Career
He was convicted of the rape and kidnapping of a young Hungarian man (Balázs Falvay) whom he picked up hitch-hiking in 1988. He received a 10-year sentence for the attack, and was released in 1995 on probation. He was accused of murdering three of eight young men who disappeared in northeastern France between 1980 and 1987.
One of his alleged victims was Irishman Trevor O"Keeffe.
Chanal committed suicide in prison in 2003 while on trial.