For years, Luka Magnotta was obsessed with the way people saw him.
Magnotta – born Eric Clinton Newman – was a model and a self-confessed “cosmetic surgery addict”.
“I’ve had my nose done. I’ve had two hair implants like I said before. And I’m planning on having muscle implants in my pecs and my arms,” Magnotta said in an audition for reality TV show Plastic Makes Perfect in 2008, according to Oxygen.
But Magnotta’s self obsession didn’t end with his body image.
He wanted to get famous – and he was going to get there anyway he could.
Over the years, the Canadian created at least 20 websites and at least 70 Facebook pages dedicated to himself, where he even started a rumour that he had dated serial killer Karla Homolka.
Watch the trailer for new true crime documentary, Don’t F*ck With Cats: Hunting An Internet Killer, below. Post continues after video.
In 2010, Magnotta took his quest for fame to the next level.
On December 21, the Canadian shared a video to YouTube titled: “1 Boy 2 Kittens”. In the video, Magnotta, who was hidden by the hoodie he was wearing, suffocated two small tabby kittens to death.
Instantly, that single video launched an international online manhunt involving individuals from America, Paris, London and even Russia.
The story of Luka Magnotta and the search to find him is the subject of Netflix’s latest true crime documentary, Don’t F*ck With Cats: Hunting An Internet Killer.
As seen in the documentary’s trailer, Magnotta’s cruel video inspired online sleuths to bring him down as they feared he would kill a human being.
“Clearly, this video is not the end,” one of the online sleuths said in the trailer. “Something bad’s about to happen.”
After sharing his initial video in December 2010, Magnotta uploaded at least two more videos depicting the torture and killing of animals – including one where he fed a kitten to a Burmese python.
As Magnotta uploaded the videos, a team of people from around the world were working together via Facebook to hunt down the Canadian man.
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Over several months, the group analysed the uploaded footage, pulled metadata from photos he had shared, analysed the electrical plugs in the wall, and even found evidence about where he was hiding.
But when the group repeatedly brought their findings about Magnotta to the Montreal police, they were reportedly told it was “just cats”.
Eventually, journalists from British publication The Sun joined the manhunt, where they found and questioned Magnotta about the videos while he was in London.
According to Canadian newspaper National Post, Magnotta sent the publication a letter, warning that he was about to move on to bigger targets.
“In the near future, you will be hearing from me again,” he reportedly wrote to The Sun in an email.
“This time, however, the victims won’t be small animals. I will however, send you a copy of the new video I’m going to be making,” he continued.
“You see, killing is different than smoking… with smoking you can actually quit. Once you kill, and taste blood, it’s impossible to stop.”
Although police in Britain investigated the email, it didn’t lead to any action. As Magnotta soon returned to Canada, it was reportedly impossible for British police to act.
Not long after he made his promise to The Sun, Magnotta did indeed move on to bigger targets.
On the night of May 24, 2012, university student Lin Jun responded to an online advertisement Magnotta had shared on Craigslist, looking for a man who wanted to engage in sex and bondage.
At the time, Jun, who was an international student from China, had only been in Canada for approximately a year.
"He wanted to find someone with something in common," one of Jun's friends later said. "He didn't deserve this."
The next morning, a video titled "1 Lunatic 1 Icepick" was shared online for the whole world to see.
In the 10 minute video, Magnotta, who was once again wearing a hoodie, was seen killing Jun and then dismembering his body.
In the days that followed, Magnotta mailed several of the victim's body parts to institutions across Canada, including two elementary schools, leading police to begin hunting for the killer.
After papers identifying Jun were found at Magnotta's apartment by a janitor and the pair's connection was confirmed via surveillance footage, it didn't take long for police to link Magnotta to the crime.
By that point, the Canadian man had flew to Paris, before taking a bus to Berlin, launching an international manhunt.
Finally, on June 4, international police found Magnotta in an internet cafe in Berlin. At the time, he was reading about his own crimes.
In December 2014, after eight days of deliberations, Magnotta was found guilty on all counts of first degree murder.
He was sentenced to life in prison in Quebec's Port-Cartier prison, with a possibility of parole after 25 years.
In 2017, Magnotta reportedly married fellow inmate and convicted killer Anthony Jolin. The pair met on Canadian Inmates Connect, which is a prison dating website.
It's believed Magnotta's mother, Anna Yourkin, was a witness at the ceremony.
But despite being legally married, Magnotta and Jolin are not permitted to spend any time together alone.
At the time, a social integration worker at Pont-Cartier Penitentiary explained why: "I do not want to make any value judgement on Mr. Magnotta, but with the offence he committed... leaving that person alone with his spouse unattended for two to three days, I have a certain [unease]."
Don't F*ck With Cats: Hunting An Internet Killer is available to watch on Netflix now.