Murderous US cult leader Charles Manson dead at 83

This file handout photo, courtesy of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, shows inmate Charles Manson, on August 14, 2017. (Via AFP)

Charles Manson, the psychopathic cult leader who masterminded heinous murders in 1960s that shocked America, has died at the age of 83, California prison officials said.

Manson "died of natural causes at 8:13 pm (0213 GMT Monday) on Sunday" at a hospital in Kern County, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said in a brief statement.

Debra Tate -- the sister of Sharon Tate, Manson's most famous victim, -- told celebrity website TMZ that she received a call from prison authorities notifying her of the cult leader’s death.

Sharon Tate was the heavily-pregnant wife of director Roman Polanski. She pleaded for the life of her unborn child before she was stabbed to death.

This file photo taken on January 20, 1968 shows US actress Sharon Tate and French Director Roman Polanski standing on the steps at the Chelsea register Office in London, after their wedding. (Photo by AFP)

Manson orchestrated a wave of violence in August 1969 that terrorized mostly white neighborhoods of Los Angeles and took the lives of seven people.

The aim was to incriminate African Americans in the hope of triggering what he believed to be an apocalyptic war over race.

Manson served nine life terms in California prisons and was denied parole a dozen times. With a swastika tattooed between his eyes, Manson was the subject of many popular books and films, boosting his notoriety.

"He was the dictatorial ruler of the (Manson) family, the king, the Maharaja. And the members of the family were slavishly obedient to him," former Manson prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi told CNN in 2015.

From behind bars, Manson courted publicity, branding himself as a counter-cultural icon. He once told the Americans that "my father is your system... I am only what you made me. I am only a reflection of you."

Manson was earlier transferred from the Corcoran State Prison to a hospital in Bakersfield, in Kern County, to be treated for an unspecified illness.