Grinning ‘Dr Satan’ on trial: Photos show French serial killer who killed 60 people – including Jews who he tricked into accepting a poison ‘vaccination’ – in court before he was beheaded by guillotine
- Marcel Petiot went on trial in 1946 after 23 bodies were found in his basement
- The doctor was respected in World War II France until his crimes were uncovered
- A series of chilling photos of ‘Dr Satan’ on trial are now up for auction
Chilling photos showing the notorious killer nicknamed Dr Satan, who killed at least 60 people, grinning during his trial are now up for auction.
Marcel Petiot was a respected doctor in France until his horrific murders were uncovered during World War II.
The ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ killer was convicted of multiple murders after the discovery of the remains of 23 people in the basement.
The notorious killer nicknamed Dr Satan who killed at least 60 people grinned at his gruesome crimes during his trial in Paris in 1946, in rare photos now up for auction
Marcel Petiot was a respected doctor in France until his horrific murders were uncovered during World War II
But he was suspected of the murder of many more during his lifetime and the true number remains unknown.
Petiot was beheaded in Paris in 1946, leaving behind a trail of sadistic crimes that began from his teens.
Now the incredibly rare photos, valued between £150 to £200 are up for auction on December 16 at Dominic Winter Auction house in Cirencester.
The images capture the defining moments of Petiot’s murder trial in Paris.
Petiot was beheaded in Paris in 1946, leaving behind a trail of sadistic crimes that began from his teens
Diagnosed as mentally ill Petiot can be seen grinning from the dock as lawyers attempt to unravel his long history of crime and deception.
He was convicted of 26 murders and sentenced to death by guillotine – although he claimed to have killed at least 60 Germans and collaborators between 1940 and 1945 while involved with the Resistance.
Petiot landed positions within government, the military and medical sphere – going on to launder money, abuse the vulnerable and kill.
Born in 1897 in Auxerre, Petiot was guilty of minor crimes as a youngster before before enlisting in the French army to serve during WW1.
Petiot landed positions within government, the military and medical sphere – going on to launder money, abuse the vulnerable and kill
After psychiatric ward treatment, Petiot re-joined the army only to shoot himself in the foot – eventually landing himself back in for mental treatment and eventually being discharged from duty on disability.
Petiot went on to earn a medical degree and open his own practice in 1921 – gaining a reputation as a corrupt doctor after repeatedly receiving payments for his services from both patients and state medical funds.
The dubious doctor was then linked to the disappearance of Louise Delaveau, the daughter of one of his patients that he had an affair relationship with. Police dismissed the accusations towards Petiot after locals said they saw him load a rather large trunk into the back of his car.
During the trial, lawyers peer into the basement where dozens of bodies were hidden by the notorious killer
Lawyers attempt to unravel his long history of crime and deception in photos of the infamous trial
Among Petiot’s most sickening crimes was his business venture during WW2 – called ‘Fly-Tox.’
Promising transportation for fleeing Jews to South America and safety from Nazi-occupied France – Petiot would inject those willing to pay for transportation with what he called disease preventing inoculation sanctioned by Argentinian officials.
In actual fact the disgraced doctor was injecting poison into desperate Jews, hoarding their possessions and cash and then burning the bodies in his basement furnace.
The incredibly rare photos, valued between £150 to £200 are up for auction on December 16 at Dominic Winter Auction house in Cirencester
Parisian Police eventually stumbled upon numerous bodies in the underground basement, after complaints of a hideous stench coming from his home near the Arc de Triomphe.
After going into hiding for several months and further evidence disproving Petiot’s status within the Resistance, he was again arrested in Paris and imprisoned in La Santé Prison.
Petiot’s trial began March 19, 1946, facing 135 criminal charges all together.