After a possible breakthrough in DNA evidence
a descendant of one of Jack the Ripper’s victims has demanded a new inquest into one of the most notorious serial killers in history
The true identity of Jack the Ripper has always been something of a mystery
terrorizing the slums of Whitechapel in east London in 1888
The murders all took place within a mile of each other
the FBI prepared a criminal personality profile for Jack the Ripper
The report suggested that the serial killer was a white male of average intelligence between 28 and 36-years-old
He was a quiet loner who was withdrawn from society and had difficulty interacting with people
He was possibly raised by a female figure who drank heavily and consorted with many different men
He was also observed walking all over Whitechapel in the early hours of the morning as he did his hunting at night
There have been dozens of suspects with varying backgrounds
from royalty and prime ministers to butchers and bootmakers
DNA was extracted from a shawl recovered from one of the crime scenes
It was believed that the killer was Aaron Kosminski
an emigrant from Poland who worked as a barber
the shawl comes from the murder scene of Catherine Eddowes
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An expert from Liverpool John Moores University isolated seven small segments of DNA from bloodstains on the shawl
They were a match with the DNA of Karen Miller
the first result showed a 99.2 percent match
Since the DNA has two complementary strands
we went on and tested the other DNA strand
which game a perfect 100 percent match,” said Dr
DNA from stains on the garment matched with a descendant of Kosminski
an inquest was demanded into the unsolved murder
“The name Jack the Ripper has become sensationalized
It has gone down in history as this famous character,” Miller said
“People have forgotten about the victims
Now we need this inquest to legally name the killer.”
The descendants of Kosminski have supported the inquest
hoping it will lead to what really happened all those years ago
It is up to the attorney general to approve the inquest
His family fled to east London during the early 1880s
he was taken in by police to be identified by a witness who had seen him with one of the victims
the witness did not provide sufficient evidence to incriminate him
he entered a workhouse and was discharged later that same year
he was buried at East Ham Cemetery in east London
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