The history of serial killers in the world dates back thousands of years, as the existence of these criminals has been recorded at different times in history. A prime example of this is Locusta or Lucusta, the first serial killer in humanity. This woman was a prominent poison maker in the Roman Empire and very active during the final two reigns of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. This woman, born in Gaul, France, in the 1st century, is attributed with the murders of Claudius and one of his sons named Britannicus, while also being the favorite of Emperor Nero for several years. In fact, Nero kept her on to teach her craft to other poison makers at his service. Locusta was the poison advisor to Empress Agrippina the Younger, who, according to some historians, is said to have asked the serial killer for poison to assassinate her husband, Claudius. The substance was spread on a mushroom and brought to the emperor by his food taster, Halotus. There is a rumor that when the poison seemed ineffective, the physician Gaius Stertinius Xenophon killed Claudius with a poisoned quill, supposedly by putting it down his throat to induce vomiting, although this has not been confirmed. The empress was recognized as the one who provided the substance and was imprisoned on charges of poisoning. Locusta is said to have recommended Agrippina the use of Atropa belladonna, a species of shrub, as a poison, as its extracts have been used since ancient times; the plant and its fruits contain tropane alkaloids, primarily hyoscyamine and scopolamine, which are lethal. In the year 55, while still imprisoned, Locusta was summoned by Agrippina's son, Emperor Nero, to create a poison to kill Claudius's son, Britannicus. As this poison was slow-acting, Nero himself flogged the multiple murderer and threatened her with immediate execution if she did not provide a fast-acting poison to ensure success. And so she did, and the emperor himself rewarded Locusta with a full pardon and large tracts of land, to which he sent apprentices for her to teach her skills. In the year 68, before fleeing Rome, Nero obtained poison from Locusta for his own use and kept it in a golden box, although he died by another method of suicide. After Nero's death, Locusta was sentenced to death by Emperor Galba during his brief reign, which culminated on January 15, 69. She, like other favorites of Nero such as Helio, Patrobio, and Narcissus, was paraded through the city in chains and then executed.
