Free EVIL PSYCHOPATHS (True Crime) by Gordon Kerr

one in the vicinity had seen or heard anything untoward, apart from one witness, Joseph Lawende, who had seen her earlier, talking to a young man at 1.35 am. He had been wearing a deerstalker hat and had a small, fair moustache. There was one significant piece of evidence, however. A constable found a bloody piece of apron lying on the ground at the entrance to a building in Goulston Street. Written in chalk on the bricks above it was the strange message: ‘The Juwes are The men That Will not be Blamed For Nothing.’
    The piece of apron was from the one worn by the victim and it seemed as if they had at last found something worth investigating. Astonishingly, however, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Charles Warren, ordered that this vital piece of evidence be washed off the wall. He was concerned that the message would provoke an attack on Jews living in the area.
    The officers involved in the case were amazed that the killer could have committed two murders in such a short space of time and escape unseen into the night. They conducted house-to-house interviews and everyone on the streets was questioned, but to no avail.
    The Mitre Square victim was forty-six-year-old Catherine Eddowes, known as Kate. She was an occasional prostitute, especially when she had been drinking. This night she had set out to visit her daughter to borrow some money, but failed to arrive. She had found money by some other means and ended up being arrested for being drunk and put in a cell at Bishopsgate police station. They had let her out at 12.30 am and that was the last anyone saw of her alive.
    As for the chalked message, no one could recognise the spelling ‘Juwes’. There did not appear to be any dialect or language in which ‘Jews’ was spelt ‘Juwes’. The police thought that it was probably a deliberate attempt to put the blame on the Jews and distract Scotland Yard from its search for the real killer.
    The case was now hot news and had caught the public’s attention. Hundreds of letters arrived at Scotland Yard, at newspapers and at the homes of the investigating detectives. One in particular gave the murderer the name that has gone down in the annals of criminal history for all time. It was sent on 25 September to a news agency, Central news and read:
    ‘ Dear Boss, I keep on hearing the police have caught me but they wont fix me just yet. I have laughed when they look so clever and talk about being on the right track. That joke about Leather Apron gave me real fits. I am down on whores and I shant quit ripping them till I do get buckled. Grand work the last job was. I gave the lady no time to squeal. How can they catch me now. I love my work and want to start again. You will soon hear of me with my funny little games. I saved some proper red stuff in a ginger beer bottle over the last job to write with but it went thick like glue and I cant use it. Red ink is fit enough I hope ha.ha. The next job I do I shall clip the lady’s ears off and send to the Police officers just for jolly wouldn't you. Keep this letter back till I do a bit more work then give it out straight. My knife’s so nice and sharp I want to get to work right away if I get a chance. Good luck. Yours truly Jack the Ripper. Don't mind me giving the trade name ’
    At first, the man who received the letter failed to take it seriously but after a couple of days sent it to the police. The night after they received it, Kate Eddowes and Liz Stride were murdered. On October 1, another letter in the same handwriting arrived at Central News:
    ‘ I wasn’t codding dear old Boss when I gave you the tip. You’ll hear about saucy Jackys work tomorrow double event this time number one squealed a bit couldn’t finish straight off. had not time to get ears for police thanks for keeping last letter back till I got to work again. Jack the Ripper .’
    The letters were circulated and a copy was placed outside every police station in case the handwriting was