114-731: The Whitechapel murders were committed in or near the impoverished Whitechapel district in the East End of London between 3 April 1888 and 13 February 1891. At various points some or all of these eleven unsolved murders of women have been ascribed to the notorious unidentified serial killer known as Jack the Ripper . Most, if not all, of the eleven victims— Emma Elizabeth Smith , Martha Tabram , Mary Ann "Polly" Nichols , Annie Chapman , Elizabeth Stride , Catherine Eddowes , Mary Jane Kelly , Rose Mylett, Alice McKenzie, Frances Coles , and an unidentified woman—were engaged in prostitution. Smith
228-458: A Sikh officer whose beard was cut. The report also found that officers of minority ethnic backgrounds were more likely to be disciplined and leave the force. The report was criticised by the charity Galop for not investigating transphobia. Five former officers admitted in court in 2023 to sending racist messages, the targets of which included the Duchess of Sussex , and a sixth was convicted after
342-464: A chair, with the exception of some found burnt in the grate. Abberline thought the clothes had been burned by the murderer to provide light, as the room was otherwise only dimly lit by a single candle. Kelly's murder was the most savage, probably because the murderer had more time to commit his atrocities in a private room rather than in the street. Her state of undress and folded clothes have led to suggestions that she undressed herself before lying down on
456-456: A detached length between her torso and left arm. Her left kidney and most of her uterus were removed. The Eddowes inquest was opened on 4 October by Samuel F. Langham, coroner for the City of London. The examining pathologist, Dr Frederick Gordon Brown, believed the perpetrator "had considerable knowledge of the position of the organs" and from the position of the wounds on the body he could tell that
570-619: A disagreement with the Home Secretary Henry Matthews over police pensions. The last of the murders in the Whitechapel file was committed on Friday 13 February 1891 when prostitute Frances Coles was murdered under a railway arch in Swallow Gardens, Whitechapel. Her body was found at 2:15 am, only moments after the attack, by PC Ernest Thompson, who later stated that he heard retreating footsteps in
684-580: A fair moustache. Chief Inspector Swanson noted that Lawende's description was a near match to another provided by one of the witnesses who may have seen Stride with her murderer. However, Lawende stated that he would not be able to identify the man again, and the two other men with Lawende were unable to give descriptions. Criticism of the Metropolitan Police and the Home Secretary , Henry Matthews , continued to mount as little progress
798-537: A gang, as in the case of Smith. The Star newspaper suggested instead that a single killer was responsible and other newspapers took up their storyline. Suspicions of a serial killer at large in London led to the secondment of Detective Inspectors Frederick Abberline , Henry Moore and Walter Andrews from the Central Office at Scotland Yard . On the available evidence, Coroner Baxter concluded that Nichols
912-478: A public demonstration of their efficacy. However, the idea was abandoned because the trail of scents was confused in the busy city, the dogs were inexperienced in an urban environment, and Brough was concerned that the dogs would be poisoned by criminals if their role in crime detection became known. On 27 September, the Central News Agency received a letter, dubbed the "Dear Boss" letter , in which
1026-449: A report by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services said that the Met was rated inadequate or failing regarding crime investigations and managing offenders. It was rated as requiring improvement in five other areas, and as adequate in one. In September 2024, His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services issued a report regarding
1140-403: A reputation for terrorising local prostitutes. His alibis for the two most recent murders were corroborated, and he was released without charge. At the inquest one of the witnesses, Mrs Elizabeth Long, testified that she had seen Chapman talking to a man at about 5:30 am just beyond the back yard of 29 Hanbury Street, where Chapman was later found. Baxter inferred that the man Mrs Long had seen
1254-499: A right-handed individual. On the basis of statements from a fellow prostitute, and PC Thomas Barrett who was patrolling nearby, Inspector Reid put soldiers at the Tower of London and Wellington Barracks on an identification parade, but without positive results. Police did not connect Tabram's murder with the earlier murder of Emma Smith, but they did connect her death with later murders. Most experts do not connect Tabram's murder with
SECTION 10
#17327835813061368-410: A service life of three to five years; the Met replaces or upgrades between 800 and 1,000 vehicles each year. Vehicles were initially maintained and repaired on contract by Babcock International ; from November 2023, the contract for 3,700 of the Met's 5,200 vehicles was undertaken by Rivus Fleet Solutions for a ten-year period. Rivus fell into administration on 21 June 2024, with a deal being agreed by
1482-475: A single file, referred to in the police docket as the Whitechapel murders. Much of the original material has been stolen, lost, or destroyed. On Tuesday 3 April 1888, following the Easter Monday bank holiday, 45-year-old prostitute Emma Elizabeth Smith was assaulted and robbed at the junction of Osborn Street and Brick Lane , Whitechapel, in the early hours of the morning. Although injured, she survived
1596-533: A statement in response stating, "As the UK's investigative authority for war crimes, counter-terrorism policing – through the Met's war crimes team – has a responsibility to support ICC investigations. The ICC opened an investigation in 2019 into alleged war crimes in Israel and Palestine." The spokesman added that "under the terms of the 1998 Rome Statute, our war crimes team is obliged to support any investigations opened by
1710-443: A trial. All six were given suspended jail sentences . On 1 January 2024 the Metropolitan Police were criticised by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson for allegedly demonstrating political bias and double standards in their handling of pro-Hamas demonstrations, and their efforts to support an investigation into alleged Israeli war crimes following Israel's response to terror attacks committed by Hamas on 7 October. The Met released
1824-519: A unique identification number which includes a two-letter BCU (Basic Command Unit) code. Following controversy over assaults by uniformed officers with concealed shoulder identification numbers during the G20 summit , Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said, "the public has a right to be able to identify any uniformed officer whilst performing their duty" by their shoulder identification numbers. The Met uniformed officer rank structure, with epaulette design,
1938-774: Is able to appoint someone to act on his behalf. As of April 2019 , the office-holder is the deputy mayor for policing and crime, Sophie Linden . The work of MOPAC is scrutinised by the Police and Crime Committee (also known as a police and crime panel ) of the London Assembly . These structures were created by the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 and replaced the Metropolitan Police Authority -appointed board created in 2000 by Greater London Authority Act 1999 . Before 2000,
2052-494: Is as follows (from highest to lowest): The Met also has several active Volunteer Police Cadet units, which maintain their own internal rank structure. The Metropolitan Special Constabulary is a contingent of part-time volunteer police officers and is attached to most Borough Operational Command Units. The Metropolitan Special Constabulary Ranks are as follows (from lowest to highest): The prefix "woman" in front of female officers' ranks has been obsolete since 1999. Members of
2166-437: Is considered unlikely to be connected with the later killings. On Tuesday 7 August, following a Monday bank holiday, prostitute Martha Tabram was murdered at about 2:30 am. Her body was found at George Yard Buildings, George Yard, Whitechapel, shortly before 5:00 a.m. She had been stabbed 39 times about her neck, torso and genitals with a short blade. With one possible exception, all her wounds had been inflicted by
2280-575: Is great similarity between this and the other class of cases, which have happened in this neighbourhood, and if the same person has not committed this crime, it is clearly an imitation of the other cases." A woman's torso was found at 5:15 a.m. on Tuesday 10 September 1889 under a railway arch in Pinchin Street, Whitechapel. Extensive bruising about the victim's back, hip, and arm indicated that she had been severely beaten shortly before her death, which had occurred approximately one day prior to
2394-515: Is organised into the following directorates: Each is overseen by an assistant commissioner or, in the case of administrative departments, a director of police staff , which is the equivalent civilian staff grade. The management board is made up of the commissioner, deputy commissioner, assistant commissioners and directors. The Metropolitan Police Service uses the standard British police ranks, indicated by epaulettes, up to chief superintendent , but uniquely has five ranks above that level instead of
SECTION 20
#17327835813062508-493: The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) up to and including the rank of chief superintendent prefix their ranks with "detective". Detective ranks are equivalent in rank to their uniform counterparts. Other departments, such as Special Branch and Child Protection, award non-detectives "branch detective" status, allowing them to use the "Detective" prefix. None of these detective ranks confer on
2622-549: The Hampstead Heath Constabulary . All of these enjoy powers of arrest without warrant as constables; however, the officers of the last mentioned have full police powers, much like officers of the Metropolitan Police, on the heath, whereas the other parks' police primarily focus on by-law enforcement. Metropolitan Police officers have legal jurisdiction throughout all of England and Wales , including areas that have their own special police forces, such as
2736-883: The Royal Parks Constabulary , which patrolled a number of Greater London's major parks, was merged with the Metropolitan Police in 2004, and those parks are now policed by the Royal Parks Operational Command Unit . There is also a small park police force, the Kew Constabulary , responsible for the Royal Botanic Gardens , whose officers have full police powers within the park. A few local authorities maintain their own borough park constabularies, including Wandsworth Parks and Events Police , Kensington and Chelsea Parks Police , Havering Parks Constabulary and
2850-549: The Whitechapel Vigilance Committee under the chairmanship of George Lusk and offered a reward for the apprehension of the killer—something the Metropolitan Police (under instruction from the Home Office ) refused to do because such a move could lead to false or misleading information. The Committee employed two private detectives to investigate the case. Robert Anderson was appointed head of
2964-433: The " Whitehall Mystery ". Monro agreed with Swanson's assessment. These three murders and the Pinchin Street case are suggested to be the work of a serial killer, nicknamed the "Torso killer", who could either be the same person as "Jack the Ripper" or a separate killer of uncertain connection. Links between these and three further murders—the " Battersea Mystery " of 1873 and 1874, in which two women were found dismembered, and
3078-521: The "Dear Boss" letter and "Saucy Jacky" postcard. The letter arrived with a small box containing half of a human kidney preserved in alcohol. The letter's writer claimed that he had extracted it from the body of Eddowes and that he had "fried and ate" the missing half. Opinion on whether the kidney and the letter were genuine was and is divided. By the end of October, the police had interviewed more than 2,000 people, investigated "upwards of 300", and detained 80. On Friday 9 November, prostitute Mary Jane Kelly
3192-781: The "District of Tower" as part of the Whitechapel District. The Great Tower Hill Act 1869 interpretation of this was Old Tower Without , including within it Great Tower Hill . Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; as such the parish of St Mary Whitechapel within the Whitechapel District Boards of Works was divided into three wards (electing vestrymen ): No. 1 or East (15), No. 2 or Middle (9) and No. 3 or South (12). The district board elected one member of
3306-519: The ' jam sandwich ', which was first introduced in 1978 with the delivery of high-performance Rover SD1 traffic cars. Originally, marked vehicles were finished in base white paint; this was changed to silver from 2002 to help improve a vehicle's resale value when it was retired from police use. The National Police Air Service provides helicopter support to the Met. A marine policing unit operates 22 vessels from its base in Wapping . Funding for
3420-457: The 1884 " Tottenham Court Road Mystery "—have also been postulated. Experts on the murders—colloquially known as "Ripperologists"—such as Stewart Evans, Keith Skinner , Martin Fido , and Donald Rumbelow , discount any connection between the torso and Ripper killings on the basis of their different modi operandi . Monro was replaced as Commissioner by Sir Edward Bradford on 21 June 1890, after
3534-609: The 19th century. The Met is presently headquartered at New Scotland Yard , on the Victoria Embankment . The main geographical area covered by the Met, the Metropolitan Police District , consists of the 32 London boroughs , and excludes the square mile of the City of London – a largely non-residential and financial district, overseen by the City of London Police . As the force responsible for
Whitechapel murders - Misplaced Pages Continue
3648-494: The CID on 1 September, but he went on sick leave to Switzerland on the 7th. Superintendent Thomas Arnold , who was in charge of H (Whitechapel) Division, went on leave on 2 September. Anderson's absence left overall direction of the enquiries confused, and led Chief Commissioner Sir Charles Warren to appoint Chief Inspector Donald Swanson to co-ordinate the investigation from Scotland Yard . A German hairdresser named Charles Ludwig
3762-527: The Commissioners were also non-warranted right up until 2011), but they now include police community support officers (PCSOs ), designated detention officers (DDOs), and many other non-officer roles. Their numbers are currently: As of 2023 , the Met operates and maintains a fleet of around 5,200 vehicles. In 2018, the fleet covered 46,777,720 miles (75,281,440 km). The fleet comprises numerous vehicles, including: The majority of vehicles have
3876-653: The Home Office. The post of commissioner was first held jointly by Sir Charles Rowan and Sir Richard Mayne , with Sir Mark Rowley currently holding the position since July 2022. The Metropolitan Police Service was founded in 1829 by Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel under the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 and on 29 September of that year, the first constables of the service appeared on the streets of London. Ten years later, Metropolitan Police Act 1839 consolidated policing within London by expanding
3990-455: The ICC that could involve British subjects" and said the posters were put up to meet that obligation. In April 2024, the Met settled a claim for misfeasance in a public office and false imprisonment by agreeing to pay a five-figure sum as damages to a French publisher who had been arrested and detained under anti-terrorism laws while he was on his way to a book fair in London. In August 2024,
4104-465: The Met had received such allegations from Samantha Ramsay, who is now deceased. The BBC reported that "Samantha’s family say the Met dismissed her claims. They believe that multiple women could have been saved from sexual abuse if the force had acted." The Met claimed that there was no history of Samantha's allegations on their computer system, "but that in 1995 some reports were paper-based and might not have been transferred." Ramsay's sister, Emma, recalled
4218-449: The Met has attempted to save money due to cuts in funding. The MPD is now divided into 12 Basic Command Units (BCUs) made up of two, three or four boroughs. There is criticism of these changes. The City of London (which is not a London borough) is a separate police area and is the responsibility of the separate City of London Police . The Ministry of Defence Police is responsible for policing of Ministry of Defence property throughout
4332-622: The Met, with the assistance of any relevant specialist force, even if they are committed on Ministry of Defence or railway property. A minor incursion into the normal jurisdiction of territorial police officers in England and Wales is that Met officers involved in the protection duties of the Royal Family and other VIPs have full police powers in Scotland and Northern Ireland in connection with those duties. The Metropolitan Police Service
4446-716: The Metropolitan Board of Works. The district was abolished in 1900 and became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney . Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service ( MPS ), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police , is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and crime prevention within Greater London . In addition, it is responsible for specialised tasks throughout
4560-671: The Metropolitan Police District and either abolishing or amalgamating the various other law enforcement entities within London into the Metropolitan Police such as the Thames River Police and the Bow Street Runners . Since January 2012, the Mayor of London is responsible for the governance of the Metropolitan Police through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC). The mayor
4674-438: The Metropolitan Police has been cut due to austerity . Changes in the way the government pays for police pensions will lead to further cuts. Its expenditure for single years, not adjusted for inflation, has been: In addition to the headquarters at New Scotland Yard, there are many police stations in London. These range from large borough headquarters staffed around the clock every day to smaller stations, which may be open to
Whitechapel murders - Misplaced Pages Continue
4788-414: The Metropolitan Police to buy back its maintenance operations, saving 165 jobs. By 2012, the Met was marking all new marked vehicles with Battenburg markings , a highly reflective material on the side of the vehicles, chequered blue and yellow green for the police, and in other colours for other services. The old livery was an orange stripe through the vehicle, with the force's logo, known colloquially as
4902-411: The Metropolitan Police was under the authority of the Home Secretary , the only British territorial police force to be administered by central government . The Metropolitan Police Office (MPO), although based at Scotland Yard, was a department of the Home Office created in 1829 and was responsible for the force's day-to-day administration. Under the authority of the receiver , a civilian official who
5016-593: The Met’s handling of the pro-Palestinian protests, saying that the Met had been largely impartial. The report criticised the then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the then Home Secretary Suella Braverman for suggesting otherwise. In November 2024, it was found that the Metropolitan Police were told about allegations of sexual assault against Mohamed Al-Fayed , the late businessman and owner of Harrods, ten years earlier than it had acknowledged. The Met had claimed that it first received such allegations in 2005. However, in 1995,
5130-572: The Ministry of Defence, as do all police officers of territorial police forces . Officers also have limited powers in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Within the MPD, the Met will take over the investigation of any serious crime from the Ministry of Defence Police and to a lesser degree BTP, if it is deemed appropriate. Terrorist incidents and complex murder enquiries will almost always be investigated by
5244-574: The Office of Constable. *include temporary constables from war period ^includes 753 officers policing Woolwich Arsenal and Her Majesty's Dockyards in Chatham , Portsmouth , Pembroke , Devonport and Rosyth . The Met's Police Staff are non-warranted civilians. When the Met was formed in 1829 there were only six of them (the Receiver , his two clerks and the three Commissioners' clerks, although
5358-810: The United Kingdom, including its headquarters in Whitehall and other MoD establishments across the MPD. The British Transport Police (BTP) are responsible for policing of the rail network in Great Britain , including London. Within London, they are also responsible for the policing of the London Underground , London Trams , the London Cable Car and the Docklands Light Railway . The English part of
5472-523: The United Kingdom, such as dealing with counter-terrorism throughout the UK , and the protection of certain individuals, including the monarch , royal family , governmental officials , and other designated figures. Commonly referred to as the Met , it is also referred to as Scotland Yard or the Yard , after the location of its original headquarters in Great Scotland Yard , Whitehall in
5586-458: The Whitechapel murders. Abberline retired in 1892 and Matthews lost his position as Home Secretary in the 1892 general election . Arnold retired the following year, and Swanson and Anderson retired after 1900. No document in the Whitechapel murders file dates after 1896. Whitechapel District (Metropolis) Whitechapel was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London , England from 1855 to 1900. The district
5700-688: The area of the MBW was constituted the County of London , and the district board became a local authority under the London County Council . The district comprised the following civil parishes . The main function of the parish vestries within the district was to elect the 58 members of the Whitechapel District Board of Works. The parishes (and number of district board members elected) were: The 1855 legislation included
5814-491: The attack and managed to walk back to her lodging house at 18 George Street, Spitalfields. She told the deputy keeper, Mary Russell, that she had been attacked by two or three men, one of them a teenager. Russell took Smith to the London Hospital , where a medical examination revealed that a blunt object had been inserted into her vagina, rupturing her peritoneum . She developed peritonitis and died at 9:00 a.m.
SECTION 50
#17327835813065928-447: The bed, which would indicate that she was killed by someone she knew, by someone she believed to be a client, or when she was asleep or intoxicated. The coroner for North East Middlesex, Dr Roderick Macdonald , MP, presided over the inquest into Kelly's death at Shoreditch Town Hall on 12 November. Amid scenes of great emotion, an "enormous crowd" of mourners attended Mary Kelly's funeral on 19 November. The streets became gridlocked and
6042-540: The body belonged to Lydia Hart, who had disappeared, was refuted after she was found recovering in hospital after "a bit of a spree". Another claim that the victim was a missing girl called Emily Barker was also refuted, as the torso was from an older and taller woman. Swanson did not consider this a Ripper case, and instead suggested a link to the Thames Torso Murders in Rainham and Chelsea , as well as
6156-409: The body, leading some to believe Thompson had disturbed her assailant. Superintendent Arnold and Inspector Reid arrived soon afterwards from the nearby Leman Street police station, and Chief Inspectors Donald Swanson and Henry Moore , who had been involved in the previous murder investigations, arrived by 5 am. A man named James Sadler , who had earlier been seen with Coles, was arrested by
6270-493: The case was added to the Whitechapel file. Alice McKenzie was possibly a prostitute, and was murdered at about 12:40 am on Wednesday 17 July 1889 in Castle Alley, Whitechapel. Like most of the previous murders, her left carotid artery was severed from left to right and there were wounds on her abdomen. However, her wounds were not as deep as in previous murders, and a shorter blade was used. Commissioner Monro and one of
6384-469: The collar of her dress while in a drunken stupor. At Anderson's request Dr Bond examined Mylett's body, and he agreed with Anderson. Commissioner Monro also suspected it was a suicide or natural death as there were no signs of a struggle. The coroner, Wynne Baxter, told the inquest jury that "there is no evidence to show that death was the result of violence". Nevertheless, the jury returned a verdict of "wilful murder against some person or persons unknown" and
6498-777: The conviction of the actual murderer. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner reported that the Whitechapel murderer remained unidentified despite 143 extra plain-clothes policemen deployed in Whitechapel in November and December. On Thursday 20 December 1888, a patrolling constable found the strangled body of 26-year-old prostitute Rose Mylett in Clarke's Yard, off Poplar High Street. Mylett (born Catherine Milett and known as Drunken Lizzie Davis and Fair Alice Downey) had lodged at 18 George Street, as had Emma Smith. Four doctors who examined Mylett's body thought she had been murdered, but Robert Anderson thought she had accidentally hanged herself on
6612-491: The cortège struggled to travel from Shoreditch mortuary to the Roman Catholic Cemetery at Leytonstone , where she was laid to rest. On 8 November, Charles Warren resigned as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police after the Home Secretary informed him that he could not make public statements without Home Office approval. James Monro , who had resigned a few months earlier over differences with Warren,
6726-705: The cost of sleeping upon a "lean-to" rope stretched across the bedrooms was 2d for adults or children. All the identified victims of the Whitechapel murders lived within the heart of the rookery in Spitalfields , including three in George Street (later named Lolesworth Street), two in Dorset Street, two in Flower and Dean Street and one in Thrawl Street. Police work and criminal prosecutions at
6840-404: The day they were reported in 2017 and did not investigate them further. This compares to 13,019 the previous year. 18,093 crimes were closed in 24 hours during the first 5 months of 2018 making it likely that the 2017 total will be exceeded. Crimes not being investigated include sexual assaults and arson, burglaries, thefts and assaults. Some critics believe this shows the effect of austerity on
6954-428: The discovery of her torso. The victim's abdomen was also extensively mutilated in a manner reminiscent of the Ripper, although her genitals had not been wounded. The dismembered sections of the body are believed to have been transported to the railway arch, hidden under an old chemise. The age of the victim was estimated at 30–40 years. Despite a search of the area, no other sections of her body were ever found, and neither
SECTION 60
#17327835813067068-468: The distance. As contemporary police practices dictated, Thompson remained at the scene. Coles was lying beneath a passageway under a railway arch between Chamber Street and Royal Mint Street. She was still alive, but died before medical help could arrive. Minor wounds on the back of her head suggest that she was thrown violently to the ground before her throat was cut at least twice, from left to right and then back again. Otherwise there were no mutilations to
7182-468: The enquiry. At 3 am, a blood-stained fragment of Eddowes's apron was found lying in the passage of the doorway leading to 108 to 119 Goulston Street, Whitechapel, about a third of a mile (500 m) from the murder scene. There was chalk writing on the wall of the doorway , which read either "The Juwes are the men that will not be blamed for nothing" or "The Juwes are not the men who will be blamed for nothing." At 5 am, Commissioner Warren attended
7296-563: The fence. In his memoirs, Walter Dew recorded that the killings caused widespread panic in London. A mob attacked the Commercial Road police station, suspecting that the murderer was being held there. Samuel Montagu , the Member of Parliament for Whitechapel , offered a reward of £100 (roughly £14,000 as of 2024) after rumours that the attacks were Jewish ritual killings led to anti-Semitic demonstrations. Local residents founded
7410-499: The first victim of Jack the Ripper, but his colleagues suspected her murder was the work of a criminal gang. Smith claimed that she was attacked by two or three men, but either refused to or could not describe them beyond stating one was a teenager. East End prostitutes were often managed by gangs, and Smith could have been attacked by her pimps as a punishment for disobeying them, or as an act of intimidation. She may not have identified her attackers because she feared reprisal. Her murder
7524-483: The following day. The inquest was conducted on 7 April by the coroner for East Middlesex , Wynne Edwin Baxter , who also conducted inquests on six of the later victims. The local inspector of the Metropolitan Police, Edmund Reid of H Division Whitechapel, investigated the attack but the culprits were never caught. Walter Dew , a detective constable stationed with H Division, later wrote that he believed Smith to be
7638-425: The force's ability to carry out its responsibilities. The Met was controversial even before its formation in 1829. Since the 1970s, such controversies have often centred on institutional racism and institutional sexism within the organisation, along with the right to protest, failures in investigations, and officers belonging to proscribed organisations. In 2023, a report on the Metropolitan Police found that
7752-416: The ground in front of a gated stable entrance. Her throat had been slit twice from left to right and her abdomen was mutilated by a deep jagged wound. Several shallower incisions across the abdomen, and three or four similar cuts on the right side were caused by the same knife used violently and downwards. As the murder occurred in the territory of the J or Bethnal Green Division of the Metropolitan Police, it
7866-577: The holder any extra pay or supervisory authority compared to their uniformed colleagues. The following is the current released workforce data for the ranks. The chief officers rank covers all senior ranks as well as special constables covering all special constable ranks. A roundel azure, thereon the Royal Cypher of His Majesty King Charles the Third argent within a circlet azure fimbriated and inscribed with words 'Metropolitan Police' in letters argent,
7980-455: The idea that the murderer possessed surgical skill was dismissed by other experts. As the bodies were not examined extensively at the scene, it has also been suggested that the organs were actually removed by mortuary staff, who took advantage of bodies that had already been opened to extract organs that they could sell as surgical specimens. On 10 September, the police arrested a notorious local called John Pizer , dubbed "Leather Apron", who had
8094-399: The injuries in the two cases is considerable." The mutilated body of the fourth woman, Annie Chapman, was discovered at about 6:00 am on Saturday 8 September on the ground near a doorway in the back yard of 29 Hanbury Street , Spitalfields. Chapman had left her lodgings at 2 am on the day she was murdered, with the intention of getting money from a client to pay her rent. Her throat
8208-411: The institution of the 233 common lodging-houses within Whitechapel, in which approximately 8,500 people resided on a nightly basis. The common lodging-houses in and around Whitechapel provided cheap communal lodgings for the desperate, the destitute and the transient, among whom the Whitechapel murder victims were numbered. The nightly price of a single bed was 4d (equivalent to £2.35 in 2023) and
8322-560: The largest police force within the United Kingdom and among the largest globally. Excluding its national roles, the Met oversees the eighth-smallest primary geographic area ( police area ) compared to other territorial police forces in the UK. The force operates under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis , directly accountable to the Mayor of London , through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime and
8436-467: The majority of UK's capital, the Met has significant responsibilities and unique challenges, such as protecting 164 foreign embassies and High Commissions , policing London City and Heathrow airports, protecting the Palace of Westminster , and managing a higher volume of protests and events than any other British police force , with 3,500 such events in 2016. The force, by officer numbers, ranks as
8550-623: The matter in hand, and by simply murdering and disembowelling ... women, converted the proprietary press to an inept sort of communism. Acts of Parliament, such as the Housing of the Working Classes Act 1890 and the Public Health Amendment Act 1890, set minimum standards for accommodation in an effort to transform degenerated urban areas. The worst of the slums were demolished in the two decades following
8664-460: The murderer had knelt to the right of the body, and worked alone. However, the first doctor at the scene, local surgeon Dr George William Sequeira, disputed that the killer possessed anatomical skill or sought particular organs. His view was shared by City medical officer William Sedgwick Saunders, who was also present at the autopsy. Because of this murder's location, the City of London Police under Detective Inspector James McWilliam were brought into
8778-581: The murderer using paranormal powers; the police turned him away and "called [him] a fool and a lunatic". The head of the CID , Anderson, eventually returned from leave on 6 October and took charge of the investigation for Scotland Yard. On 16 October, George Lusk of the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee received another letter, known as the "From Hell" letter , claiming to be from the killer. The handwriting and style were unlike that of
8892-466: The murders were never solved. The Whitechapel murders drew attention to the poor living conditions in the East End slums, which were subsequently improved. The enduring mystery of who committed the crimes has captured public imagination to the present day. In the late Victorian era , Whitechapel was considered to be the most notorious criminal rookery in London. The area around Flower and Dean Street
9006-410: The mystery surrounding the identity of the killer or killers fed the development of the character " Jack the Ripper ", who was blamed for all or most of the murders. Hundreds of books and articles discuss the Whitechapel murders, and they feature in novels, short stories, comic books, television shows, and films of multiple genres. The poor of the East End had long been ignored by affluent society, but
9120-562: The nature of the Whitechapel murders and of the victims' impoverished lifestyles drew national attention to their living conditions. The murders galvanised public opinion against the overcrowded, unsanitary slums of the East End, and led to demands for reform. On 24 September 1888, George Bernard Shaw commented sarcastically on the media's sudden concern with social justice in a letter to The Star newspaper: Whilst we conventional Social Democrats were wasting our time on education, agitation and organisation, some independent genius has taken
9234-619: The oldest operational police stations in London is in Wapping , which opened in 1908. It is the headquarters of the marine policing unit (formerly known as Thames Division), which is responsible for policing the River Thames . It also houses a mortuary and the River Police Museum. Paddington Green Police Station , which is no longer operational, received much publicity for its housing of terrorism suspects in an underground complex prior to its closure in 2017. In 2004, there
9348-441: The organisation was rife with racism, misogyny, and homophobia, and was corrupt. A 363-page report written by Louise Casey, Baroness Casey of Blackstock was commissioned after the abduction of Sarah Everard by Wayne Couzens, a police constable. The report stated that 12% of female Met employees had been harassed or attacked, with 33% experiencing sexism. Other incidents include a Muslim officer who had bacon stuffed into his boots and
9462-454: The others attributed to the Ripper, because she had been repeatedly stabbed, whereas later victims typically suffered slash wounds and abdominal mutilations. However, a connection cannot be ruled out. On Friday 31 August, Mary Ann Nichols was murdered in Buck's Row (since renamed Durward Street), a back street in Whitechapel. Her body was discovered by cart driver Charles Cross at 3:45 am on
9576-451: The others on the basis that the body was unmutilated, that it was the only murder to occur south of Whitechapel Road , and that the blade used might have been shorter and of a different design. Most experts, however, consider the similarities in the case distinctive enough to connect Stride's murder with at least two of the earlier ones, as well as that of Catherine Eddowes on the same night. At 1:45 am, Catherine Eddowes's mutilated body
9690-467: The pathologists examining the body, Bond, believed this to be a Ripper murder, though another of the pathologists, Phillips, and Robert Anderson disagreed, as did Inspector Abberline. Later writers are also divided, and either suggest that McKenzie was a Ripper victim, or that the unknown murderer tried to make it look like a Ripper killing to deflect suspicion from himself. At the inquest, Coroner Baxter acknowledged both possibilities, and concluded: "There
9804-420: The police and charged with her murder. A high-profile investigation by Swanson and Moore into Sadler's past history and his whereabouts at the time of the previous Whitechapel murders indicates that the police may have suspected him to be the Ripper. However, Sadler was released on 3 March for lack of evidence. The murderer or murderers were never identified and the cases remain unsolved. Sensational reportage and
9918-415: The press. Packer's description of the man did not match the statements by other witnesses who may have seen Stride with a man shortly before her murder, but all but two of the descriptions differed. Joseph Lawende passed through Mitre Square with two other men shortly before Eddowes was murdered there, and may have seen her with a man of about 30 years old, who was shabbily dressed, wore a peaked cap, and had
10032-537: The public only during normal business hours, or on certain days of the week. In 2017, there were 73 working front counters open to the public in London. Most police stations can easily be identified from one or more blue lamps located outside the entrance, which were introduced in 1861. The oldest Metropolitan police station, which opened in Bow Street in 1881, closed in 1992 and the adjoining Bow Street Magistrates' Court heard its last case on 14 July 2006. One of
10146-413: The scene and ordered the words erased for fear that they would spark anti-Semitic riots. Goulston Street was on a direct route from Mitre Square to Flower and Dean Street, where both Stride and Eddowes lived. The Middlesex coroner, Wynne Baxter, believed that Stride had been attacked with a swift, sudden action. She was still holding a packet of cachous (breath-freshening sweets) in her left hand when she
10260-570: The standard three: commander, deputy assistant commissioner, assistant commissioner, deputy commissioner and commissioner. All senior officers of the rank of Commander and above are chief police officers of NPCC (previously ACPO ) rank. The Met approved the use of name badges in October 2003, with new recruits wearing the Velcro badges from September 2004. The badge consists of the wearer's rank, followed by their surname. All officers are assigned
10374-446: The time relied heavily on confessions, witness testimony, and apprehending perpetrators in the act of committing an offence or in the possession of obvious physical evidence that clearly linked them to a crime. Forensic techniques , such as fingerprint analysis, were not in use, and blood typing had not been invented. Policing in London was—and still is—divided between two forces: the Metropolitan Police with jurisdiction over most of
10488-600: The urban area, and the City of London Police with jurisdiction over about a square mile (2.9 km) of the city centre. The Home Secretary , a senior minister of the British government, controlled the Metropolitan Police, whereas the City Police were responsible to the Corporation of London . Beat constables walked regular, timed routes. Eleven deaths in or near Whitechapel between 1888 and 1891 were gathered into
10602-405: The victim nor the culprit were ever identified. Chief Inspector Donald Swanson and Commissioner James Monro noted that the presence of blood within the torso indicated that death was not from haemorrhage or cutting of the throat. The pathologists, however, noted that the general bloodlessness of the tissues and vessels indicated that haemorrhage was the cause of death. Newspaper speculation that
10716-622: The whole upon a star of eight major and fifty-six lesser points argent, ensigned by the Royal Crown proper. The Metropolitan Police Service includes full-time, paid officers known as 'regulars', and part-time, voluntary officers from the Metropolitan Special Constabulary . Both regulars and specials enjoy full police powers, wear the same uniform, and carry the same kit. As elsewhere in the UK, 'regulars' are not employees, but rather Crown servants , and holders of
10830-437: The writer, who signed himself "Jack the Ripper", claimed to have committed the murders. On 1 October, a postcard, dubbed the "Saucy Jacky" postcard , and also signed "Jack the Ripper", was received by the agency. It claimed responsibility for the most recent murders on 30 September, and described the murders of the two women as the "double event", a designation which has endured. On Tuesday 2 October, an unidentified female torso
10944-494: Was sexually assaulted and robbed by a gang. Tabram was stabbed 39 times. Nichols, Chapman, Stride, Eddowes, Kelly, McKenzie and Coles had their throats cut. Eddowes and Stride were murdered on the same night, within approximately an hour and less than a mile apart; their murders are known as the "double event", after a phrase in a postcard sent to the press by an individual claiming to be the Ripper. The bodies of Nichols, Chapman, Eddowes and Kelly had abdominal mutilations . Mylett
11058-408: Was strangled . The body of the unidentified woman was dismembered , but the exact cause of her death is unclear. The Metropolitan Police , City of London Police , and private organisations such as the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee were actively involved in the search for the perpetrator or perpetrators. Despite extensive enquiries and several arrests, the culprit or culprits evaded capture, and
11172-515: Was a call from the Institute for Public Policy Research for more imaginative planning of police stations to aid in improving relations between police forces and the wider community. Crimes reported within the Metropolitan Police District , selected by quarter centuries. The following table shows the percentage detection rates for the Metropolitan Police by offence group for 2010/11. The Metropolitan Police Service "screened out" 34,164 crimes
11286-576: Was appointed as his replacement in December. On 10 November, the police surgeon Thomas Bond wrote to Robert Anderson , head of the London CID, detailing the similarities between the five murders of Nichols, Chapman, Stride, Eddowes and Kelly, "no doubt committed by the same hand". On the same day, the Cabinet resolved to offer a pardon to any accomplice who came forward with information that led to
11400-526: Was at first investigated by the local detectives. On the same day, James Monro resigned as the head of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) over differences with Chief Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Sir Charles Warren . Initial investigations into the murder had little success, although elements of the press linked it to the two previous murders and suggested the killing might have been perpetrated by
11514-458: Was cut from left to right. She had been disembowelled, and her intestines had been thrown out of her abdomen over each of her shoulders. The morgue examination revealed that part of her uterus was missing. The pathologist, George Bagster Phillips , was of the opinion that the murderer must have possessed anatomical knowledge to have sliced out the reproductive organs in a single movement with a blade about 6–8 inches (15–20 cm) long. However,
11628-557: Was described as "perhaps the foulest and most dangerous street in the whole metropolis"; Dorset Street was called "the worst street in London". Assistant Police Commissioner Robert Anderson recommended Whitechapel to "those who take an interest in the dangerous classes" as one of London's prime criminal "show places". Robbery, violence and alcohol dependency were commonplace. The district was characterised by extreme poverty, sub-standard housing, poor sanitation, homelessness, drunkenness and endemic prostitution. These factors were focused in
11742-578: Was discovered, indicating that she had not had time to defend herself. A grocer, Matthew Packer, implied to private detectives employed by the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee that he had sold some grapes to Stride and the murderer; however, he had told police that he had shut his shop without seeing anything suspicious. At the inquest, the pathologists stated emphatically that Stride had not held, swallowed or consumed grapes. They described her stomach contents as "cheese, potatoes and farinaceous powder [flour or milled grain]". Nevertheless, Packer's story appeared in
11856-555: Was equivalent in rank to the deputy commissioner and served as the force's chief financial officer, it was headed by a civilian secretary, who was equivalent in rank to the assistant commissioners. The area policed by the Metropolitan Police Service is known as the Metropolitan Police District (MPD). The Met was divided into 32 Borough Operational Command Units that directly aligned with the 32 London boroughs covered. This situation has changed since 2017, as
11970-566: Was formed by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and was governed by the Whitechapel District Board of Works , which consisted of 58 elected vestrymen . The district contained a number of small parishes in the East End of London that were considered too small to be self governing. Until 1889 the district was in the county of Middlesex , but included in the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works . In 1889
12084-404: Was found by PC Edward Watkins at the south-west corner of Mitre Square , in the City of London , about 12 minutes walk from Berner Street. She had been killed less than 10 minutes earlier by a slash to the throat from left to right with a sharp, pointed knife at least 6 inches (15 cm) long. Her face and abdomen were mutilated, and her intestines were drawn out over the right shoulder with
12198-468: Was found in the basement of New Scotland Yard , which was under construction. It was linked to the Whitechapel murders by the press, but it was not included in the Whitechapel murders file, and any connection between the two is now considered unlikely. The case became known as the Whitehall Mystery . On the same day, the psychic Robert James Lees visited Scotland Yard and offered to track down
12312-408: Was killed by a slash to the throat. After her death, her abdominal cavity was sliced open and all her viscera removed and spread around the room. Her breasts had been cut off, her face mutilated beyond recognition, and her thighs partially cut through to the bone, with some of the muscles removed. Unlike the other victims, she was undressed and wore only a light chemise. Her clothes were folded neatly on
12426-415: Was lying in a pool of blood with her throat cut from left to right. She had been killed just minutes before, and her body was otherwise unmutilated. It is possible that the murderer was disturbed before he could commit any mutilation of the body by someone entering the yard, perhaps Louis Diemschutz, who discovered the body. However, some commentators on the case conclude that Stride's murder was unconnected to
12540-582: Was made with the investigation. The City Police and the Lord Mayor of London offered a reward of £500 (roughly £70,000 as of 2024) for information leading to the capture of the villain. The use of bloodhounds to track the killer in the event of another attack was considered and Warren not only loaned two named Burgho and Barnaby from Edwin Brough of Wyndyate near Scarborough (now Scalby Manor ) but also agreed to be tracked across Hyde Park by them himself as
12654-424: Was murdered at just after 3 am where she was found. In his summing up, he dismissed the possibility that her murder was connected with those of Smith and Tabram, as the lethal weapons were different in those cases, and neither of the earlier cases involved a slash to the throat. However, by the time the inquest into Nichols's death had concluded, a fourth woman had been murdered, and Baxter noted "The similarity of
12768-424: Was murdered in the single room where she lived at 13 Miller's Court, behind 26 Dorset Street, Spitalfields . One of the earlier victims, Chapman, had lived in Dorset Street, and another, Eddowes, was reported to have occasionally slept rough there. Kelly's severely mutilated body was discovered shortly after 10:45 am lying on the bed. The first doctor at the scene, Dr George Bagster Phillips , believed that Kelly
12882-455: Was taken into custody on 18 September on suspicion of the murders, but he was released less than two weeks later when a double murder demonstrated that the real culprit was still at large. On Sunday 30 September, the body of prostitute Elizabeth Stride was discovered at about 1 am in Dutfield's Yard, inside the gateway of 40 Berner Street (since renamed Henriques Street), Whitechapel. She
12996-424: Was the murderer. Mrs Long described him as over forty, a little taller than Chapman, of dark complexion, and of foreign, "shabby-genteel" appearance. He was wearing a brown deer-stalker hat and a dark overcoat. Another witness, carpenter Albert Cadosch, had entered the neighbouring yard at 27 Hanbury Street at about the same time, and heard voices in the yard followed by the sound of something or someone falling against
#305694