Charles Manson Has Died After Four Decades In Prison
Charles Manson, the notorious cult leader who orchestrated his followers to commit a string of brutal murders in the late 1960s, has died aged 83.
The former leader of the 'Manson Family' was admitted to Bakersfield hospital, California this month, and died of natural causes on Sunday.
His followers killed seven people in 1969, including pregnant Hollywood actress and wife of Roman Polanski, Sharon Tate. Cult member Susan Atkins scrawled the words "pig" in blood on the front door of her house after the murder.
The next day, members of Manson's cult killed wealthy Los Angeles couple Leno and Rosemary LeBianca in what became known as the 'Tate-LaBianca Murders'.
Manson was not present at the murders, but was sentenced to death in 1971 for his role in the crimes. He was also convicted of two others killings.
The notorious figure convinced his followers in the late sixties that there was an race war on the horizon, a prospect he named "Helter Skelter" after The Beatles song he became obsessed with, and that he was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. His followers were mostly young, middle-class women.
The seven-month trial that followed the murders became an international obsession, and many saw the instances of Satanism, sadism, sex, drugs and rock'n'roll as a horrifying result of the anti-establishment ethos of the time.
According to TMZ, Tate's sister Debra received a phone call from authorities soon after Manson's death.
You Might Also Like
