and pressurize Nepal government to release Charles Sobhraj.
Even while in prison he is still gaining media attention and recently in 2008 a Bengali woman claimed to be in love with Charles Sobhraj and it is even believed that marriage took place in the prison between the two.
During 70s he killed about 12 tourists from Western origin in Southeast Asia.
