Ripper finally identified!

[Guy Etchells]

It seems Dr Louhelainen has little or no idea how to forensically examine anything.

A further claim states:
"...Dr Louhelainen to examine the shawl, who said that dark blood stains were “consistent with arterial blood spatter caused by slashing”.
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/liverpool-scientist-how-solved-mystery-7732111

For such a claim to be made the shawl would have had to be examined at the scene as any movement of the shawl would create a different pattern of the blood pool and staining.

In addition there is no suggestion for example that the DNA of the descendants of Sergeant Amos Simpson has been checked. He may have contaminated the shawl with his own DNA it could have been cross contaminated in a number of ways as no train of evidence has been provided.

I hope his lectures at Liverpool John Moores University are more accurate or else his students are going to be disadvantaged in their careers.

Perhaps Dr. Jari Louhelainen will publish his study in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

Perhaps Liverpool John Moores University should review the findings, if only to redeem their reputation.
Cheers
Guy

[Guy Etchells]

Found elsewhere Goggle extracts from Russell Edwards book Catching Jack the Ripper
http://tinyurl.com/kko5h7d

There is a mention of a shawl (owned by a victim Emma Smith of an assault by a group of men) in this account.

Is this the same shawl?
Have the names been confused in error or on purpose?

Cheers
Guy

[tedscout]

http://www.jack-the-ripper.org/

[Regorian]

One thing is for sure, this matter won't go away now. It may prove to be another Hugh Trevor Roper and The Hitler Diaries event, but perhaps not.

There's no question of the DNA evidence being courtroom admissable evidence but that's not necessary in this case.

[Paul Caswell]

Thank you all for your contributions.

Experts as we are, let us perform due diligence (forgive me - I do not have access to any paid-for records any more):

1. Are there any records of him in what is now Poland (back then it was in Russian hands I hear)?
2. Is there any record of his arrival in England?
3. It is said he arrived in 1881 - if that was pre 3 April is he on census?
4. Is he in any other records up to his supposed incarceration in an asylum in 1890?
5. Can he be seen in an asylum in 1891?
6. I noticed mention of two different addresses in London in the articles - do they lead anywhere?
7. It is said hie has a different name in the asylum - can another person be traced with that name?

From the Mail article:

Kosminski has always been one of the three most credible suspects. He is often described as having been a hairdresser in Whitechapel, the occupation written on his admission papers to the workhouse in 1890.

Kosminski was 23 when the murders took place, and living with his two brothers and a sister in Greenfield Street, just 200 yards from where the third victim, Elizabeth Stride, was killed.

The ripper murders took place in 1888 so that gives him a d.o.b of 1865. He also has a sister Matilda.

He died in Leavesden  Asylum from gangrene at the age of 53, weighing just 7st.

From the Express

He was a Polish Jewish immigrant who, fleeing persecution in his Russia-controlled homeland, came with his family to England in 1881 and lived in Mile End Old Town.

From Wikipedia

At the time of the murders, Aaron apparently lived either on Providence Street or Greenfield Street, both of which addresses are close to the sites of the murders. The addresses given in the asylum records are in Mile End Old Town, just on the edge of Whitechapel

There are some very interesting (and presumably balanced) recent additions to the Wikipedia article.

It has been a very interesting discussion so far.

Paul

[Erato]

Some information about Kosminski's life and death here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Kosminski

It doesn't help that Aaron Kosminski may have been confused with another Polish immigrant named Nathan Kaminsky [aka Aaron or David Cohen].  This man was the same age as Kosminski and also confined to a mental hospital not long after the killings.

[mr newzealand]

of course aaron kosminski was the ripper & if anyone took the time to read casebook it clear states what catherine eddowes was wearing when found right down to the very pattern found on the said shawl least we forget he fled a country that made thousands of jews find home elsewhere in europe also possible reports of abuse from his step father least we forget he had a mental breakdown not long after 1888 & tried to stab his own sister leading to him being found mental insane & ending up in various mentals asslyums one of which he only spoke to himself in yiddish, plus the dna has been test by experts in the field which is trusted world over i say without a doubt he is the ripper otherwise its a woman or prince eddy

[andrewalston]

There was an interview with Jari Louhelainen, who did the DNA analysis, on the episode of "Inside Science" on BBC Radio4 this week.

Both the links from present-day relatives to victim and suspect were made using mitochondrial DNA, which passes down the maternal line and changes very little over the generations.

The suspect, therefore, is likely to match not just with the modern relative (identified through genealogy), but with all the descendants of his gggggggg grandmother. Unless he had moved from a part of the world with very distinct mitochondria, and none of his relatives had moved, there would be great difficulty with this evidence in a court of law.

The best that can be said is that someone from that part of the world was in contact with the garment in a sexual way.

Jari explains a lot in the programme, and hints that the evidence presented in the book is not fully explained because it seemed too complicated for the general public and also that the publishing deadline had been reached.

[DevonCruwys]

There is a very interesting interview on Inside Science with Jari Louhelainen, the scientist who did the Jack the Ripper DNA testing. Adam Rutherford gives him quite a grilling. You can download the podcast here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/inscience/all