The media first nicknamed Charles Sobhraj the " Bikini Killer" because of the flowered bikini Knowlton was wearing when she was found. As The Serpent portrays, Teresa Knowlton is Sobhraj’s first confirmed murder victim, whom he allegedly killed with his right-hand man, Ajay Chowdhury. That’s when Sobhraj met Marie-Andree Leclerc in Thailand and went from being a thief and gambler to a cold-blooded killer - at least as far as anyone knows for sure. Becoming The Bikini Killer & Confirmed Murdersīy the time he became the jewel thief and gem smuggler, Avian Gautier, Sobhraj had been in and out of prison in several countries for over a decade.
Whether or not this ties back to the real story of the taxi driver is unclear. After a man accidentally suffocates in the trunk of his car, Sobhraj says he felt no remorse or guilt about killing the man - this was the turning point according to the fictionalized retelling of the true story. The Serpent hints at a specific event in Sobhraj’s life that turned him into a killer.
But given that Sobhraj is an unreliable source, without evidence, there’s no way of knowing exactly how many people became victims of the serial killer over the years, or when he committed his first murder.
Related: The Serpent True Story: What Happened To Every Major PlayerĪccording to a recent CNN article, Sobhraj claims his first murder was in Pakistan, where he allegedly killed a taxi driver in 1972. They were eventually arrested in Athens, Greece where Sobhraj evaded arrest yet again by lighting a prison van on fire. From there, he left his family behind, fleeing to Instanbul where his half-brother Andre became his new partner in crime. With his family by his side, Sobhraj continued his criminal activity, spending time in and out of prisons in Afghanistan, Iran, and India. In 1973, while serving time in New Dehli for armed robbery, Sophraj escaped by pretending to be ill. But marriage and fatherhood did not stop the budding serial killer from continuing his life of crime. Using fake documents, the couple fled France for Asia in 1970, and their daughter was later born in Mumbai. In The Serpent episode 6, the Netflix show briefly introduces Juliette into the story. Criminal Life & Evading Arrestĭuring this same time, Sobhraj met his first wife. Living with d’Escogne in Paris, Sobhraj honed his skills as the conman and master manipulator depicted in the Netflix show.
From the very beginning, The Serpent's Sobhraj learned how to manipulate the guards and other people he met while serving time, including a wealthy young prison volunteer named Felix d’Escogne, who he lived with after his release according to Crime+Investigation. His first arrest came as early as 1963 at the age of 19. Sobhraj’s crime life began as a teenager outside of Paris, and his earlier crimes included petty theft and burglary. According to British GQ, while in France, Sobhraj attempted to escape back to Saigon by sea, and even made it as far as Djibouti at one point. His compulsion to flee reportedly first began during that time. Abandoned by his father, he spent his childhood with his mother and stepfather, a French Army officer who sent Sobhraj to boarding school in France. Charles Sobhraj's Early Life & Crimesīorn in Vietnam in 1944, Sobhraj’s parents separated when he was young. Here's what the show leaves out about Charles Sobhraj's crimes.
As is evidenced by the show's serpentine narrative, which flashes back and forth sporadically throughout the series in what must be one of the most complex timelines in television history. Published in 1979, the book covers what was known about Sobhraj's crimes up to that point and the murders that became the focus of The Serpent. But these crimes are just one aspect of the complicated true story of the con-man and serial killer. Neville and Clark co-wrote a book about the killer, The Life and Crimes of Charles Sobhraj. While conducting research, The Serpent creators relied on interviews with Sobhraj conducted by journalists Richard Neville and Julie Clark. Related: The Serpent True Story: Nadine Gires’ Real-Life Role Explained
This was also when Sobhraj met long-time girlfriend Marie-Andreé Leclerc, who was living with him during the time of this investigation and allegedly an accomplice to his crimes. The Serpent then flashes back and forth in time to briefly cover other crimes.ĭirector Tom Shankland centers The Serpent around the murders investigated by Herman Knippenberg, the dutch diplomat whose findings would eventually take down the killer.
In The Serpent, the full scope of Charles Sobhraj’s crimes is touched on but there's quite a bit about the serial killer that gets left out. In the Netflix series, the majority of the story focuses on Sobhraj's killing spree that began with his first confirmed murder in 1975 and ended with his arrest in 1976.