The horrific acts of these people will strike fear in the hearts of anyone. Bizarre motives, greed for wealth, mental illness among others have fueled their purpose to commit heinous murders. A look at five such people...



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Mallika: Currently serving a life sentence after being convicted of 6 counts of murders, Mallika is considered to be the first female serial killer. She would pretend to be someone well-versed in rituals and befriend women in temples, and later call them to another temple far away in a secluded location. The victims would be requested to show up in their fineries. Mallika would then ask them to consume cyanide-laced holy water or prasad. She would then take off with their valuables. Pic/YouTube



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Raman Raghav: Also known as Sindhi Dalwai, Raman Raghav committed several murders in the outskirts of Mumbai in the mid-1960s. Most of his victims were usually pavement and hutment dwellers, who were bludgeoned to death with a blunt object of some sort. After his arrest, he was initially reluctant to divulge any information regarding the killings but later confessed to have committed 41 murders and even gave a detailed account of his modus operandi. He was awarded the death sentence but after being tested by a team of psychiatrists, who found him to be suffering from schizophrenia, Raghav's sentence was reduced to life imprisonment. He died at Sassoon Hospital in 1995. Pic/YouTube



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Auto Shankar: In late 1988, nine girls from the Thiruvanmiyur section of Chennai went missing in a period of approximately 6 months. Investigators thought that the girls were sold into prostitution by their respective families, however constant denial by the girls' kin made them probe these disappearances in another way. In December of the same year, a school girl named Subalakshmi complained that an auto rickshaw driver attempted to manhandle and abduct her in front of a local wine shop. The cops went undercover and started working in the wine shop. It's from there that they discovered a man named Shankar behind this crime. Shankar would kindap these girls, kill them, cremate them and drop the ashes in the Bay of Bengal. It was only after his arrest that then he was known to be as Auto Shankar. Pic/YouTube



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Thug Behram: Believed to be one of the world's most prolific serial killers, Thug Behram, is said to have committed nearly 931 murders. He would utilise a ceremonial cloth to strangle his victims to death and was active between 1790–1840 in Oudh, northern central India. Behram was the leader of the Thuggee cult, who were notorious for committing a series of murders and robberies. He was executed in 1840 by hanging. Pic/YouTube

Charles Sobhraj: The 'Bikini Killer' Charles Sobhraj, also known as the 'Serpent', due to his cunning and skill at deception, preyed on Western tourists throughout Southeast Asia. A French serial killer of Vietnamese and Indian origin, Sobhraj allegedly committed at least a dozen murders in the 1970s. He was convicted and jailed in India from 1976-97. After his release, he retired as a celebrity in Paris. He returned to Nepal and was arrested and tried there. Sobhraj received a sentence of life imprisonment. 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.