3. During World War II, This Doctor Had a Good Dr. Jekyll Side, That Was Eclipsed by His Evil Mr. Hyde Persona
Paris agreed with Dr. Petiot. He used fake credentials to attract patients, and before long, he had established a thriving practice in the 9th Arrondissement. It helped that his office gained a reputation as a pill mill, handing out controlled drug prescriptions to all and sundry. Nor did it hurt that the doctor was more than willing to perform illegal abortions for the right price. However, despite his thriving and highly lucrative practice – made even more lucrative by his tax evasion – Petiot persisted with the thefts, petty and grand, of anything that was not nailed down.
In 1936, he was institutionalized for kleptomania, but was released the following year. After France was defeated and conquered by the Nazis in 1940, French citizens were drafted to toil in Germany as forced laborers. Dr. Petiot helped labor draft evaders by furnishing them with fake medical disability documents. He also treated returning workers who had been sent back from Germany, broken down and in poor health. That was his good side – the Dr. Jekyll part. Unfortunately, it was eclipsed by the doctor’s evil Mr. Hyde side.