Kathmandu: Charles Sobraj (Pix), a notorious French serial killer who had been serving a life sentence in Nepal for the murders of two North American tourists since 2003, has been released, according to Nepali authorities.
Sobhraj, 78, was released from the Central Jail in Kathmandu on Friday. This comes two days after the country’s Supreme Court ordered his release a year before his prison term was completed.
“He will be handed over to the immigration authorities and will be under their surveillance until he is deported,” prison official Ishwari Prasad Pandey told the German news agency dpa.
The Supreme Court ruled on Sobhraj’s advanced age, good manners and poor health, said court spokesperson Bimal Paudel.
The Supreme Court said Sobhraj must leave Nepal within 15 days.
Immigration spokesperson Kamal Prasad Pandey said he will be deported as soon as Sobraj’s office receives all the necessary documents and air tickets. He did not specify when and to which country Sobhraj was deported. “After examining the paperwork, we will decide where to deport him,” he added.
Sobhraj is again banned from entering Nepal.
Nicknamed the Bikini Killer for targeting young women and The Serpent for his deceptive nature and track record of escaping from high-security prisons, Sobraj’s life includes the BBC drama The Serpent. It has inspired several books and movies.
Sobhraj is associated with several high-profile murders across Asia in the 1970s and 1980s. He spent nearly 20 years in Indian prisons before being arrested in Nepal in 2003. – Bernama
