Investigator Madhukar Zende has recalled the moment he arrested Charles Sobhraj in 1986
A former police inspector has recalled the poignant moment in which he watched the notorious serial killer Charles Sobhraj in the eyes and said: ‘Hello Charles. How do you do?’
Sobhraj’s grim crimes are revisited in The Serpent, a BBC One / Netflix hit drama that bites its killing spree across an Asian hippie trial in the mid-1970s while raiding young spines.
Sobhraj is believed to have killed up to 24 passengers, mostly in Thailand, Nepal and India after first poisoning them and then suffocating the bodies to prevent they would recognize them.
The offender is played by French actor Tahar Rahim, 39, and his partner and supporter Marie-Andree Leclerc with Jenna Coleman, 34.
Nicknamed ‘The Serpent’ because he was always trying to avoid capture, Sobhraj was last captured in April 1986 in Goa, following a nationwide manhunt by police. in India led by Inspector Madhukar Zende.
Mr Zende was ordered to keep an eye on Sobhraj after he escaped from India’s main security prison, where he was serving a 12-year sentence for poisoning a group of French tourists in 1976 and stealing them.
‘The Serpent’ by Jenna Coleman (left) and Tahar Rahim (right) follows the horrific story of Sobhraj, who murdered Western tourists across Southeast Asia in the 1970s
Sobhraj was named ‘The Serpent’ pictured with Marie-Andree Leclerc in 1986, the year he was last found and arrested in Goa by Police Inspector Madhukar Zende
Sobhraj went on trial (above) in New Delhi, India, in 1977 and was convicted of drug trafficking and murder of 15 persons. He later escaped from prison before being arrested by Mr Zende
He was chosen to find work for one of the most wanted men of the time as he had also been arrested once before in 1971, came close twice more a few years later and he was considered one of the few police who had an understanding of how Sobhraj worked.
Mr Zende, 83, told MailOnline: ‘We spent days looking for it all over Goa but at night I would go to O’Coquerio’ s restaurant, an attractive place for a hippie.
‘I was sure that if I sat there long enough, it would eventually show up because Charles loved to be around hippies, drinkers and women.
‘I sat as a tourist and sat at a table, ordering food and drinks just pretending I was on holiday.’
Recalling the exact time when Sobhraj was arrested, Mr Zende said: ‘It was 10.30pm and I noticed that a car had pulled up and two men were out. What suspected me was that it was late at night, but they both wore sun hats.
‘They sat at a table and were drinking beer and I recognized one of them as Sobhraj even though he had a beard and he looked very different from the last time I saw him. It was his cold, piercing eyes that made me believe it was him.
French serial killer Sobhraj was charged with Nepalese police at a 2014 hearing in a case related to the 1975 murder of Canadian backpacker Laurent Ormond Carriere
Investigator Zande, left as he looked in 1986 when he captured Sobhraj for the second time and today (right) as he reflects on his time on the discovery of one of the world’s most famous serial killers. -world
‘I was so happy I was shaking, but I managed to make myself up and I walked up slowly, grabbed him from behind, turned him around and said:’ Hello Charles. How do you do?’
Mr Zende recalled that, after he was reminded that he had been arrested by the same policeman in 1971, he tied Sobhrja’s hands with a rope which he asked a waiter to get for him as there were no masts. his hand.
He said: ‘Sobhraj came quietly. We put him in the back of a jeep, and I ordered him to lie down and asked two constables to sit on him for the entire 11-hour trip back to Mumbai because I was so worried he would run away. ‘
Before escaping from Tihar prison and hiding in Goa, Sobhraj had a luxurious life behind bars, enjoying gourmet food, fine wine and walks from a series of women for sex.
He put so many prison authorities on him, that he was given an office and accommodation for himself that had a television, fridge and a sofa while guards spoke to him as ‘sir. ‘
Sobhraj fled with six other inmates after organizing a birthday dinner for prison staff and mourning the custard they had for dessert with sedatives.
Even the prion cat was knocked down after giving away some and before fleeing, he was taking pictures with unconscious guards.
Mr Zende said: ‘Charles was a brazen criminal who thought he had a right to kill people and get away with anything.
‘The current television drama about it has brought back many memories for me and it’s been a long time since I thought about Sobhraj. He’s not the biggest villain I’ve ever caught but he’s definitely the most cunning and famous. ‘
The former police officer states that one thing he has found difficult over the years is the arrest of Sobhraj women, whom he tried to interrogate.
He said: ‘I tried to speak to him when I arrested him twice and at his trial, but he did not want to answer any of my questions. Sobhraj thought of himself above just mortals and would not have to answer to anyone. ‘
He said: ‘Sobhraj was very good at treating women and winning them. They loved him, they couldn’t get enough from him. ‘
After Sobhraj’s arrest, Indian celebrities found Mr Zende, gave over 400 lectures on how to find his husband and earned the nickname ‘super cop’ until he retired in 1996.
The horror story of how Sobhraj played by Tahar Rahim (left) shocked the Asian backpacking community in the 1970s has been turned into a drama by Netflix and the BBC
A basin, known as the ‘Zende platter’ was named in his honor at the O’Coquerio, which also has a permanent display of how Sobhraj was captured there. Two years ago, Mr. Zende visited the restaurant for the first time since his arrest and a party was held in his honor.
After his capture in Goa, Sobhraj was sentenced to 10 years in prison in India and was finally released in 1997, when he was deported to France.
He returned to South Asia in 2003 and was arraigned in Nepal for life in prison in connection with the murder of an American backpacker in 1975.
Sobhraj, now 76 and serving his sentence in Kathmandu but has maintained his reputation even behind bars after marrying Nihita Biswas, 24, the daughter of his famous lawyer for her appearance on India equates to Big Brother.
Mr Zende is now spending his time between India and Singapore and believes that, despite the focus on Sobhraj again with BBC drama, he should not have been seen as anything more than an ordinary criminal.
He said: ‘Sobhraj has never regretted and despite his age, he is still as dangerous now as he was years ago.
‘I’m proud of the part I played in locking him up and arresting Sobhraj which made me very famous, but I was just doing my duty, that’s it. ‘