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Who is Jack the Ripper?
Although almost a century and one quarter has passed since the horrific crimes committed by Jack the Ripper in the seamy Whitechapel section of London, the fascination with the 1888 killings of six prostitutes has never left the imaginations of writers, movie makers and crime buffs. Who is this deranged killer and why weren’t the London police ever able to capture him?
Perhaps the crime technology and criminal profiling techniques of today would have yielded many more clues as to the identity of Jack the Ripper. Certainly he left some clues behind, including a bloody leather apron. In an ultimate act of audacity, he even sent a body part of one of the victims to Scotland Yard. Whoever he is, he taunted the police of the day, making his escape swiftly and with much agility under cover of darkness.
Even at the time, it was suspected that the clue to the identity of Jack the Ripper lay in the victims he chose. But who is he? To this day, Scotland Yard does not know. They had their hands full as the mutilated body count mounted through the summer of 1888 and persisted until November of that year when the murders suddenly ceased.
There is no shortage of suspects from all backgrounds and walks of life for the police to consider. Jack the Ripper is thought to have possibly been a local butcher named Kominski who was known to possess a hatred of women and a violent streak. Other suspects include a member of the royal family, the Duke of Clarence, who was the eldest son of the future king of England, Edward VII, and a doctor named Montague Druitt, who was known for his deviant sexual proclivities. Druitt was found floating in the Thames River some seven weeks after the sixth victim was discovered.
The world will never know for certain the name of the killer who terrorized the streets of Whitechapel so long ago, and yet Jack the Ripper will never be forgotten. Although part of the mystique lies in the mystery shrouding his true identity, another even deeper interest lies in the unsettling realization of man’s capacity for hatred and cruelty.
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![Scotland Yard has investigated some of the most famous criminals in history, including Jack the Ripper.]()
By: Darren BakerScotland Yard has investigated some of the most famous criminals in history, including Jack the Ripper. -
![Jack the Ripper murdered six prostitutes.]()
By: stokketeJack the Ripper murdered six prostitutes. -
![One suspect, Dr. Montague Druitt, was found floating in the Thames seven weeks after the sixth murder.]()
By: TTstudioOne suspect, Dr. Montague Druitt, was found floating in the Thames seven weeks after the sixth murder.
Discussion Comments
No, no. The letter written by "Jack the Ripper" was a hoax. The From Hell letter is the only letter believed to be real, and did match Tumblety's hand writing displaying his odd habit of connecting the pronoun I to the words following it. The kidney was identified as most likely belonging to Liz Stride, as it had the same rare kidney disease she had. I'm from Rochester, New York. I wish there was a way to find out what house he lived in on Plymouth Avenue. Maybe something is hidden there.
jack the ripper was definitely francis tumblety. all evidence points to him, collection of wombs in glass jars, bloodstained shirt, rings off annie chapman on his person after he died, hatred of women, from hell letter identical to his own handwriting. police chasing him after he fled and skipped his bail. I think if they'd had forensic evidence in those days, tumblety would have been caught and hanged for the killings. it's so obvious he was the killer!
The body part was not sent by Jack the Ripper, but most likely by anonymous pranksters. That's the belief of the investigators at the time, the medical examiner who looked at it, and most credible modern historians. What makes you know differently. I have to question your source material.
One of the most famous murderers in the history we know is Jack the Ripper. As he walked along the street in the 19th century, with his black wind coat and top hat, he became more mythic and charming than the modern Zodiac. Neither Zodiac nor Jack the Ripper kills people now. And it is believed that Jack the Ripper stopped killing since November 9th, 1888. I just wonder whether Jack the Ripper is still alive in this world. As a human being, he could not live as long as over one hundred years. But I believe that his spirit could stay. It is said that no one knows who the Jack the Ripper was and no one knows what happened to him on November 9th, 1888. What stopped him killing? Was he enough for the human bodies? Or he is the evil from Hell and after that date he just returned home?
I believe that someone knew something about him. No one could be totally individual in this world. As an old saying goes, what is done by night appears by day. Maybe some victims were killed because they knew who Jack the Ripper was. It is horrible as I think that Jack the Ripper might come back and might be the ordinary people among us. You would never know that the shy man in your company or living next door-- you even dance together and wear the same rubber wristbands in the ball-- would be the cold blood killer at night. At the thought that he was a human being, I would be scared to wake up from the deepest sleep. But that is a human being-- we could kill the creatures of our kind, we could even eat the meat of our kind and in the daily life we just try our best to rob the creatures of our kind. Sometimes the city could be more bloody than the jungle.
Saucy Jack still provides fodder for amateur detectives who want to take a crack at solving one of history's best known serial killings. You can even take "Ripper" tours if you visit London. It's a gruesome little fascination.
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