For better or worse, serial killers continue to fascinate us. You can find their stories in a variety of media, from books to television to podcasts. We’ve all seen or heard the horror stories of Bundy, Dahmer and Ridgeway. Yet a name stands out not only because of the scale of his crimes, but also because he has been all but forgotten.
Pedro Lopez, known as the “Monster of the Andes,” went on a killing spree in the late 1970s and eventually confessed to murdering more than 350 girls between the ages of 7 and 13 in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Guinness World Records lists him as the most prolific serial killer of modern times. Check out the history of one of the world’s most ruthless killers you’ve never heard of.
According to Lopez, by 1978 he’d murdered over 100 children. While attempting to abduct a 9 year old, however, his luck ran out and he was caught by a local tribe in Peru, who submitted him to tribal law. His body was covered in syrup, and buried up to his neck in sand to be devoured by ants.
Incredibly, an American missionary driving by persuaded the tribe to release Lopez into her custody, promising to turn him into the police. They agreed, and Lopez was placed into the back of her Jeep. Keeping her word, the woman turned him into the Peruvian Police. Shockingly, the police simply drove him to the Colombian border and released him.
