Pierre Chanal
Encyclopedia
Pierre Chanal was a French
soldier and suspected serial killer
. He was convicted of the rape
and kidnapping
of a young Hungarian
man (Falvay, Balázs) whom he picked up hitch-hiking in 1988. He received a 10-year sentence for the attack, and was released in 1995 on probation
. He was accused of murdering three of eight young men who disappeared in northeastern France between 1980 and 1987. One of his alleged victims was Irishman Trevor O'Keeffe
. Chanal committed suicide in prison in 2003 while on trial.
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
soldier and suspected serial killer
Serial killer
A serial killer, as typically defined, is an individual who has murdered three or more people over a period of more than a month, with down time between the murders, and whose motivation for killing is usually based on psychological gratification...
. He was convicted of the rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
and kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
of a young Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
man (Falvay, Balázs) whom he picked up hitch-hiking in 1988. He received a 10-year sentence for the attack, and was released in 1995 on probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
. He was accused of murdering three of eight young men who disappeared in northeastern France between 1980 and 1987. One of his alleged victims was Irishman Trevor O'Keeffe
Trevor O'Keeffe
Trevor O'Keeffe was an Irish man who was murdered while hitchhiking in France. His body was found in a shallow grave, having been strangled...
. Chanal committed suicide in prison in 2003 while on trial.