Peter Sutcliffe - The Yorkshire Ripper

Perhaps all of us have heard of Jack the Ripper (or Saucy Jack) by now. But have you heard of the Yorkshire Ripper?

The Yorkshire Ripper, Peter Sutcliffe, was a devoted husband and reliable worker. He was also sociopathic and hated women. He worked at a mortuary during his teen years and often used the corpses like ventriloquist dummies. His favorite display at the local was museum showed how VD affected the body.

Sutcliffe's first victims were prostitutes; they were only knocked unconscious when attacked. On October 30, 1975, Sutcliffe's attacks turned deadly. 28 year old Wilma McCann's head was smashed with a ball-peen hammer before she was stabbed multiple times.

Three months later another murder occurred. Things seemed to cool off for a year before being rekindled with intensity. Seven women died from February 1977 to May 1978. They were all bludgeoned and mutilated with a knife. One victim was a young shop assistant; most others were prostitutes.

A tape recording was sent to the police in June 1979, supposedly from the Yorkshire Ripper. It was a hoax, and distracted police while Sutcliffe killed four more young women.

Police discovered that Peter Sutcliffe was the Yorkshire Ripper on January 2, 1981. The killer had remained at large for five long years. 200,000 interviews were conducted, 30,000 statements taken, and 20,000 homes searched. Sutcliffe was questioned nine times and investigators had believed his alibis.

On that day, Sgt. Ring saw Sutcliffe and a prostitute in a car. He ran the plates and discovered the car had been stolen. Sgt. Ring allowed Sutcliffe to pee behind some bushes before being taken into custody.

Peter Sutcliffe was being questioned the next morning when something clicked for Sgt. Ring. He rushed to check the bushes Sutcliffe had "peed" behind and found a knife and ball-peen hammered. Sutcliffe confessed when confronted with the evidence. He received a life sentence.

It is rumored that he has written an autobiography giving explicit details of his crimes. He has stipulated the book be released after his death. It is also rumored he wants proceeds from the book to go to his victims' families.

Some believe Sutcliffe was a copy-cat, citing a discrepancy in blood type. (Apparently the "real" ripper was in blood group B, while Sutcliffe is in group O. People subscribing to the copy cat theory believe he was responsible for four of thirteen murders he confessed to.

Sources:
The A to Z Encyclopedia of Serial Killers; Schechter, Harold and Everitt, David; Pocket Books, 2006.
http://www.execulink.com/~kbrannen/thenews.htm
http://yorkshireripper.com/