When we think of psychopaths, most of us imagine them as characters on a screen—Hannibal Lecter, The Joker, Patrick Bateman—the kind of people who belong in fiction, not in everyday life.
But some have crossed paths with them in the real world. On Reddit, users shared what those encounters were like and the moments that revealed who they were really dealing with. Scroll down to read their eye-opening and disturbing stories, and upvote the ones that left you the most surprised.
#41
I work at a residential psych unit. A guy lives there who was found not guilty by reason of insanity for k***ing a family member 20 years ago. Supposedly “cured” of his “psychosis” he was allowed to step-down. The he day he came he was so superficial and scripted and fake-charming I was like nope he’s a Psycopath who convinced everyone he had weed-induced psychosis.
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16points
#42
I was in a lab group with the guy who dressed up as batman and k**led a bunch of people in a movie theater.
I never realized it. He was worthless as a scientist and didn't make a single contribution all semester. It was to the point that two of us in the 4-person group went to the professor. He would just stare blankly when I'd yell at him for not putting in the work. I was patient at first, but it wasn't shyness or even ineptitude. He was just in his own world, and nothing else was real to him. I've met a few more psychopaths and k**lers since then. When they see a person as a thing, it's like being yelled at by a rock. They don't really see anyone as much more than meat. It was the class where we drilled holes in rat heads to control their brains, so his chosen branch of education wasn't exactly helping his condition.
I never realized it. He was worthless as a scientist and didn't make a single contribution all semester. It was to the point that two of us in the 4-person group went to the professor. He would just stare blankly when I'd yell at him for not putting in the work. I was patient at first, but it wasn't shyness or even ineptitude. He was just in his own world, and nothing else was real to him. I've met a few more psychopaths and k**lers since then. When they see a person as a thing, it's like being yelled at by a rock. They don't really see anyone as much more than meat. It was the class where we drilled holes in rat heads to control their brains, so his chosen branch of education wasn't exactly helping his condition.
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15points
#43
Watching them learn how to mimic genuine empathy, then weaponize it. Just this one person though.. fortunately.
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14points
#44
My mom
I secretly recorded a video of her infantilizing me and I sent it to my therapist. My therapist told her to stop treating me like a child. She then used ChatGPT to write an eviction letter. She wants to take the car away from me because I want a job.
I secretly recorded a video of her infantilizing me and I sent it to my therapist. My therapist told her to stop treating me like a child. She then used ChatGPT to write an eviction letter. She wants to take the car away from me because I want a job.
14points
#45
My ex bit my ear off and never apologized although given plenty of chances. He then used every excuse to explain away what he did because it was something I did wrong.
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14points
#46
Very friendly people-pleaser type guy I kinda worked with always low key gave me the creeps, because way back in his instagram he had pics of him that looked like he had a completely different personality, in a different city with completely different people. Made me feel like he was faking everything.
If you saw him when he was drunk or high enough his mask straight up slipped and the only discernible emotion on his face if not dead blank was seething rage. After I noticed this I started telling people I thought he was a closeted psychopath.
Ended up getting with one of our coworker and beating the s**t out of her. Called it.
If you saw him when he was drunk or high enough his mask straight up slipped and the only discernible emotion on his face if not dead blank was seething rage. After I noticed this I started telling people I thought he was a closeted psychopath.
Ended up getting with one of our coworker and beating the s**t out of her. Called it.
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14points
#47
Would never have been able to tell through my interactions with him and I can’t even say for certain that he did have psychopathy or ASPD. I was just a contractor working on his house for an extended period of time. But when I had to go into his casita office to test a line, he had a shelf full of books on psychopathy and ASPD, lots of stuff like Understanding Antisocial Personality Disorder, Living with ASPD. All alongside one hell of an arsenal, not that the guy would need guns, he looked like if Terry Crews could eat Terry Crews for breakfast.
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13points
#48
Demanded we cut open a baby bird and inspect each organ. We were young kids but still as young as I was I knew this was something weird to do.
Also the time he hit my back of my head with a huge metal pole in front of my parents. Got knocked. He showed no remorse at all. No idea where he is now though. .
Also the time he hit my back of my head with a huge metal pole in front of my parents. Got knocked. He showed no remorse at all. No idea where he is now though. .
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13points
#49
Not a psychologist, but, my cousin.
Enjoyed humiliating other children when he was just a child.
As a late teen/young adult he clipped the tattoo out of his ex her skin with a nailclipper.
Had many pet snakes, really enjoyed feeding it, even went as far as buying pet rabbits and pretending to be this forever home, when he was planning on feeding it. He laughed his a*s off about this man cuddling with his rabbits the last time.
Had rats, some he kept as pets and some were meant to feed the snakes. He bullied a rat-mother if she tried to get away from her babies for a second and punched the poor animal. It died eventually. He had another mother and she had to feed 20 something rats (half of them weren't hers), same thing, ended up letting his girlfriend bottle feed the rats.
His little brother confessed that at some point, he had 5 cats in his room and he'd let them get pregnant all the time. If he couldn't sell the kittens he just k****d them.
I once planned to buy a puppy somewhere, beautiful puppy. My grandparents lost their freaking minds over it because it was a very big breed and had no papers, they said if it wasn't from a good breeder, it was basically a m****r-machine and they talked me out of it. I had however already taken a picture of it, this was 10 years ago. and I recently recognized the picture I took on marketplace. My cousin is still trying to scam people with the picture I took of that dog. I know it was him because he used his dad's account.
Lots of other examples.
My family always knew. I used to tell them it was just a child and he would get over it and not to be so dramatic about their own cousin. But, yea, they were right. He's an adult now.
Enjoyed humiliating other children when he was just a child.
As a late teen/young adult he clipped the tattoo out of his ex her skin with a nailclipper.
Had many pet snakes, really enjoyed feeding it, even went as far as buying pet rabbits and pretending to be this forever home, when he was planning on feeding it. He laughed his a*s off about this man cuddling with his rabbits the last time.
Had rats, some he kept as pets and some were meant to feed the snakes. He bullied a rat-mother if she tried to get away from her babies for a second and punched the poor animal. It died eventually. He had another mother and she had to feed 20 something rats (half of them weren't hers), same thing, ended up letting his girlfriend bottle feed the rats.
His little brother confessed that at some point, he had 5 cats in his room and he'd let them get pregnant all the time. If he couldn't sell the kittens he just k****d them.
I once planned to buy a puppy somewhere, beautiful puppy. My grandparents lost their freaking minds over it because it was a very big breed and had no papers, they said if it wasn't from a good breeder, it was basically a m****r-machine and they talked me out of it. I had however already taken a picture of it, this was 10 years ago. and I recently recognized the picture I took on marketplace. My cousin is still trying to scam people with the picture I took of that dog. I know it was him because he used his dad's account.
Lots of other examples.
My family always knew. I used to tell them it was just a child and he would get over it and not to be so dramatic about their own cousin. But, yea, they were right. He's an adult now.
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10points
#50
Dude had a couple people bowing down on their knees in front of him praying through him to Jesus or something. He was really good at reading people and manipulating them. Charles Manson type stuff.
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8points