UPDATE: Jack the Ripper
- Yasmin Sudarsanam
- Mar 29
- 3 min read
Trigger Warning: The following case includes depictions of graphic violence and sexual violence. Please read at your own discretion.
In August of 2023, I covered the infamous case of Jack the Ripper, an individual who terrorized Whitechapel in 1888 though his identity was never revealed. Earlier this year, however, breakthrough technology has led to a revitalization in this centuries old cold case, and we may finally be able to put a name to the shadowy figure that stalked the streets of London. This is the story of Jack the Ripper, continued.
For a full deep dive into the case, feel free to read or revisit the original article from 2023! However, as a quick recap, by the late 1800s, London’s East End, particularly Whitechapel, had become infamous for overcrowding, poverty, and violence, worsened by an influx of immigrants and refugees. It was against this bleak backdrop that the brutal killings of Jack the Ripper took place in 1888, drawing attention to the harsh conditions of the area. Unlike the routine violence faced by many women, the Ripper’s murders—marked by deep throat slashes and gruesome mutilations—stood out for their sheer savagery and apparent misogyny. The five canonical victims, all killed within a mile of each other over just a few months, became central to one of history’s most chilling unsolved mysteries. Each crime scene offered little physical evidence, though a blood-soaked cloth and cryptic graffiti hinted at a possible anti-Semitic motive, later dismissed to avoid further unrest.
Speculation about the Ripper’s identity has persisted for over a century, with suspects ranging from doctors and butchers to aristocrats and local residents, reflecting Victorian fears about class divisions and modern science. The media frenzy surrounding the case not only cemented Jack the Ripper as the world’s first infamous serial killer but also inadvertently spotlighted the East End’s appalling living conditions, prompting long-overdue reforms in housing and public health. Despite countless theories, the Ripper’s identity remained a mystery for centuries, his story continuing to captivate and disturb generations.
Yet, mere months ago, results were published announcing that DNA found on a shawl at the site of one of the kills had been definitively linked to Aaron Kosminski while another DNA sample found on the shawl was matched to a relative of Catherine Eddowes, one of the Ripper’s victims. Briefly mentioned in my original article, Kosminski was a 23-year-old Polish immigrant and barber who had been a prime suspect during the police’s original investigation but who had faded out of the picture after no physical evidence linked him to the crimes. He died in a mental institution in 1919 after years of intense paranoia, hunger strikes, and reported auditory hallucinations. While he has been linked to the crime spree through his DNA, a formal inquest is required before Kosminski can be legally named the killer.
While the tests on these shawl samples were initially run several years ago, the biochemist directing the charge stated that he had wanted to wait for the media buzz around the case to dull before publishing his results. However, English author Russell Edwards who bought the shawl in 2007 used these unpublished test results to name Kosminski a suspect, even going so far as to accuse him of being the murderer, in his 2014 book Naming Jack the Ripper.
In a new peer-reviewed paper Jari Louhelainen, who ran the initial tests, and his colleague David Miller describe how they extracted and amplified the existing DNA on the shawl and compared mitochondrial DNA fragments, which are only inherited from one’s mother, to living descendants of Kosminski, ultimately finding a match. While this publication marks a huge step towards bringing closure to this case, critics remain skeptical, complaining that mitochondrial DNA can only be used to exclude relation between two samples and that the shawl could have become contaminated over the years.
Due to the sheer amount of time that has passed, no justice can be brought against Kosminski or any other perpetrators for the crimes perpetrated against the Whitechapel community, but this link brings a renewed sense of hope and closure to the families of his victims and opens a new chapter in the story of Jack the Ripper.
Feel free to leave your thoughts, opinions, and questions below! If you want to see more cases similar to this one, like this post to let me know!
Thank you to Sonia for suggesting this case update; if you have a specific case you would like me to cover, please leave it in the suggestion box!
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