When most people think of serial killers, the images that come to mind are almost always male: Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy. But history tells a darker, less-discussed truth—some of the most chilling serial killers were women.
They didn’t always stalk their prey or leave behind gory crime scenes. Many worked quietly, patiently, and often undetected. They used poison instead of knives. They killed for money, power, or control. And they did it over years—sometimes decades—without being caught.
These are the stories of female serial killers history forgot—murderers who operated under the radar, yet whose body counts rival some of the most infamous men in true crime.
1. Leonarda Cianciulli – The Soap-Maker of Correggio
Active: 1939–1940
Location: Italy
Confirmed victims: 3
Leonarda Cianciulli was a devoted Italian mother who believed that human sacrifice was necessary to protect her children. She lured three women into her home, murdered them, and used their remains to make soap and tea cakes.
She served the cakes to guests.
Cianciulli confessed in court and showed no remorse. Her crimes were so bizarre they bordered on the unbelievable—but every word was true.
2. Nannie Doss – The Giggling Granny
Active: 1920s–1954
Location: United States
Confirmed victims: 11 (possibly over 20)
With a sweet smile and folksy charm, Nannie Doss looked like anyone’s grandmother. But behind that grin was a decades-long trail of poisonings. She killed four husbands, two children, her mother, her sister, her grandson, and a mother-in-law.
Doss admitted to the murders with laughter and jokes, earning her nickname. She said she was looking for “the perfect man,” and when they disappointed her—they died.
3. Jane Toppan – The Angel of Death
Active: 1880s–1901
Location: Massachusetts, USA
Confirmed victims: 31+
Jane Toppan was a nurse who admitted to killing patients with lethal injections of morphine and atropine, just to watch them die. She called it an “experiment,” claiming she wanted to push people “over the edge.”
She also confessed to climbing into bed with her dying victims, deriving pleasure from watching them slip away. Her goal, she said, was to kill more people than anyone else in history.
She was found insane and committed for life.
4. Dagmar Overbye – Killer of Innocents
Active: 1913–1920
Location: Denmark
Confirmed victims: 9–25 (mostly infants)
Dagmar Overbye was a midwife and child caretaker who murdered infants entrusted to her care. She strangled, burned, and disposed of their bodies in stoves and under floorboards.
Her trial was a national scandal. She was convicted of 9 murders, but police suspected far more. Her crimes led to major reforms in Danish child welfare laws.
5. Graham Young – Inspired by a Woman: Mary Ann Cotton
Before Graham Young was “The Teacup Poisoner,” England had Mary Ann Cotton, often overlooked today.
Active: 1860s–1873
Location: England
Confirmed victims: 21+
Mary Ann Cotton killed multiple husbands, lovers, and children using arsenic-laced tea. Authorities believe she murdered for insurance payouts and financial stability.
She was hanged in 1873, smiling as she stood on the gallows.
6. Kristen Gilbert – The Nurse of Death
Active: 1989–1996
Location: Massachusetts, USA
Confirmed victims: 4 (suspected 20+)
Kristen Gilbert was a nurse at a VA hospital where a sharp spike in patient deaths was observed. She later confessed to injecting patients with epinephrine to induce fatal heart attacks—then reviving them to look like a hero.
Investigators found she had a pattern of killing during her shifts. She was convicted of four murders but is suspected in dozens more.
7. Enriqueta Martí – The Vampire of Barcelona
Active: Early 1900s
Location: Spain
Confirmed victims: Unknown
Enriqueta Martí was accused of kidnapping children, murdering them, and using their blood and bones to make “healing potions” sold to wealthy clients.
While some claim she was a victim of hysteria and false accusations, the bones of multiple children were found in her home, and locals feared her for decades.
Her story lives on in Spanish folklore as one of the most disturbing cases of occult-like serial murder.
Why Female Serial Killers Get Overlooked
Female serial killers often avoid the spotlight for a few key reasons:
- Modus operandi: Women tend to kill using less violent methods, like poisoning or suffocation, which often go undetected.
- Stereotypes: Society has difficulty seeing women—especially mothers and caregivers—as capable of prolonged, calculated murder.
- Targets: Female killers often murder within the home or among close relations, making their crimes less sensational but no less deadly.
But make no mistake—these women were every bit as lethal as their male counterparts.
For more cases like this, explore our archive. SinisterArchive.com—where the legends are real.