To ask if you’ve met an infamous criminal?

[Anon778833]

Did they seem ‘normal’? Or did you get a strange feeling about them?

I knew a young man who stabbed his girlfriend to death in the back and then dismembered her body. He was old for his age, intelligent, charming but also awkward. He's in prison now.

I never had a 'strange feeling' about him and actually liked him.

Very close family friend who stayed with us for extended periods when I was a child ended up murdering at least two associates and burying them in their garden.

They were charming, intelligent and very manipulative and the murder details were horrific (and premeditated). What made the situation v unusual was that family friend was a woman and well educated too.

My sister has chatted briefly to Rose West (in prison, sister's job necessitates visits to inmates sometimes)
She didn't realise who she was until a few minutes later.
They just exchanged a couple of remarks about the weather outside.
Obviously sis knew she was an inmate, but she was "just a woman making conversation" not some crazy eyed ravening devil woman.

Work in a prison so yes.

When I was at college in the mid 80s an ex gangland member, who'd previously been inside for murder, came to give us a talk about being a Christian. We only went along out of curiosity.

There has been a few convicted of murders locally.

The two women killer's were both strange DC with a weird vibe prior to their crimes.

Both on the spectrum, both crimes from obsessions with women. 💔

I’ve known a few. One of them is so famous movies have been made about the shocking murder they committed and their rehabilitation. On the surface they seemed nice but every now and then you had the realization that all you could see was the surface, that they were very cautious to never reveal anything that was deep or meaningful. They presented such a nice facade it was hard to reconcile them with the viscous acts they committed.

Not me but the other night I met Denis Neilson's closest friend on the train. Very unexpected chat on the way home. (He has recently edited a book from the memoirs so I know he is who he said he is).

No but locally there was a girl murdered by this fella she was seeing. He raped her in her home, and cut up her body and spread it round our local area. They didn’t recover all the body only parts of it. He knew wildlife and put the pieces by badger sets as he knew they’d eat it.

I then took on her replacement at work as a client and had to go into the house where this happened. I always wondered if the new person there knew what had happened there. Have me the creeps. house was always freezing cold.

My dm went to school with Mary Bell...

Far too many

Doctor who raped patients, performed unknown abortions, drugged and induced labor on a woman and stole her baby.

Couple from school, murder suicide by him

Man in neighbourhood who robbed and murdered an elderly neighbor

Brother of a close friend who hid in a carpark and attacked several women and raped them.

I think all these men had common behaviours which is hard to describe. I would describe them as intense in a way with minimal social boundaries.

Yes I had to test the eyes of a murderer.
Came in with 3 prison guards.
He spat on my face
Obviously I had to ge tclose.was chilling and awful knowing those eyes wet eones that had seen dreadful things.

My grandmother met Ted Bundy. It was one of the times he escaped from prison. She worked at a hotel at the time. She said he was nice.

Yes, my parents were unknowingly friends with a very famous Russian mafia boss who (we later found out) faked his own death (everyone thought he had been assassinated). My dad got on very well with him but you could tell he wasn't a "simple" guy by his demeanour and some of his stories

My step grandmother was a Harold Shipman victim. He seemed a lovely family doctor

The son of one of the Richardson gang (SE London), same name as his father, passed briefly through our school; a nervous lad, as I recall. Parents' Evening was somewhat unproductive as Dad was rolling drunk on arrival, and simply laughed heartily at everything we said. Given his professional connections, I suppose we should be grateful that we didn't say anything to cause offence.
An interesting side effect of their residence was the favourable rates of house insurance in the smarter part of the area; petty criminals couldn't be absolutely sure which were their actual residences, but it was well known that the gang did not see fit to trouble the police with minor matters such as burglary, preferring to deal with such annoyances for themselves.

Yes. My Uncle. Was "most wanted" at one point. Kind, charming, funny. Adored by all. An absolute piece of shit in reality.

@Subeccoo

I was hammered in a bar in Philadelphia at Easter about 7 years ago. It was run by a guy that was an infamous gangster but unfortunately I can't remember much about his story. The were pictures all over the walls of him and celebrities and all sorts of stories but as I said, I was pissed and me and my now husband had a bit of a row and I stomped off home to my friends house as we had a really early greyhound to catch the next morning. What a crap story I must ask the other half to remind me about it because I'm sure I could tell it better than that!!

Not sure why but this has really made me laugh great story!

My uncle knew a man in England who went on a shooting spree. He didn't think he was capable of that, but he did say he didn't like him

An ex loyalist paramilitary from Northern Ireland who had reformed and was involved in peace and reconciliation work. He'd become a Christian in jail. Really nice guy, reserved and you could see that a bit of him was still haunted by his past.

@Cheeserton

What does "on holiday" with Rose West mean? Actually on holiday with her, or what?

Sorry, I meant they were in prison with her. The woman I know always refers to that time as “when I was away on holiday” (wink, wink)!

My great aunt worked at Pucklechurch remand centre where Fred West was taken, it’s now Ashfield prison.

Yep, went on a night out with Ian Watkins. A friend was dating one of their crew which is how it came about.

Yes, a number through work. Once you know, you know and might convict yourself you get a feeling, but almost all will have operated completely normally in society and have gone undetected, otherwise the police would have a much easier job.