This Is How Many Victims John Christie May Have Had

In 1953, British tenants renovating their kitchen discovered a horrific scene: three dead bodies in a hidden cupboard, one under the floorboards, and two more bodies buried in the garden, according to Biography. John Christie — who would go on to be known as one of England's most notorious serial killers — had previously lived in the flat at 10 Rillington Place in London.

There were already two known murders to have been committed in the building back in 1949: Christie's downstairs neighbor and her baby daughter. Christie had, in fact, been responsible for those killings, but in a bungled trial, the husband of the murdered woman, who was also the baby's father, was found guilty of the crimes. For his part, Christie remained a free man, able to kill again. After finding those bodies concealed in the building during the construction work, and the subsequent police investigation, Christie became a person of interest.

John Christie was a very troubled individual. He was a veteran of World War I where he was gassed and is said to have only spoken in a whisper throughout the remainder of his life, according to TimeOut. He frequently visited prostitutes from a very young age, some of whom became his victims, and he had many dysfunctional sexual proclivities. Christie's first murder was in 1943 when he strangled his then-girlfriend. Later one of his victims would be his wife — hers was the body hidden under the floorboards, Biography reported.

Following the discovery of six bodies at 10 Rillington Place, Christie was apprehended and put on trial. He admitted he was responsible for those killings, but gave reasons for the crimes ranging from mercy killings to self-defense. Christie plead not guilty by reason of insanity, but the prosecution argued that because he hid his victims' bodies he clearly knew what he had done was wrong. Christie was convicted of all six murders and was hanged in July 1953, about two weeks after his conviction.