Musician Marilyn Manson is an obvious example of someone who was influenced by the case, as well as British rock band Kasabian, who draw their name from Manson Familymember Linda Kasabian.
The new breed of spear-phishing emails appear to be sent by a close friend or familymember, address the victim by name in the subject line or body of the message, and include a link to a website controlled by spammers.
Common details between the three killings, plus a lead from an email exchange between a member of Mr. Merah's family and one of the victims, brought his name to the top of a list of suspects, police said.