| UPDATED: 21:22, Mon, Feb 15, 2021
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The Serpent on BBC iPlayer tells the harrowing true story of French serial killer Charles Sobhraj (played by Tahar Rahim). Sobhraj was known as The Serpent, The Bikini Killer and the Splitting Killer and is believed to have killed approximately 10 people in the 1970s across Asia. Is The Serpent still alive today? Express.co.uk has everything you need to know.
8 Jan 2021, 13:32
The Serpent on BBC One is a brand new, eight-part drama currently airing on Sundays at 9pm.
It stars French actor Tahir Rahim as Charles Sobhraj – a serial killer who terrorised backpackers in south-east Asia in the 70s.
It also stars Jenna Coleman as his accomplice Marie-Andrée Leclerc.
It’s been over 40 years since the murderer wreaked havoc. So where is he now?
Charles Sobhraj (Tahir Rahim) in The Serpent (Credit: BBC)
The Serpent on BBC One
The new, 70s-set drama tells the story of serial killer Charles and the hunt for him across the region.
He was a master of disguise and deception, and often escaped the clutches of the police.
In the spring of 1975, Sobhraj met Canadian medical secretary Marie-Andrée Leclerc (Jenna Coleman).
Leclerc soon became his main accomplice in many of his scams but had denied being aware of any killings.
In July 1976 in New Delhi, Sobhraj and Leclerc alongside Barbara Smith and Mary Ellen Eather tricked a group of French students into accepting them as tour guides.
Sobhraj then drugged the group, which took effect faster than anticipated and when some of the students realised what was happening to their peers, they overpowered Sobhraj and called the police.
Two years later, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison in India alongside Leclerc.