Physicians since time immemorial have tried to follow the precepts of the Hippocratic Oath. The first precept of the Hippocratic Oath demands that physicians work for the benefit of their patients and “do no harm or injustice to them.” That is why it is shocking that of all occupations and professions physicians have been among the greatest serial murderers in history. (See sidebar.)
Source: Wikipedia
The existence of a split personality or the duality of human nature was illustrated in the well-known 1886 novella “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson. Stevenson had long been intrigued by the idea of how human personalities can reflect the interplay of both good and evil.
An extreme example of a physician serial murderer was Marcel Petiot born in a small town in France on January 17 1897. As a teenager he robbed a post box and was charged with damage to public property and theft. He was thought to have a mental illness. He was expelled from school many times and engaged in other antisocial behaviors.
Petiot volunteered for the French Army in World War 1. He was wounded and gassed and exhibited symptoms of a mental breakdown. He was sent to various rest homes where he was arrested and accused of stealing a number of items as well as morphine. He was returned to the front in 1918. After allegedly injuring his own foot with a grenade he was ultimately discharged with a disability pension.
Petiot Gets Medical Degree
After the war Petiot entered an accelerated education program intended for war veterans. He completed medical school in eight months. He served an internship in a mental hospital. He received his medical degree in 192l. He then moved to Villeneuve-sur-Yonne where he received payment from both patients and from government medical assistance funds. At this point, he developed a reputation for questionable medical practices which included supplying narcotics, performing illegal abortions and petty theft.
Petiot’s first murder victim might have been an elderly patient’s daughter with whom he had an affair in 1926. She disappeared suddenly. Police investigated but eventually dismissed her case as a runaway. That same year Petiot ran for mayor. He won and while in office embezzled town funds. The following year he married the 23-year-old daughter of a wealthy land owner and butcher. They had a son. Because of many complaints of his thefts and shady financial dealings, he was eventually suspended as mayor in 1931 and resigned. Petiot still had many supporters and the village council also resigned in sympathy with him. He was a glib talker with an engaging personality. In 1932 he was accused of stealing electricity. By that time, he had already moved to Paris. In Paris Petiot attracted patients by using fake credentials and built an impressive reputation for his private practice. Here also were rumors of illegal abortions and excessive prescriptions of addictive medications. In 1936, he was given the authority to write death certificates. He persisted in tax evasion.
World War 2 Activities and Mass Murder
After the defeat of France in 1940 during World War 2 Petiot wrote false disability statements for French citizens who were drafted for forced labor in Germany. He was convicted for overprescribing narcotics. Two addicts who would have testified against him disappeared. He was fined 2400 francs.
Petiot’s most lucrative activity during the German occupation was providing false escape routes out of France. He pretended to have a means of getting people wanted by the Germans or Vichy government to safety outside France for a price of 25,000 Francs. He had three accomplices who directed victims to him. The victims included Jews, Resistance fighters and others. Once victims were under his control, he told them that they required an inoculation for entry into the receiving country. He then injected them with cyanide. He took all their valuables and disposed of their bodies.
At first Petiot dumped the bodies in the Seine River but he later destroyed the bodies by submerging them in quicklime and or incinerating them. In March of 1944, neighbors complained about a foul stench in the area and large amounts of smoke billowing from the chimney of Petiot’s house. Fearing a chimney fire, police summoned firemen who found a roaring fire in a coal stove in the basement. In the fire and in the basement were human remains. In addition, human remains were found in a quicklime pit in the backyard and in a canvas bag. Scattered throughout the property were suitcases, clothing and assorted property of his victims.
1946: The Seine Assize Court, Paris, during the trial of French mass murderer Dr. Marcel Petiot (between policemen, left). Petiot was convicted of 24 murders and guillotined in Paris in 1946.
Source: Keystone/Getty images
Although the case was widely known to the police and the media, Petiot was not prosecuted. After the liberation of Paris Petiot adopted various aliases. He became a captain in charge of counterespionage and prisoner interrogations. Finally, a newspaper published allegations about Petiot and his crimes. Under his new assumed name of Valeri, he was drafted to join the hunt to find himself. Petiot was recognized at a Paris Metro station. Among his possessions were a pistol, 31,700 francs and 50 sets of identity documents.
Not Getting Away with Murder
In 1946 ‘Doctor’ Petiot went on trial. Prosecutors charged him with at least 27 murders for profit. Twelve civil lawyers were hired by relatives of Petiot’s victims. Petiot taunted the prosecuting lawyers and claimed that various victims had been collaborators with the Nazis or double agents. He admitted to killing 19 of the 27 victims in his house and claimed they were Germans and collaborators. They were part of a total of 63 “enemies killed.” The judges and juries were unimpressed. Petiot was found guilty and in May of 1946 Petiot was beheaded by guillotine.