Most of the stories, books, biographies and case studies that you have read about concentrated mostly on the murders in Whitechapel located in the East End of London. You have undoubtedly read about the victims, the ferocity of the grisly murders and the theories behind the reasons as to which the Ripper committed these fiendish acts. You scarcely hear about the unsettling letters he sent to the police, taunting them and laughing at them for their inability to catch him. There are those criminologists and biographers who think that his name was given to him by the Press and Law officials. This is a major misconception. The name, Jack the Ripper was created by the killer himself. In the first letter that he had sent to the police he signed it “Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper” and that is how his name came into fruition and gained public attention. Usually, it is the police or the newspapers that give murderers and serial killers their aliases to grab the readers’ attention. This is the only case on record in which the murderer provided the public with his own alias.
The first letter that was sent became known as the “Dear Boss” letter which had been received on September 27, 1888 at the Central News Agency. It was believed to be a hoax at first, but after the murders of Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes they soon realized that the letter was genuine. Especially when they had learned that the police had found Eddowess’ ear lobe was cut off just like the letter had foretold. One theory is that the Ripper was an uneducated vagabond that roamed the streets due to the broken English that the letter had showcased. The letter sent read as follows:
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. » Read more: Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper
