Henri Désiré Landru “Bluebeard of Gambais” (France, 1914–1919)

Henri Landru was a French conman and serial killer active during World War I. He lured wealthy or vulnerable women through personal ads, promising marriage or companionship. Once he convinced them to turn over their assets, Landru would murder them—often at a rented villa in Gambais—and dispose of their bodies, leaving little trace. Investigators eventually linked him to at least 10 (some say over a dozen) disappearances, and he was arrested in 1919. His high-profile trial ended with a conviction and execution by guillotine in 1922.