1 00:00:04,120 --> 00:00:11,320 Welcome to Spycraft, a podcast that tells gripping life and death spy stories and 2 00:00:11,439 --> 00:00:17,160 the amazing devices and operations that made them possible. Now let's get started. 3 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:23,319 Welcome back everybody. Today, we're looking at Marcel Puteau Ptiot. Marcel has 4 00:01:23,359 --> 00:01:27,000 a dark enigma. He's a dark enigma in history. Some think he was 5 00:01:27,040 --> 00:01:30,840 a spy, we'll look at that too, But he was also a serial 6 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:37,239 killer. Doctor Puteau, often just referred to as doctor Petiole Petiot, is 7 00:01:37,239 --> 00:01:40,359 one of the history's most infamous figures, a man whose life is shrouded in 8 00:01:40,480 --> 00:01:45,519 mystery, deceit, and unthinkable cruelty. He was born in France in eighteen 9 00:01:45,599 --> 00:01:49,760 ninety seven. Doctor Puteau showed signs of violent behavior from a young age. 10 00:01:49,799 --> 00:01:53,359 He was involved in several petty crimes doing his youth, but none that hinted 11 00:01:53,359 --> 00:01:57,599 at the severe malevolence that would later define his adult life. And we can 12 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:01,760 see here poply conduct disorder or something we can with. Despite his troubled adolescence, 13 00:02:01,799 --> 00:02:05,840 he pursued a medical degree, was drafted into World War One when he 14 00:02:05,920 --> 00:02:09,199 was injured and subsequently discharged from mental illness. His erratic behavior during the war 15 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:14,439 was a precursor to the disturbances of marcus later life. After the war, 16 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:19,680 Peuteaux began practicing medicine in Villeneux, Servian. His early career was marked by 17 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:24,879 rumors and suspicions of various crimes, including over prescribing drugs and causing several patient's 18 00:02:24,879 --> 00:02:30,199 deaths. However, the allegations didn't hinder his ambitions. In the nineteen thirties, 19 00:02:30,199 --> 00:02:32,719 he moved to Paris and established a successful practice, presenting himself as a 20 00:02:32,759 --> 00:02:38,639 respectable member of society. But beneath this veneer of respectability leked a sinister secret. 21 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:44,719 As World War II raged in the Nazis occupied Paris, doctor Puteau saw 22 00:02:44,719 --> 00:02:49,280 an opportunity to exploit the depth desperation of those seeking to escape. He offered 23 00:02:49,319 --> 00:02:53,120 his services for a fee to provide safe passage out of France. And this 24 00:02:53,199 --> 00:02:59,319 is where the espionage rumors begin. But unfortunately there's not much to substantiate them. 25 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:02,639 But what did he do? Rather than helping these desperate souls, Petiot 26 00:03:02,759 --> 00:03:07,520 led them to a gruesome fate. He drugged his victims, ostensibly to prepare 27 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:10,319 them for their journey, and then murdered them. After their deaths He robbed 28 00:03:10,319 --> 00:03:15,319 them and disposed of their bodies in a makeshift furnace in his basement. The 29 00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:19,400 horror of the doctor's actions was discovered in March nineteen forty four when neighbors complained 30 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:23,960 of foul odors emanating from his home. When authorities investigated, they were met 31 00:03:23,960 --> 00:03:28,879 with a scene of unimaginable horror the remains of multiple victims, but by the 32 00:03:28,879 --> 00:03:32,439 time his crimes were discovered, the doc had vanished. The subsequent manhunt for 33 00:03:32,599 --> 00:03:37,080 the doctor was extensive, with the police distributing his photograph in details of his 34 00:03:37,120 --> 00:03:39,360 crimes. He was eventually captured in Paris later that year and put on trial 35 00:03:39,759 --> 00:03:44,919 in nineteen forty six. The trial revealed the death of his depravity, with 36 00:03:44,960 --> 00:03:49,000 evidence leaking into him at least twenty seven murders. However, given them meticulous 37 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:53,080 nature of his crimes and the chaotic backdrop of war torn France, the actual 38 00:03:53,159 --> 00:03:58,000 number remains unknown. In his defense, well, his defense was as bizarre 39 00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:00,039 as as crimes. He claimed to be a member of the Friend resistance again 40 00:04:00,879 --> 00:04:05,159 and insisted as victims were collaborators and spies. He painted himself as a hero 41 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:09,840 rioting France of traders, and this is again where the espionage rumors came from. 42 00:04:10,199 --> 00:04:12,840 But the evidence against someone was overwhelming, and his claims were seen for 43 00:04:12,919 --> 00:04:17,160 the desperate lies that they were. Doctor Marcel Piteau was found guilty and was 44 00:04:17,199 --> 00:04:20,240 sentenced to death. He met as then in the guillotine, a fittingly grim 45 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:26,000 conclusion to a life work there with such profound evil. Profound evil. The 46 00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:29,480 story of the doc as a chilling reminder of the deaths to which humanity can 47 00:04:29,519 --> 00:04:32,319 sink amid the broader horrors of World War Two. His crimes stand out as 48 00:04:32,360 --> 00:04:36,319 a dark chapter in history. They serve as a testament the dangers of unchecked 49 00:04:36,360 --> 00:04:40,519 ambition, the corrupting influence of power, and the profound evil that can look 50 00:04:40,560 --> 00:04:46,839 behind even the most respectable facades. I thought it'd be an interesting story because 51 00:04:46,879 --> 00:04:49,399 there was some espionage involved, or at least there was HINTSA, but he 52 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:53,920 used it in his trial for a defense whether or not he was really a 53 00:04:53,920 --> 00:04:58,920 spy, or he thought some of these people were spies. Probably false, 54 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:01,439 probably a myth, but yet interesting enough.