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Modern Mysteries

Detective claims Jack the Ripper didn't exist

By T.K. Randall
September 24, 2013 · Comment icon 37 comments

Shipping on the Thames in Victorian era London. Image Credit: John Atkinson Grimshaw (1880)
An 11-year investigation in to the infamous 19th century killer has reached a startling conclusion.
The mysterious serial killer known only as Jack the Ripper has been the subject of investigations and research for over 125 years, but to date nobody has been able to piece together the identity of the Victorian-era killer whose grisly crimes saw the deaths of several women in London.

Now after a detailed investigation spanning more than a decade, former murder squad detective Trevor Marriott has determined that the reason Jack's identity has been so difficult to ascertain is because he didn't actually exist at all. Instead, the name was coined by a journalist called Thomas Bulling who forged a letter to Scotland Yard in the interests of obtaining a scoop.
While the murders certainly took place, it appears that they may have simply been grouped together under the name of Jack the Ripper and that there may have been multiple actual culprits.

"The facts of this case have been totally distorted over the years," said Marriott. "Jack is supposed to be responsible for five victims, but there were other similar murders before and after the ones attributed to him, both in this country and abroad in America and Germany."

The recognizable image of Jack the Ripper stalking the streets of London in a black cape and top hat, it seems, may have been nothing more than an urban myth.

Comments (37)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #28 Posted by Antilles 11 years ago
I never read much about the ripper story but Patricia Cornwall's ripper book was very interesting, where British master painter William Sickert being her number one suspect - there is even DNA evidence to support her claim, very provocative, but this story is certainly credible No, there is not credible evidence to support her claim. A fictional author has a go at writing a factual story. To make money. You have any other credible sources to back up her story? You'll be looking for a long time.
Comment icon #29 Posted by Antilles 11 years ago
For the 5 murders attributed to JTR, there were 3 different MO's: 3 were throttled before having their throat slashed; Cat Eddowes had her throat cut from behind (possibly with her own knife) without being throttled; Mary Kelly had her throat slashed in her own room without being throttled whilst facing her attacker (note the defence wounds on her arms in the photographs). There was no medical skill involved in any of the disembowelling (only 1 doctor out of the 5 who examined the victims disagreed with this, but retracted this later). In Whitechapel there were no murders in the preceding year... [More]
Comment icon #30 Posted by Asadora 11 years ago
Ahh yes the Mr. Ripper case. When I was a senior in high school, my AP English teacher was absolutely engrossed with anything involving Jack the Ripper. She explained to us one day, after being asked who she thought it could be and it's an explanation that I'll never forget. She -believed- that it was someone who worked closely with the Royal family at the time. She was very animated when she explained further, but when she was asked what proof did she have, my teacher just changed the subject to Beowulf. I'm not really sure why that episode has stuck with me for all these years, but it's just... [More]
Comment icon #31 Posted by Antilles 11 years ago
asadora, MJ Druitt is more along the lines of who the Ripper really was. No, he was not a cricket playing barrister but he was, IMO, a mentally disturbed individual who took his own life or who was incarcerated after he killed Mary Kelly. I'll add this for anyone who's interested. The Ripper sites then and now. http://youtu.be/sh02pH_HOsw
Comment icon #32 Posted by Ad hoc 11 years ago
I was in whitechapel a couple of days ago for a medical examination. Didn't see anyone with a cape, but there were certainly some fashion choices ripe for scrutiny, what with the slight hipster overspill from Shoreditch. I did however see a young guy giving a JTR tour a few weeks ago, which I hadn't seen before. Bet some of them left feeling super convinced by the mix of fact and hokum he probably sent their way
Comment icon #33 Posted by The New Richard Nixon 11 years ago
I think hes saying "p*** of tourists"
Comment icon #34 Posted by Antilles 11 years ago
I think hes saying "p*** of tourists" Since they're paying his wage, why would he?
Comment icon #35 Posted by Infinite Playlist 11 years ago
I was always in the belief that it was a surgeon, but after watching the Ripper episode of 'Is it Real?' I thought Sickert could certainly be credible.
Comment icon #36 Posted by LadyPhoenix 1 year ago
To claim that 'the killer never existed, but the  rimes still happened" is ridiculous.  There may be some debate about how many he killed, but no one reasonable would assume there was no killer. 
Comment icon #37 Posted by Inn Spectre 1 year ago
This is clearly a case for UCOS. They'll have it sorted within the hour.


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