The face of Jack the Ripper has been pieced together by Scotland Yard experts from evidence left by the Victorian killer.
Modern profiling techniques have been used to form the most accurate portrait ever of the murderer, whose identity has remained a mystery for 118 years.
The clues also suggest that police at the time were probably searching for the wrong kind of man.
The Ripper, who strangled and butchered five prostitutes in East London in seemingly motiveless attacks in 1888, is thought to have been aged between 25 and 35, about 5ft 6in (1.68m) tall and stockily built.
Laura Richards, head of analysis at Scotland Yard’s violent crime unit, which conducted the study, said: ‘For the first time, we are able to understand the kind of person Jack the Ripper was.
‘We can name the street where he probably lived, we can see what he looked like and we can explain, finally, why he eluded justice.’ Ms Richards and former Metropolitan Police commander John Grieve assembled a team of experts including pathologists, historians and a geographical profiler to see whether the case could be solved.
They analysed the Ripper ‘s killings and examined 13 witness statements taken at the time to come up with a person who, according to Ms Richards, was ‘frighteningly normal, yet capable of extraordinary cruelty’.
Mr Grieve added: ‘This is further than anyone else has got.
‘It would have been enough for coppers to get out and start knocking on doors. They would have got him.’
The results of the team’s study will be shown in Jack the Ripper: The First Serial Killer – Revealed, on Five at 8pm tomorrow.
Link:
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article....&in_page_id=34
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