Most Lethal Women Assassins in History
Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at 10 of the Most Lethal Women Assassins in History!
For this list, we’ll be looking at deadly women from various times and places who would stop at nothing to eliminate their chosen targets.
Do you know of any other fascinating female assassins whom we didn’t mention? Please let us know in the comments!
Jeanette van Nessen
Like most assassins, Jeanette van Nessen lived in the shadows; the little we do know about her comes mainly from the testimony of her killer. She was a Dutch assassin for hire, and apparently, a successful one, since she reportedly charged high fees for her work. The job that got van Nessen in trouble was killing an agent for Mossad, the Israeli secret intelligence force. In 1973, another Mossad agent tracked her down and killed her in revenge. This agent later shared his experiences with George Jonas, the author of “Vengeance,” which inspired Stephen Spielberg’s 2005 film, “Munich.” So that’s how van Nessen’s story came out; if she had a different interpretation of events, we’ll probably never know it.
María Guadalupe Jiménez López
At 26, Jiménez was widely considered the deadliest female assassin in Mexico. She was an enforcer for Los Zetas, one of the most dangerous drug cartels in the brutal Mexican cartel wars of the early 2000s. Los Zetas set itself apart, even from other groups, with its violent intimidation tactics; Jiménez, who was known as “La Tosca,” or “The Tough One,” led attacks killing rival cartel members and at least one law enforcement official. In May of 2012, a horrifying series of murders were committed in Nuevo Laredo; and while it was not clear who was responsible, evidence indicated that drug cartels were involved. This incident led to a number of arrests, including Jiménez, who pleaded guilty to twenty counts of murder.
Kalaivani Rajaratnam
Ordinarily, no one would suspect a seventeen-year-old girl as a threat. But if that girl has been trained for years by a militant group in Sri Lanka, and is willing to sacrifice her own life… Rajiv Gandhi, Congress leader and former Prime Minister of India, was campaigning in Tamil Nadu in May of 1991. As he walked to the place where he was giving a speech, various people greeted him, including Rajaratnam. She bent to touch his feet, in a traditional gesture of respect–then set off the belt of explosives hidden beneath her dress. Gandhi, Rajaratnam, and fourteen other people were killed in the blast. An investigation later revealed that Rajaratnam and her associates had carefully practiced the assassination beforehand in crowded areas.
Erika Chambers
In January of 1979, a British woman moved into an apartment building in West Beirut. The neighbors thought her a bit odd, since she loved painting and stray cats, but mainly ignored her. Then, a few weeks later, an explosion rocked the street outside. It destroyed a car carrying Ali Hassan Salameh, suspected leader of the 1972 Munich Olympics terrorist attack, which killed eleven Israeli athletes. Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency, had tried to get Salameh multiple times and failed. After the incident, police searched the British woman’s apartment; all they found was a passport in the name of Erika Chambers. To Mossad, however, she was known as Agent Penelope, the lead operative in their final mission to assassinate Salameh.
Mata Hari
Even now, mystery surrounds Margaretha Zelle–better known by her stage name, Mata Hari. In the early 1900s, she became a famous exotic dancer. As a citizen of the Netherlands, she could travel freely in Europe, even during the war; so France recruited her as a spy to seduce powerful Germans and learn their secrets. Was she loyal to France, or a double agent? No one knows for sure. But we do know the war was going badly for France, and they wanted a scapegoat; so despite little evidence, they accused Mata Hari of spying for Germany and thereby killing thousands of soldiers. She denied it, reportedly saying, “A harlot? Yes, but a traitoress, never!” Nonetheless, she was found guilty, and executed in 1917.
Kim Hyon-hui
In 1987, Kim Hyon-hui left a bomb on Korean Air Flight 858, which exploded and killed 115 people. When she was captured, she tried to kill herself; it turned out that she was a North Korean spy. Kim had been trained and conditioned in an isolated mountain facility for years and believed her terrorist act was essential to Korean unification. While imprisoned in South Korea, however, Kim realized that nearly everything she’d been told was false. President Roh Tae-woo eventually pardoned her, saying that the real villain in the attack was not Kim, but her country. Kim became an agent for South Korean intelligence and is now dedicated to exposing and preventing further atrocities committed by North Korean leadership.
Shī Jiànqiào
Born in Anhui Province, China, Shī Gǔlán grew up in the tumultuous years after the fall of the Qing Dynasty. Local warlords were constantly fighting each other over territory, and Shī’s father was captured and killed by a rival named Sūn Chuánfāng. Shī vowed to avenge his death, and took a new name: Jiànqiào, or “sword-raiser.” For ten years, she tracked Sūn, waiting for the chance to strike. In November of 1935, as Sūn was kneeling inside a Buddhist temple, Shī shot and killed him with a pistol. She convinced the courts that her action was justified, inspired by love for her father; they pardoned her, and she went on to become an influential civil servant before her death in 1979.
Charlotte Corday
By the late 1700s, the French Revolution had become a vicious civil war. Based on what she had heard and read, Charlotte Corday grew convinced that one man was primarily responsible for the widespread terror: politician Jean-Paul Marat. Killing him, she believed, would save many future lives. Corday traveled to Paris, claiming she had information about an uprising in Normandy, and was allowed to see Marat. Because of a terrible skin condition, Marat spent most of his time in the bathtub; so as he sat there writing, Corday stabbed him. She freely admitted what she had done, and was therefore quickly executed. However, whether justified or not, Corday’s actions had a profound impact on the way women were perceived–in her time, and later.
Idoia López Riaño
She was known as “La Tigresa”--“The Tigress.” Her striking face was in news reports and on Wanted posters throughout Europe in the 1980s and 90s. But Idoia López Riaño gained new fame in 2020 when Luke Jennings revealed that she was the inspiration for his character Villanelle in the BBC show “Killing Eve.” As a teenager, López Riaño joined the ETA, a Basque nationalist group in Spain. Like Villanelle, she was both ruthless and charming, seducing men for information and then using it to assassinate their colleagues. She was eventually convicted on twenty-three counts of murder–some committed directly, some through group terrorist attacks. After serving over twenty years in prison, López Riaño was released in 2017. Her current whereabouts are unknown.
Brigitte Mohnhaupt
It’s unclear exactly what part Brigitte Mohnhaupt played in the German RAF, or Red Army Faction, which may have been her intention. However, she was considered an important leader, by both her associates and the courts that condemned her; and we know that during her years with the group from 1971 to 1982, they assassinated several powerful German officials, robbed banks, and hijacked a plane. Mohnhaupt was imprisoned in 1985, then released on parole in 2007, apparently reformed. But since she vowed that the RAF would keep fighting after her conviction–and never requested clemency, like most of her compatriots–Mohnhaupt may not have intended to retire quietly. It’s hard to know for sure, as she has not been heard from since her release… yet.
