Serial killer becomes pop star.

This would make for a great John Waters film.

Ryan is a former male model with a winning smile and a bevy of teenage groupies. He's written a book about his life and his first album, a collection of 12 pop numbers, is in the works. Indonesia's answer to Zac Efron, perhaps?

Not quite.

Ryan, real name Verry Idham Heryansyah, is also a confessed serial killer, with a penchant for dismemberment and mutilation. He has admitted to killing 11 people, including a three-year-old girl.

Police arrested him last July after linking him to a man whose body parts were found in plastic bags in Jakarta's south. They later found 10 more bodies buried behind Ryan's family home in East Java.

Ryan is now on trial, charged with premeditated murder. If convicted, he could face the firing squad. But his lawyers argue Ryan cannot be held responsible for the killings, because he is mentally ill and suffers from hallucinations.

Whatever the case, a possible death sentence hasn't dampened Ryan's entrepreneurial spirit, and he's doing all he can to cash in on his infamy.

First, there was the autobiography, titled Confessions: The Untold Story of Ryan. His album is rumoured to be titled My Last Performance. And it seems Ryan's shameless self-promotion has worked, at least on a few.

Before appearing in court last week, about 20 uniformed school girls reportedly showed up at his courthouse holding cell and begged him to sing for them.

Ryan belted out one of his originals, Release Me, before signing autographs and posing for pictures, reports said.

More here.