After more than a century of mystery, speculation, and countless theories, the identity of Jack the Ripper — the infamous serial killer who terrorized London’s East End in 1888 — may have finally been uncovered.

Thanks to a forensic DNA breakthrough, British author and self-proclaimed "Ripperologist" Russell Edwards claims to have identified the man behind the legend.

And if his findings hold up, the world may finally have an answer to one of the most notorious murder mysteries in history.

The Chilling Crimes That Defined an Era

Jack the Ripper is believed to be responsible for the brutal murders of at least five women — known as the "Canonical Five":

• Mary Nichols, 43
• Annie Chapman, 47
• Elizabeth Stride, 44
• Catherine Eddowes, 46
• Mary Jane Kelly, 25

Between August and November of 1888, these women were murdered in Whitechapel, a poverty-stricken district in London. The killer’s gruesome methods—slashing throats, mutilating bodies, and in some cases, removing internal organs—sparked theories that he had surgical knowledge.

For decades, police, historians, and crime experts have tried to unmask the killer, with theories ranging from surgeons and royals to writers and deranged psychopaths.

But despite countless books, movies, and investigations, no one could prove the true identity of Jack the Ripper — but a new breakthrough may have changed that.

DNA Evidence Leads to a Name

Russell Edwards' journey to solving the case began in 2007 when he purchased a shawl that reportedly once belonged to victim Catherine Eddowes.

The fabric contained both blood and semen stains.

Years later, forensic testing was conducted on the shawl, revealing DNA from two people—one linked to Eddowes' descendants and the other to a Polish immigrant who lived in London at the time of the murders.

That immigrant? Aaron Kosminski.

“Considering his DNA is on the shawl that was at the murder scene and he was named, I have never considered anyone else to be the Ripper,” Edwards told News.com.au.

“I have, however, looked into every other suspect in order to eliminate them.”

Who Was Aaron Kosminski?

Born in Kłodawa, Poland, Kosminski moved to London with his family as a child and worked as a barber in Whitechapel — the heart of Jack the Ripper’s hunting ground.

Records show that Kosminski suffered from severe mental illness, including auditory hallucinations. He was institutionalized in various asylums across London and was known to exhibit paranoid behaviors, including refusing to eat food prepared by others and neglecting basic hygiene.

Kosminski was considered a suspect at the time of the murders but was never charged.

He later died in an asylum in 1919 at the age of 53.

The Science Behind the Discovery

Edwards' forensic breakthrough took four years to complete due to concerns over contamination and the challenge of extracting usable DNA from 19th-century evidence.

“When we matched the DNA from the blood on the shawl with a direct female descendant of the victim, it was the singular most amazing moment of my life at the time,” Edwards said.

“We tested the semen left on the shawl. When we matched that, I was dumbfounded that we actually had discovered who Jack the Ripper truly was.”

A Lifelong Obsession with the Ripper

Edwards has been dedicated to solving the Jack the Ripper case for over 11 years. His fascination began after watching the film From Hell, which depicts the killings.

“I saw the movie From Hell and then did a Jack the Ripper tour,” he said.

“It was then I realized I had been walking in his footsteps all that time and didn’t know. After that, I called Scotland Yard and asked where the case files were. I was told they were in the National Archives at Kew," Edwards continued.

“I went and conducted some research and found quite quickly that nobody would ever know the identity of Jack the Ripper as there was not any evidence. It was only when I bought the shawl that my journey really began.”

Victims’ Families Demand Justice

Now that Kosminski has been named as the killer, the descendants of Jack the Ripper’s victims are calling for an official police investigation to confirm the findings.

Karen Miller, the great-great-great-granddaughter of victim Catherine Eddowes, says it would bring long-overdue justice to her family.

“The name Jack the Ripper has become sensationalized, it has gone down in history as this famous character,” Miller told The Daily Mail. “It has all been about him, this iconic name, but people have forgotten about the victims who did not have justice at the time.”

She is urging authorities to hold an inquest into Kosminski, saying: “We have got the proof, now we need this inquest to legally name the killer.

"It would mean a lot to me, to my family, to a lot of people to finally have this crime solved.”

Could the Case Finally Be Closed?

Despite Edwards' confidence in his findings, not everyone is convinced. The research has not yet been published in a scientific peer-reviewed journal, meaning the DNA results cannot be fully scrutinized or independently verified.

Two years ago, Attorney-General Michael Ellis refused to open a new inquest into the case, citing “not sufficient new evidence.” Whether Edwards’ latest discovery will change that remains to be seen.

For now, after 137 years of dead ends and speculation, the world finally has a name — and it may just be the end of one of history’s greatest unsolved mysteries.

Featured image credit: Stefano Bianchetti/Corbis via Getty Images

Scientists have claimed to have proven the identity of infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper with new DNA evidence.

Polish barber Aaron Kosminski has been named as the notorious murderer who brutally killed and mutilated a number of women in Whitechapel, London in the 19th century.

The claims come from researchers at Liverpool John Moores University, who found both Kosminski's DNA and that of one of his alleged victims, Catherine Eddowes, on a shawl belonging to her.

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The tests compared fragments of mitochondrial DNA—the portion of DNA inherited only from one’s mother—retrieved from the shawl with samples taken from living descendants of Eddowes and Kosminski, with researchers claiming the DNA matches that of a living relative of Kosminki.

In the Journal of Forensic Sciences, the scientists behind the investigation stated the shawl "enhances the statistical probability of its overall identification".

"We describe for the first time systematic, molecular level analysis of the only surviving physical evidence linked to the Jack the Ripper murders," they wrote. "Finding both matching profiles in the same piece of evidence enhances the statistical probability of its overall identification and reinforces the claim that the shawl is authentic."

Experts were able to take DNA tests from the shawl after they were contacted by the owner of the historical item, author Russell Edwards. The 48-year-old bought the item of clothing, which was found next to Eddowes' body and stained with her blood, at an auction in 2007.

However, the new findings have been placed under scrutiny, with critics arguing that key details on the specific genetic variants identified and compared between DNA samples are allegedly not included in the paper.

In addition, according to Science Mag, Hansi Weissensteiner, an expert in mitochondrial DNA at Innsbruck Medical University in Austria, takes issue with the mitochondrial DNA analysis, which he says can only reliably show that people—or two DNA samples—are not related.

Other critics of the Kosminsky theory have asserted that there’s no evidence the shawl was ever at the crime scene, adding that it could have also become contaminated over the years.

It's not the first time Kosminski, who was 23 at the time of the killings, has been suggested to be Jack the Ripper; the Polish hairdresser was a prime suspect at the time, but not enough evidence was found to incriminate him. From 1891, he was institutionalised in an insane asylum and he died at age 53 in 1919.

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His links to the crime were scrutinised in 2014 when Dr Jari Louhelainen, one of the authors in this week's paper, studied the same shawl. However, these claims were shunned by other scientists who said made he made an "error of nomenclature" in his analysis.

Eddowes was slaughtered by Jack the Ripper on the night of September 30, 1888, in Mitre Square, Whitechapel, where her kidney was hacked out and her cheeks ripped apart. The killer is rumoured to have eaten her kidney afterwards.

The 46-year-old prostitute was the second person killed in the early hours of Sunday 30 September 1888, with the murder of fellow prostitute Elizabeth Stride less than an hour earlier.

Five victims overall —Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly — are said to have been murdered by the same man between 31 August and 9 November 1888. However, the Whitechapel Murders file, which covers the Ripper's killing spree, includes eleven murders, covering a period from 1888 to 1891.

An expert on Jack the Ripper has unveiled a sixth victim and has also shared who he believes the Ripper was.

Despite over 100 potential suspects, no one has ever been convicted for the gruesome murders that terrorized the streets of East London in the late 1800s.

The Enduring Mystery of Jack the Ripper

Jack the Ripper’s killing spree between 1888 and 1892 has been a subject of global fascination, sparking theories, books, films, and a whole field of study called “Ripperology”.

The killer’s five victims were slaughtered in a brutal fashion, with their throats cut and their bodies horribly mutilated.

As each crime became more grisly, police believed a single, deranged murderer was behind it all.

Frenzied speculation about the identity of Jack the Ripper continues to this day, with theories ranging from the killer being Queen Victoria’s grandson to a post-Impressionist painter, or even former British Prime Minister William Gladstone.

But criminologist David Wilson has recently shared a theory that could finally put an end to the speculation.

The Ripper’s Potential Identity: Aaron Kosminski

Wilson, who has dedicated his career to studying serial killers, has used modern criminological techniques to narrow down the suspect list, per The Sun.

By inputting eleven murders into a computer system, Wilson’s research led him to one primary suspect: Aaron Kosminski, a Polish barber who lived near the crime scenes.

“It is absolutely easy to tell you who Jack the Ripper is. It's Aaron Kosminski,” Wilson said.

Kosminski, who was in his mid-20s at the time of the murders, was known to have severe mental health issues, including paranoia and auditory hallucinations.

He lived in the heart of Whitechapel and, according to Wilson’s profiling, was a single man who had a deep disdain for women, especially sex workers. His mental state, combined with his local residence, fits the profile of the killer.

Why Kosminski Is the Prime Suspect

Despite some historians dismissing Kosminski due to his lack of medical training, Wilson argues that there is no evidence to suggest the Ripper had any formal surgical knowledge.

The brutality of the murders, he explains, likely came from an untrained but deeply disturbed individual - someone who could have been “the bloke next door.”

Wilson’s analysis also suggests that the killer may have been a local, unskilled worker with a routine that kept him busy during the week.

The attacks, which occurred in the early hours of Fridays or weekends, support this theory. Kosminski lived just a short distance from the crime scenes, which further reinforces the likelihood that he was the perpetrator.

A Shocking Sixth Victim: Martha Tabram

In addition to identifying Kosminski as the killer, Wilson has made another groundbreaking claim: there was a sixth victim of Jack the Ripper, a woman named Martha Tabram.

Tabram was discovered on August 7, 1888, nearly three weeks before the first widely recognized victim, Mary Ann Nichols.

Tabram’s body was found with 39 stab wounds, and while some may not have initially connected her death to the Ripper, Wilson’s research shows that she fits the pattern of the other murders.

By inputting eleven Whitechapel murders from 1888 into the HOLMES system, Wilson found that Tabram’s death matched the Ripper’s profile.

Wilson explained: “For one of the documentaries I did for the BBC with Amelia Fox, I got the entire Whitechapel docket run through HOLMES... and that lead trainer identified six murders, not five murders.”

This revelation, combined with geo-profiling (a method used to predict a criminal’s likely area of residence based on crime locations), helped Wilson confirm that Kosminski was the likely culprit.

Kosminski’s Background and His Suspected Role in the Murders

Born in 1865 near Warsaw, Poland, Aaron Kosminski moved to London in 1882 to escape rising antisemitism.

By the time the murders began, he was living with his brother and sister in Whitechapel. Police at the time believed Kosminski had a “great hatred of women” and strong homicidal tendencies, but they lacked sufficient evidence to arrest him.

However, his history of mental health issues, including paranoid delusions and a breakdown in 1890, made him a prime suspect. He was eventually committed to an asylum, where he remained until his death 28 years later.

Though some experts believe that his mental state rules him out of being the Ripper, as women would have been aware of him and kept their distance.

DNA Evidence and Further Confirmation

Earlier this year, DNA analysis brought new attention to Kosminski’s potential role in the murders.

DNA was extracted from a bloodstained shawl found at the scene of Catherine Eddowes’ murder.

The shawl was tested against a sample of Kosminski’s family DNA, and the results reportedly showed a “100 percent match.”

Some experts have questioned the methodology behind the test, claiming that the DNA could belong to many people.

In Conclusion

Despite there being a strong case for Aaron Kosminski being the Ripper, we will never really know.

Various 'Ripperologists' have differing opinions on who the killer may have been, and the evidence provided could be seen as inconclusive.

It could have easily been a member of the community who was never under any suspicion.

Featured image credit: Hulton Archive/Getty

The identity of a woman who was brutally murdered 56 years ago has finally been revealed thanks to the help of revolutionary DNA science. 

Back in 1968, the body of a woman was discovered by a road worker at the side of Interstate 55 in Will County, Illinois.

Will County Sheriff's Police Department immediately started a murder investigation, but to no avail. 

Now, the mystery of the murdered woman’s identity has finally been solved. 

After almost 57 years, the woman’s identity has been revealed

In September 1968, a highway worker made the grisly discovery near Blodgett Road in Will County, part of the Chicago metropolitan area.

The woman was found naked, and police identified that she was around 5”5 in height and weighed 135lbs. 

No identification, jewellery, or other evidence was found on the body or in the surrounding areas. 

An autopsy found that the woman had been strangled and sustained a blunt force trauma to the head, causing her death. 

Her fingerprints offered no clues as to her identity, and while no DNA testing was available at the time, her blood was tested and identified as type 0. 

The case was left cold after that, and the woman was buried in a local cemetery. 

Years later, new technology shed light on the woman’s true identity, as DNA Solves reports.

In 2020, Coroner Laurie H. Summers started experimenting with emerging new technology in the field, and created a forensic sketch of the woman’s face. 

Then, they collaborated with noted cold-case experts and DNA scientists Othram Labs - who also helped to bring serial killer Bryan Kohberger to justice - to attempt to solve this decades old murder. 

Technology similar to this has also recently helped to allegedly uncover the 'true identity' of Jack the Ripper, showing how wide the scope of this futuristic DNA science could be.

For this Illinois cold case, a sample was extracted and a profile created, and the scientists and forensic genetic geneologists set to work. 

That new information led the investigators to Native American tribes in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa, where flyers where distributed alongside the Bureau of Indian Affairs in order to engage the communities. 

After some time, a woman claiming to be related to the woman came forward, a sample was taken and confirmed, before it could be confirmed that the murdered woman was 33-year-old Martha Bassett. 

Who was Martha Bassett?

Martha Bassett was born in Washington and a member of the Native American community in Wapato, Yakima County. 

She had moved to the Chicago area in 1960, but by 1967 had lost contact with her family, who travelled to the area to search for her before returning home without closure. 

Now, Martha has been identified - even if it has taken over half a century. 

Whether her murderer will ever be identified and brought to justice - if still alive - is another question, but at least her remaining family now have the closure they sought all those years ago.

This is the 11th case in the State of Illinois that Othram’s technology has helped to identify, including five Will County cold cases since 2022.

The company - and others like it - intend to use this technology as widely as possible to help identify victims, prosecute perpetrators, acquit the wrongfully convicted, and bring an end to cases that in the past would have gone unsolved forever.

Featured image credit: Othram Labs