These serial killers used their charisma to deceive victims and law enforcement alike. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 serial killers who managed to somehow win people over.
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00:00At one point, chillingly, he says to the detectives, you know, clowns can get away with murder.
00:06Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at serial killers who managed to somehow win
00:11people over.
00:12If you're going to do something, do it well, and leave something with you.
00:17Leave a sign to let the world know that you were there.
00:21Richard Ramirez, aka The Night Stalker.
00:24Known by a few chilling titles, but most prominently as The Night Stalker, Ramirez terrorized Los
00:29Angeles and San Francisco in the mid-1980s.
00:32The Night Stalker killed at least 13 times, 13 people who were awakened in the night to
00:36face death.
00:37At least 15 others survived his brutal attacks.
00:41Despite his gruesome crimes, he possessed a strange allure.
00:44With his dark, piercing eyes and rockstar-like demeanor, Ramirez captivated the public and
00:49garnered a fan base of rabid female admirers.
00:52He had no empathy, no feelings, nothing.
00:57He never showed any remorse for what he had done.
01:00He wanted to be known as the greatest serial killer that ever, you know, ever lived.
01:05During his trial, he would flash a sardonic smile and show off the pentagram he had drawn
01:09on his palm, an emblem of his allegiance to Satan.
01:12His bad-boy appeal was enough to earn sympathy from many of his fans, some of whom even began
01:18to question his guilt.
01:19Ramirez became a celebrity in his own right, and he had groupies, he had marriage proposals,
01:24he had women that wanted to come and visit him at the prison.
01:27Dennis Nielsen, a.k.a. the Kindly Killer.
01:30Nielsen's dark deeds have led to his being likened to Jeffrey Dahmer, which is hardly
01:34a flattering comparison.
01:35One of the biggest murder investigations ever is now underway in London after the discovery
01:40of the remains of three men's bodies.
01:43It was horrific.
01:44It made the hair in the back of my neck stand up.
01:47Hailing from Scotland, Nielsen was convicted of murdering and dismembering 12 males in
01:51North London in the late 70s and early 80s.
01:54What made him especially unsettling was his ability to appear like a perfectly normal
01:58individual, one you probably wouldn't have picked out of a crowd.
02:01I sat in the back with Nielsen.
02:04I said, I'll be talking about one body or two.
02:11And he just turned around and looked at me and he said, 15 or 16.
02:16This gentle everyman persona may have made him seem less threatening to those he came
02:20across.
02:21Many people have described Nielsen as an incredibly lonely individual who killed for quote unquote
02:25company, which almost makes us feel for him.
02:28He knew perfectly well he would be found guilty and he knew he deserved it.
02:32He knew he should be.
02:33Almost.
02:34Andrew Cunanan.
02:35This private school alumnus was responsible for the deaths of five people, including iconic
02:40fashion designer Gianni Versace.
02:42In 1997, Andrew Cunanan sent authorities on a frantic cross-country manhunt as he drove
02:48state to state, killing four people along the way, ultimately arriving at Gianni Versace's
02:54doorstep.
02:55Cunanan possessed impressive eloquence, intelligence, and ability to tell captivating stories, i.e.
03:01lies, allowing him to blend seamlessly into high society circles.
03:05His posh peers knew him as fashionable, fluent in multiple languages, quick-witted, and devilishly
03:10handsome.
03:11His self-worth was tied to the finer things in life, what they could do for him.
03:18Being accepted in high society and by wealthy people was what he expected.
03:24If he didn't get them, he was lost.
03:27But as we know, beneath this swanky exterior was a deeply disturbed and dangerous man.
03:32Cunanan's social adeptness and good looks made him a chameleon and allowed him to avoid
03:38suspicion as he navigated his killing spree.
03:40He just showed up, you know, quite a number of times, almost every other day.
03:44And he would just say hello, you know, goodbye.
03:47Very soft-spoken, very, very timid type of person.
03:49Charles Sobhraj.
03:51Born in Saigon in 1944, Sobhraj is a skilled manipulator and con artist.
03:56What you would do is pick a person or a couple, drug them.
04:01Yes, that's correct.
04:03Take their passport and any valuables they might have and move on.
04:11He's been called a lot of sinister nicknames, such as the Bikini Killer and the Serpent,
04:15the latter being a testament to his persuasive communication skills and almost hypnotic allure.
04:21These traits proved effective in his dozens of killings, which involved meticulous plans
04:25and schemes to obtain his victims' trust.
04:27Sobhraj was dubbed the Bikini Killer and later the Serpent, a name stemming from his reputation
04:33of disguising himself.
04:35He spent 20 years in prison in India, before 20 more in Nepal.
04:39Those who fell prey to the Serpent were typically tourists on the Hippie Trail in South Asia.
04:44Sobhraj would offer travel advice, shelter and other means of assistance to lure in those
04:48he ended up murdering.
04:49This same talent for deception helped him steer clear of police for many years.
04:54Charles Sobhraj evaded police for years until he was locked up for life in 2004, charged
05:00with the murders of two tourists in Kathmandu.
05:03Leonardo Cianciulli.
05:05Here's one you may not have heard of.
05:07This Italian murderer is also known as the Soap Maker of Correggio due to her habit of
05:12making cleaning products out of her victims' boiled bodies.
05:15She also baked them into tea cakes.
05:17Revolting tastes aside, Cianciulli was revered among people in her village, particularly
05:22other females, who came to her for help finding jobs or husbands.
05:26Under the guise of playing matchmaker, Cianciulli killed the women, harvested their bodies and
05:31stole their money and assets.
05:33Jeffrey Dahmer.
05:34The infamous Jeffrey Dahmer has a plethora of chilling sobriquets, including the Milwaukee
05:39Monster and Cannibal.
05:48But to those he encountered in his regular life, Dahmer didn't seem capable of harming
05:53anyone.
05:54While he was said to be outgoing as a kid, quite a few people have described the adult
05:58Dahmer as quiet, unassuming and soft-spoken.
06:05In this way, he's unique from some of the more gregarious types on this list.
06:11Rather than luring in victims with charm, it's suggested he lulled them in to a false
06:15sense of security.
06:17It's hard to decide whether or not that's even scarier.
06:26H.H. Holmes.
06:28Likely the first documented American serial killer, H.H. Holmes swindled, lied and killed
06:33with unparalleled ease.
06:35In essence, this is a person who spends a lot of time fantasizing about death and killing.
06:40But overall, there's more to this.
06:42The killing is actually part of the fulfillment of his fantasy process.
06:46Holmes sported a polished appearance and suave, confident demeanor.
06:50It was this gentlemanly pretense that enabled him to commit various acts of fraud and bigamy
06:54in his early criminal career.
06:56And that was just the beginning.
06:58Holmes went on to construct what he called a murder castle.
07:00The frightening thing about Holmes is that he was not mad, that he used his intelligence
07:06and his ability to plan in order to carry out the killings.
07:11Reports on what was in the castle have varied wildly, so no one is 100% certain what Holmes
07:16kept in his labyrinth of death.
07:18However, we do know those brought there were subjected to a horrific fate.
07:22But what Holmes has done is to create really a killing machine, a factory for getting these
07:29bodies, for harvesting these individuals who innocently have come into contact with him.
07:36John Wayne Gacy.
07:37If you already thought clowns were creepy, wait until you hear about this one.
07:42John Wayne Gacy was a popular socialite who spent his weekends dressed as a clown, entertaining
07:48children.
07:49Portly psychopath John Wayne Gacy was notorious not only for the brutality of his crimes,
07:54but for being a master at hiding his true intentions.
07:57As a successful businessman and father of two, he was very popular in his community.
08:01Gacy shows his own importance, and he's the cool guy now, so he's the friend of these
08:08other males.
08:10And again, this gives him this sense of importance and prominence with the other members of the Jaycees.
08:16A role in local politics and charitable events further cemented his facade as a likable figure.
08:22Frequently attempting to befriend and provide guidance to younger males, Gacy successfully
08:26weaseled his way through life.
08:28And even more disturbing was his clown alter ego.
08:31He'd perform dark magic tricks that often ended in the victim's demise.
08:35There's just something horrifically sinister and monstrous about this figure of Pogo.
08:43Just an element that raises Gacy to the level of a kind of mythic American monster.
08:49Charles Manson.
08:50Manson stands out among others on this list in that he didn't physically commit any murders,
08:54at least that we know of.
09:09Rather, he was the leader of a cult called the Manson Family, to whom he preached a twisted
09:14philosophy.
09:15Likely amplified by his constant use of psychedelics, Manson's doctrine was pretty whacked out,
09:21combining elements of the counterculture movement and apocalyptic prophecy.
09:24To outsiders and filmmakers, Manson's ranch was what the 60s was all about.
09:30Free love and plenty of LSD.
09:32But it would soon turn much dark.
09:35Nonetheless, he managed to convince his followers to perform heinous acts on his behalf, including
09:40the slaying of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and friends.
09:44Manson's influence over his family members resulted in one of the most tragic incidents
09:48in the history of Hollywood.
09:49Over two nights in August 1969, actress Sharon Tate and six others had been slain in one
09:56of the century's most infamous crimes.
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10:15Ted Bundy
10:16Ted Bundy is often regarded as the epitome of a charismatic serial killer.
10:20Ted Bundy was one of the most prolific and violent serial killers in American history.
10:26The psychopath with movie star good looks would prove to the world that not even jail
10:31could contain his murderous obsession.
10:34His good looks and intelligence masked his horrific nature, enabling him to attract and
10:39murder at least 30 women across the United States in the 1970s.
10:43Bundy's ability to feign injury or impersonate authority figures allowed him to gain the
10:47trust of his victims effortlessly.
10:49That's the thing that Ted Bundy's victims were good people, upstanding college girls
10:54who were willing to be helpful.
10:56Even during his trial, he captivated the nation, representing himself in court and winning
11:01over some with his articulate speech and confident demeanor.
11:04Bundy's unique blend of desirability and brutality has made him a household name.
11:09Everything we know about serial killers was turned on its head when we saw that he wasn't
11:15the creepy man in the raincoat, but he was the law student, the handsome guy in the polo
11:20shirt, the guy driving the little car.
11:24He can be a murderer, too.
11:26Which serial killer do you find strangely charming?
11:28Join the discussion in the comments.
11:30He wrote in his yearbook, in his high school yearbook,
11:33Après moi, la deluge.
11:35After me, the flood.
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