Who is Jack the Ripper?

From August 7 to September 10 in 1888, “Jack the Ripper” terrorized the Whitechapel district in London’s East End. He killed at least five prostitutes and mutilated their bodies in an unusual manner, indicating that the killer had a knowledge of human anatomy. Jack the Ripper was never captured and remains one of England’s, and the world’s, most infamous criminals. The culprit responsible for the murders of five prostitutes—all took place within a mile of each other and involved the districts of Whitechapel, Spitalfields, Aldgate and the City of London—in London’s East End in the autumn of 1888 was never apprehended. Despite countless investigations claiming definitive evidence of the brutal killer’s identity, his name and motive are still unknown. The moniker “Jack the Ripper” originates from a letter written by someone who claimed to be the Whitechapel butcher, published at the time of the attacks. When Jack the Ripper’s murders suddenly stopped, in the fall of 1888, London citizens wanted answers that would not come, even more than a century later. The ongoing case—which has spawned an industry of books, films, TV series and historical tours—has met with a number of hindrances, including lack of evidence, a gamut of misinformation and false testimony, and tight regulations by the Scotland Yard. Jack the Ripper has been the topic of news stories for more than 120 years, and will likely continue to be for decades to come.

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