Infamous murderer Charles Manson has died at the age of 83.
A statement released by the California Department of Corrections confirmed that Manson died of natural causes last night, after he was reportedly hospitalised last week.
Manson shocked the world in 1969 after leading the Manson Family, a notorious cult that committed the murders of pregnant actress Sharon Tate and eight other victims on his orders.
Tate was found stabbed to death in her Hollywood home, while other victims included celebrity hair stylist Jay Sebring and coffee empire heiress Abigail Folger.
When police investigated the deaths, they discovered that Manson had sent his followers to commit the murders as part of a sickening belief that it would start a race war which had been prophesied in ‘Helter Skelter’ by The Beatles.
After being sentenced to death in 1971, his conviction was eventually commuted into a life sentence, with Manson remaining imprisoned in California until his death.
Before the murders, Ohio-born Manson also spent time as a singer-songwriter on the LA music scene.
Several recordings of his music have been released over the years to capitalise on his notoriety – most recently, it was revealed that some of Manson’s prison recordings were set for another release.