User:Rox Da Box/sandbox


 * This list is incomplete; you can help by [ expanding it].

A serial killer is a person who murders three or more people, in three or more separate events over a period of time, for primarily psychological reasons. There are gaps of time between the killings, which may range from a few hours to many years. This list shows serial killers from the 20th century to present day by number of victims (list of serial killers by victim before 1900). In many cases, the exact number of victims assigned to a serial killer is not known, and even if that person is convicted of a few, there can be the possibility that he/she killed many more. It is perhaps ironic that arguably one of the most famous of all serial killers, Jack the Ripper, only had five murders attributed to him.

Due to the complex nature of serial killers, their crimes, discrepancies caused by geographic location and/or time, and the investigations related to these persons results in difficulties in organization and ranking. To address this, multiple categories have been provided in order to more accurately describe the nature of certain serial murder. This is not a reflection of an individuals overall rank which may or may not vary depending on personal opinion concerning the nature and circumstances of their crimes.

The fourth column in the table states the number of victims definitely assigned to that particular serial killer, and thus the table is in order of that figure. The fifth column states the number of possible victims the killer could have murdered. Some of these crimes are unsolved, but were included because they are the work of a serial killer, despite nobody being caught.

Disputed cases
* Proven victims being victims the serial killer was tried for, explained by the killer in a detailed confession, or victims most scholars of the subject agree upon.