Welcome to Spycraft, a podcast that tells gripping life and death spy stories and
the amazing devices and operations that made them possible. Now let's get started.
Welcome back everybody. Today, we're looking at Marcel Puteau Ptiot. Marcel has
a dark enigma. He's a dark enigma in history. Some think he was
a spy, we'll look at that too, But he was also a serial
killer. Doctor Puteau, often just referred to as doctor Petiole Petiot, is
one of the history's most infamous figures, a man whose life is shrouded in
mystery, deceit, and unthinkable cruelty. He was born in France in eighteen
ninety seven. Doctor Puteau showed signs of violent behavior from a young age.
He was involved in several petty crimes doing his youth, but none that hinted
at the severe malevolence that would later define his adult life. And we can
see here poply conduct disorder or something we can with. Despite his troubled adolescence,
he pursued a medical degree, was drafted into World War One when he
was injured and subsequently discharged from mental illness. His erratic behavior during the war
was a precursor to the disturbances of marcus later life. After the war,
Peuteaux began practicing medicine in Villeneux, Servian. His early career was marked by
rumors and suspicions of various crimes, including over prescribing drugs and causing several patient's
deaths. However, the allegations didn't hinder his ambitions. In the nineteen thirties,
he moved to Paris and established a successful practice, presenting himself as a
respectable member of society. But beneath this veneer of respectability leked a sinister secret.
As World War II raged in the Nazis occupied Paris, doctor Puteau saw
an opportunity to exploit the depth desperation of those seeking to escape. He offered
his services for a fee to provide safe passage out of France. And this
is where the espionage rumors begin. But unfortunately there's not much to substantiate them.
But what did he do? Rather than helping these desperate souls, Petiot
led them to a gruesome fate. He drugged his victims, ostensibly to prepare
them for their journey, and then murdered them. After their deaths He robbed
them and disposed of their bodies in a makeshift furnace in his basement. The
horror of the doctor's actions was discovered in March nineteen forty four when neighbors complained
of foul odors emanating from his home. When authorities investigated, they were met
with a scene of unimaginable horror the remains of multiple victims, but by the
time his crimes were discovered, the doc had vanished. The subsequent manhunt for
the doctor was extensive, with the police distributing his photograph in details of his
crimes. He was eventually captured in Paris later that year and put on trial
in nineteen forty six. The trial revealed the death of his depravity, with
evidence leaking into him at least twenty seven murders. However, given them meticulous
nature of his crimes and the chaotic backdrop of war torn France, the actual
number remains unknown. In his defense, well, his defense was as bizarre
as as crimes. He claimed to be a member of the Friend resistance again
and insisted as victims were collaborators and spies. He painted himself as a hero
rioting France of traders, and this is again where the espionage rumors came from.
But the evidence against someone was overwhelming, and his claims were seen for
the desperate lies that they were. Doctor Marcel Piteau was found guilty and was
sentenced to death. He met as then in the guillotine, a fittingly grim
conclusion to a life work there with such profound evil. Profound evil. The
story of the doc as a chilling reminder of the deaths to which humanity can
sink amid the broader horrors of World War Two. His crimes stand out as
a dark chapter in history. They serve as a testament the dangers of unchecked
ambition, the corrupting influence of power, and the profound evil that can look
behind even the most respectable facades. I thought it'd be an interesting story because
there was some espionage involved, or at least there was HINTSA, but he
used it in his trial for a defense whether or not he was really a
spy, or he thought some of these people were spies. Probably false,
probably a myth, but yet interesting enough.