Why is Charles Sobhraj called the serpent?

Charles Sobhraj is a French serial killer, fraudster, and thief who preyed on Western tourists travelling through South Asia on the hippie trail in the 1970s.

He was known as “the Serpent”, due to “his snake-like ability to avoid detection by authorities”.

Sobhraj is suspected of murdering at least 20 tourists in South and Southeast Asia, including 14 in Thailand.

From 1976 to 1997, he was convicted and imprisoned in India. He retired after his release and promoted his notoriety in Paris.

Sobhraj returned to Nepal in 2003 and set up a shawl export company under a false identity. He is quickly recognised and arrested in Kathmandu for the 1975 murders of two tourists, a Canadian backpacker Laurent Armand Carriere and American Connie Joe Bronzich. He received a life sentence in August 2004.

After serving 19 of the 20-year sentence, the Supreme Court of Nepal ordered his release from prison on December 21, 2022, citing his advanced age. He was released and deported to France on December 23 2022.