CrimeAtlas

Most Notorious Serial Killers of All Time

Serial killers are among the most studied and feared criminals in history — offenders who killed repeatedly, often over years, before they were caught or identified. This list gathers the most notorious serial killers documented on CrimeAtlas, ranked by their known or confirmed victim counts.

Victim totals are drawn from the public record and are sometimes disputed or represent a confirmed minimum. Each entry links to the full case file with the documented facts, locations, and sources.

  1. 1 Harold Shipman - Doctor Death Hyde, Greater Manchester, United Kingdom · 1998 Harold Shipman was a respected family doctor who murdered an estimated 250 patients, mostly elderly women, making him possibly the most prolific serial killer in modern history.
  2. 2 Luis Garavito - La Bestia (The Beast) Pereira, Risaralda, Colombia · 1999 Luis Garavito is one of the world's most prolific serial killers, convicted of killing 138 children.
  3. 3 Pedro Lopez - Monster of the Andes Quito, Ecuador · 1980 Pedro Lopez confessed to killing over 300 girls in Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador.
  4. 4 Javed Iqbal: The Killer of 100 Children Lahore, Pakistan · 1999 Lahore businessman Javed Iqbal confessed to raping and murdering 100 boys, dissolving their bodies in acid.
  5. 5 Pedro Rodrigues Filho - "Pedrinho Matador" Sao Paulo, Brazil · 2003 Brazilian serial killer "Pedrinho Matador" who claimed over 100 victims, mostly criminals and fellow inmates, and spent decades imprisoned before his 2003-era notoriety and eventua…
  6. 6 Samuel Little Serial Murders Los Angeles, USA · 2012 Samuel Little, later confirmed as the most prolific serial killer in U.S.
  7. 7 The Killer Nurse of Lower Saxony: Niels Högel Delmenhorst, Germany · 2005 German nurse Niels Högel murdered patients by inducing cardiac arrest so he could attempt to revive them; he was ultimately convicted of 85 killings.
  8. 8 Clifford Orji - Nigeria's First Known Cannibal Lagos, Nigeria · 1999 Clifford Orji murdered victims in Lagos, cooked their flesh for consumption, and sold body parts to wealthy clients.
  9. 9 The Angarsk Maniac (Werewolf) Murders Angarsk, Russia · 2000 Former Angarsk police officer Mikhail Popkov murdered dozens of women over nearly two decades, becoming one of the most prolific serial killers in modern Russian history.
  10. 10 Yang Xinhai - China's Most Prolific Serial Killer Henan Province, China · 1999 Yang Xinhai broke into homes at night, bludgeoning entire families with hammers, axes, and shovels.
  11. 11 Andrei Chikatilo - The Butcher of Rostov Rostov-on-Don, Russia · 1978 Andrei Chikatilo was one of the most brutal serial killers in history, murdering 52 women and children.
  12. 12 The Terminator Killings: Anatoly Onoprienko Zhytomyr, Ukraine · 2000 Ukrainian serial killer Anatoly Onoprienko, the 'Terminator,' murdered entire families across Ukraine; he was convicted in 1999 and his death sentence was commuted as Ukraine aboli…
  13. 13 Gary Ridgway - The Green River Killer King County, Washington, USA · 1982 Gary Ridgway is one of the most prolific serial killers in American history.
  14. 14 The Bitsa Park Maniac: Alexander Pichushkin Moscow, Russia · 2006 Alexander Pichushkin, the "Bitsa Park Maniac," murdered dozens of victims in Moscow's Bitsa Park, mostly luring elderly men with vodka before killing them.
  15. 15 Ahmad Suradji - The Sorcerer Killer Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia · 1986 Posing as a shaman, Ahmad Suradji convinced women to be buried up to their waists in a ritual, then strangled them and drank their saliva for magical powers.

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