The ten most notorious female criminals

By Lucy De Butts

Thursday 24 September 2009

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With figures released earlier this year showing crimes by young girls have risen by more than a fifth in the last four years, the shocking trend of female crime is attracting a lot of public attention. Is this really a new phenomenon, or have the female sex always had a big role to play in criminal activity?

As some of the colourful characters in this Top 10 show, there is no shortage of women in history who have been anything but law-abiding. From 'the Queen of London whoredom' who charged £250,000 for a single night of her services, notorious drug baron 'The Godmother', or 'Hell-Cat Maggie' with her specially sharpened teeth, there's a criminal here to satisfy every warped taste.

Click here or on the image to launch our guide to the most notable female criminals in history

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