I was taunted in sick psychological game by ‘insane’ killer doctor who sliced up victims & inspired Hannibal Lecter role

IT was a chance encounter with a sinister prison doctor Alfredo Ballí Treviño which lingered uncomfortably in the young reporter’s mind. Magazine journalist Thomas Harris – who would go one to pen the Hannibal psychological thrillers – was inside Mexico’s Nuevo Leon State Prison in Monterrey to interview an inmate, American triple murderer Dykes Askew Simmons. Alfredo Ballí Treviño was a Mexican doctor, and inspired the character, Hannibal LecterCredit: Not known clear with Picture Desk Author Thomas Harris described Treviño as a ‘small, lithe man with dark red hair’ Credit: Unknown Simmons, a US former mental patient with a cleft lip and a series of small scars on his head, had been handed the death sentence for killing three young people. But in a bizarre twist, it wouldn’t be Simmons who’d go on to become Harris’ literary inspiration. It was 1963 and the writer – then 23 – was then introduced by Simmons to the medic he said had been treating him, and who’d saved Simmons’ life when he’d been shot by a prison guard during an escape attempt. Harris later remembered the doctor – who he initially gave the fake name, Dr Salazar – as “a small, lithe man with dark red hair”. He said: “He stood very still and there was a certain elegance about him. He invited me to sit.” Salazar quizzed the reporter on his interview with the triple killer. Anthony Hopkins won a Best Actor Oscar for his role as Dr Hannibal Lecter in the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs Credit: Alamy Dykes Askew Simmons was sentenced to death for killing three young people Credit: Getty This eerie encounter would later inspire Harris’s famous literary creation Dr Hannibal Lecter, a forensic psychiatrist, serial killer and cannibal. The character would also go on to inspire a film trilogy and critically acclaimed drama now set to return to Netflix (July 27), simply called Hannibal. For calculating Salazar played a twisted psychological game with the reporter. The medic posed Harris a series of probing questions. How did he feel when he looked at Simmons? Did the sunglasses Simmons wore add symmetry to his disfigured face? Have you seen the pictures of his victims? Harris agreed they were nice-looking, from a nice family. Dr Salazar shot back: “You’re not saying they provoked him?” And so it went on, until a rap on the door from a warder announced the meeting was over. Harris thanked the doctor and invited him for a drink or lunch if he was ever travelling in Texas. Harris remembered: “Looking back I cannot recall any trace of irony in his reply. ‘Thank you, Mr Harris. Certainly I will, when next I travel’.” Harris then matter-of-factly asked the prison officer how long Dr Salazar had worked there. “Hombre,” the warden replied. “You don’t know who that is? The doctor is a murderer. “As a surgeon, he could package his victim in a surprisingly small box. He will never leave this place. He is insane.” Years later, when reporter Harris came to write his crime novels, he remembered Dr Salazar – and based his lead character on his demeanour. Lecter was introduced by Harris in the 1981 novel Red Dragon, and was depicted as a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibal. Harris called his most famous book in his series The Silence Of The Lambs. And Salazar became serial killer Dr Hannibal Lecter, played by Sir Anthony Hopkins. Lecter quizzes FBI trainee Starling about her childhood traumas. All three seasons of the critically acclaimed series Hannibal are returning to Netflix on July 27 Credit: Alamy Anthony Hopkins played Lecter in three films: Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and prequel Red Dragon Credit: Alamy Hopkins – who won a Best Actor Oscar for his role – uttered the famous line: “I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.” Lecter was chosen as the number one movie villain by the American Film Institute in 2003. The chilling character also appeared in Harris’ novels Hannibal, published in 1999, and Hannibal Rising (2006) His books provided the basis for the 2013 hit thriller series Hannibal, which returns to TV screens on Netflix on July 27. It follows the relationship between FBI special investigator Will Graham – play by Black Hawk Down actor Hugh Dancy and Lecter who is portrayed by Danish star Mads Mikkelsen. The true identity of Salazar, the real-life Lecter, was revealed in 2013. Harris created the fake name for Alfredo Balli Trevino, a Mexican doctor who murdered his lover and was consumed by guilt until his dying day. Balli Trevino served 20 years for the murder of fellow doctor Jesus Castillo Rangel. Journalist Thomas Harris was 23 when he met ‘Dr Salazar’, who later became the inspiration behind psychiatrist and cannibal Dr Lecter Credit: Getty Lecter was chosen as the number one movie villain by the American Film Institute in 2003 Credit: Alamy On October 9, 1959, Balli Trevino, a medical intern at the time, visitedRangel and there was a row about money. He slit Rangel’s throat with a scalpel in a crime of passion then cut the body into pieces and buried them to hide the grim crime. But a suspicious uncle unearthed the dismembered corpse. Reports have linked the doctor to “many” other crimes of the same heinous nature. Balli Trevino – the blueprint for one of Hollywood’s darkest yet mostcelebrated characters – died in 2009 at 81. He ended his days treating the poor, desperately trying to forget his dark past. In 2008, Balli Trevino gave an interview to a local newspaper. But he refused to discuss his chilling crime. The doctor explained: “If you want we can talk about anything you’d like, except for that. “I don’t want to relive my dark past. I don’t want to wake up my ghosts, it’s very hard.” The doctor was in a wheelchair but still working. He confessed: “I don’t remember how many years I’ve been a doctor. “Now I take care of the elderly, like me. I think I got out of prison in 1981 but I honestly don’t remember. “At first it was difficult but, with time, things improved. “However, some days depression comes back. I paid what I had to pay. Now I’m just waiting for the divine punishment.” He is still remembered in his Monterrey neighbourhood. One resident, Dr Alfredo Balli Montiel, told The Times that unearthing what happened to Trevino was like “looking for a ghost”. He confirmed Trevino had worked at a clinic where he cared for the city’s poor. Two patients once treated by Balli Trevino had nothing but praise for the murderer. He never charged them for his medical expertise, they insisted. If they could scrape together a few pounds they would give it to him. “He was a good person,” one added. It is not difficult to imagine Dr Hannibal Lecter himself smiling wryly at the epitaph. Other murderers immortalised on film… Ed Gein / Texas Chainsaw Massacre Leatherface from the 1974 film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, right, was heavily inspired by Ed Gein, left Leatherface from the 1974 film was inspired by Ed Gein, an American murderer and body snatcher. Like Leatherface, Gein wore a mask of human skin but the real murderer did this because of his desire to be a woman – not because of a skin condition as explained in the 2003 remake of the film. Also, instead of killing with a chainsaw he shot both of his known victims – Mary Hogan and Bernice Worden – in the US state of Wisconsin. He was charged with murder in 1957 but was found unfit for trial due to insanity and sent to a mental hospital. After being declared fit to stand trial in 1968, Gein was again found to be legally insane and died in an asylum in 1984 at the age of 77. Dennis Rader / The Fall Dennis Rader, left, known as the ‘BTK Killer’, was the primary inspiration for the character of Paul Spector, played by Jamie Dornan, right, in The Fall The hit BBC drama The Fall was inspired by one of America’s most notorious killers. The fictional character Paul Spector – played by Jamie Dornan – was modelled on Dennis Rader who murdered ten people in Wichita, Kansas, between 1974 and 1991. While Rader was a church elder and scout leader, he worked in security services. Spector was a grief counsellor in Belfast. But the pair were both interested in bondage and took pictures of themselves and their victims. Rader – who is known as the BTK Killer, which stands for “Bind, Torture, Kill” – was formally charged in February 2005 and is currently serving ten life sentences with an earliest possible release date of 2180. Bradley John Murdoch / Wolf Creek People have compared real-life outback killer Bradley John Murdoch, left, along with Ivan Milat, to the fictional movie killer Mick Taylor from Wolf Creek, right The true story of Wolf Creek was not in Western Australia as in the film but in Oz’s Northern Territory. In July 2001, British tourists Peter Falconio and Joanne Lees were ambushed by Bradley John Murdoch, who told them there were sparks coming out of their van’s exhaust. He shot Peter and then dragged Joanne into his pick-up truck. While Murdoch dealt with Peter’s body, Joanne managed to escape. Murdoch was found guilty of the murder in December 2005 and received a life sentence. The 2005 film is also said to have been inspired by serial killer Ivan Milat, who slaughtered seven people in the early Nineties in what have become known as the Backpacker Murders.