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Descendants of Jack the Ripper’s victims are demanding a fresh inquest into the historic murders after new evidence seemingly confirms the identity of the 19th century serial killer.
The three-times great-granddaughter of one of the Ripper’s victims has issued an emotional plea for the UK coroner to formally unmask the murderer, who has been identified through DNA as Aaron Kosminski.
“Having the real person legally named in a court, which can consider all the evidence, would be a form of justice for the victims,” says Karen Miller, whose ancestor, Catherine Eddowes was brutally killed by the Ripper on September 30, 1888.
CRIME SOLVED
“We have got the proof, now we need this inquest to legally name the killer. It would mean a lot to me, to my family, to a lot of people to finally have this crime solved.”
Not much is known about Kosminski except that he was a Polish barber who emigrated to East London in the early 1880s and lived near the Whitechapel locations where the Ripper’s victims were killed.
Despite being a suspect and his name being mentioned in police memos at the time of the murders, Kosminski was never charged.
In 1891, Kosminski threatened his sister with a knife and was institutionalised at the Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum. He died aged 53 in 1919, in another psychiatric hospital and it’s thought he suffered from schizophrenia.
Over the last 130 years there have been theories the killer could be a high-profile doctor, barrister, a member of the royal family, a costume-maker to Queen Victoria or even Lewis Carroll, author of Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland.
Then, 17-years ago, a bloody scarf thought to have been worn by Catherine at the time of her death was purchased by historical crime enthusiast and author Russell Edwards, who hoped it would help finally uncover the Ripper’s true identity.
POSITIVE MATCH
He found a genetic scientist willing to examine the tattered silk scarf and analyse it under laboratory conditions. It was eventually confirmed that the tattered silk scarf still contained traces of DNA from Jack the Ripper and Catherine.
With the help of genealogists, Russell found a relative of Aaron Kosminski who was willing to offer up her own DNA for comparison. When that came back with a positive match, Russell was convinced he’d solved the case.
“It’s very difficult to put into words the elation I felt when I saw that 100 per cent match,” Russell tells Woman’s Day. “This brings closure and it’s a form of justice for the descendants.”
Two years ago, the UK’s then Attorney General refused permission for an application to the High Court for an inquest into the case. But in correspondence with a new legal team hired by Russell, East London coroner Nadia Persaud has recently suggested she would be willing to hold an inquest.
ATTACKED WHILE SLEEPING
It’s never been possible to establish exactly how many murders the Ripper was responsible for in the Whitechapel area. But it’s generally agreed that as well as Catherine, four other women were killed by him: Mary Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride and Mary Kelly.
All were subjected to horrific and violent attacks and while police and newspapers at the time claimed they were sex workers, only two were.
The others were homeless and attacked while sleeping on the street. During the four-month period in 1888 when the killer terrorised the East End of London, hundreds of letters were sent to the police and local press from an author claiming to be the Ripper.
Public interest and lurid details about the case kept the Ripper on the front pages and marked the first time true crime reached a wide audience. In 2015, the Jack the Ripper museum opened in East London.
For the relatives of the victims, being able to name their killer is the only way they can have a kind of justice.
“He can’t be prosecuted because he’s dead but this is the closest thing they can do,” says Russell. “This man committed atrocities towards their ancestors and we know it’s him and we want the courts to say, ‘Yes, you’re right.’”
Watch Jack the Ripper: The Definitive Story on Binge
