The Crime Book

273

Painter Walter Sickert (left), Prince

Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence (centre),

and Sir William Gull (right) have all

been suggested as suspects by modern

“Ripperologists” due to their poor alibis.

to use his knowledge of local

criminals to get some information

about the killer. This was not the

case – it is unlikely that the Ripper

was a known Whitechapel criminal,

and the man worked alone. None

of the criminals in the area were

able to provide any useful leads for

Abberline’s investigation.

The Ripper was also a press

sensation. Not only did articles

about the murderer create more

work for the police – who had to

deal with false leads, copycats, and

terror in the community – but

journalists also went to extreme

lengths to investigate the murders.

Some followed policemen around as

they investigated; others went so

far as to dress up like prostitutes

and wait for the Ripper to appear.

In the more than 125 years

since, countless detectives, writers,

and armchair sleuths have proffered

suspects from the Duke of Clarence

SERIAL KILLERS

and his physician, Sir William

Gull, to psychologically tortured

wretches like Polish hairdresser

Aaron Kosminski. Today, we are no

closer to discovering the Ripper’s

identity than we were in 1888.

At the inquest into Annie

Chapman’s death, Dr Phillips put

forward the opinion that the Ripper

may have been a medical man,

due to the anatomical knowledge

displayed in his removal of the

victims’ organs. However, Dr Bond

disagreed, stating after the Kelly

murder that the killer did not even

have a butcher’s accuracy when it

came to cutting into his victims.

The image of him as a doctor or

surgeon has persisted, however,

thanks to reports of the Ripper

carrying a Gladstone bag, often

used by medical professionals.

Profiling the Ripper

Modern social scientists largely

agree that the Ripper was a

resident of London’s East End.

Although we may never know the

Ripper’s real name, advances in

our understanding of serial killers

can provide strong indications as

to the kind of person he was.

There is a strong likelihood that

he suffered from chronic or episodic

impotence, which may have caused

or resulted from his abnormal, and

violent, sexual impulses. Like his

fellow “rippers” Andrei Chikatilo

and Robert Napper, he was

probably aroused by stabbing,

cutting, or mutilating his victims.

An alienated individual, it is likely

that he struggled to form intimate

relationships – particularly with

women. These deductions may

perhaps explain why the murderer

targeted prostitutes. ■

The murderer is likely to

be a quiet, inoffensive-

looking man.

Dr Thomas Bond

266-273_Jack_The_Ripper.indd 273 02/12/2016 15:04