This name came about through the newspapers. This was the first major murder story that had international appeal, so journalists would try everything to boost public awareness. One unscrupulous journalist wrote into a newspaper pretending to be the killer and signed the letter as Jack the Ripper. The name caught on because of the accuracy of the name with the gory details of the murders.

Although the letter was later uncovered as a fake, the world seized the sensational name the press had given the killer.

The mystery of the Ripper case has never been put to bed. Even to this day people are still fascinated by it. This is why, in 1986, the FBI created a detailed psychological profile of Jack the Ripper to see if they could find the culprit by looking through the records from the time.

The profile took into account geographical situations, motives, required knowledge, any physiological prerequisites and potential psychological attributes. Once the mould had been cast all that was needed was to trawl back through the case notes and reports to see if anyone who had been suspected fitted with the profile.

Someone did.

To Be Continued


© Manishi Anand