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Peter Sutcliffe, the Yorkshire Ripper, was born on June 2, 1946 to John and Kathleen Sutcliffe in Bingley, Yorkshire, England. John and Kathleen Sutcliffe’s other children were Anne, Maureen, Jane, Mick and Carl. A loner who was supposedly harassed by his classmates through most of his school years, Peter Sutcliffe quit school when he was fifteen. Changing jobs (one being that of gravedigger) regularly over the next few years, Peter met his wife to be, Sonia Szurma, at the age of twenty and they dated for almost eight years until their wedding on August 10, 1974.
While playing the role of devoted husband at home, Sutcliffe spent large amounts of time in the bars and red light districts of Yorkshire. In June 1975 Sonia suffered a miscarriage and was told she would never be able to bear children. It was shortly after this that Peter “began to hear the voice of God.” At his trial he testified that God supposedly told him to go out and rid the area of prostitutes.
His first known victim was prostitute Anna Rogulskyj, who was attacked outside her boyfriend’s home on July 5, 1975. Sutcliffe had watched her beating on the door and when no one answered, he crept up behind her and beat her in the head with a hammer. After knocking Rogulskyj unconscious, Sutcliffe raised her skirt, took down her underwear and began slashing her with a knife. Surprisingly, Rogulskyj survived the attack and was taken to a nearby hospital.
His second attempt at murder was also a failure. This time he attacked Olive Smart on August 8, 1975 with a brick. Striking her from the back, he knocked her unconscious and began to slash her with a knife as well but a car interrupted him.
On September 29, 1975 Sutcliffe finally succeeded in killing a prostitute. Wima McCann, age 28, suffered several blows to the head and fourteen stab wounds. Her body wasn’t found until October 30, 1975 on the embankment of the Prince Phillip Playing Fields. She was only 100 yards from her home.
Joan Harrison, age 26, was found on November 20, 1975. Her autopsy would show she had been raped, beaten in the back of the head with the heel of a shoe and kicked to death.
Emily Jackson, age 42, was found dead around 8 A.M. on January 20, 1976. She had also been beaten in the head with a hammer but in this murder, Peter Sutcliffe stabbed her over 50 times with a Phillips head screwdriver and stomped on her right thigh leaving the impression of a size 7 Wellington boot.
Sutcliffe’s next attempt was on prostitute Marcella Claxton, age 20. Claxton had been walking home from a party when Sutcliffe offered her a ride home. Accepting the ride, she later turned down money for sex at Soldier’s Field where she got out of the car. Sutcliffe got out at the same time, came around to her side and hit her several times in the head with a hammer. Claxton would tell authorities later that Sutcliffe masterbated while watching her bleed. Finishing up, he gave her a 5-pound note and warned her not to call the police.
Irene Richardson, age 28, was murdered by three hammer blows to the neck, several stab wounds to the neck and chest as well as having been disemboweled.
Sutcliffe’s next victim was Patricia Atkinson, age 32. Four hammer blows to her head and seven stab wounds to the stomach murdered her on April 23, 1977. Another size 7 Wellington boot print was found on the floor nearby.
On June 25, 1977 Sutcliffe no longer limited his killings to prostitutes. Jayne McDonald was 16 years old. She also had been struck in the head several times with a hammer before being stabbed in the back and chest. Children playing found her body the next day.
July 9, 1977 Sutcliffe attacked Maureen Long after offering her a lift home. After driving her to a secluded area, he struck her in the head with a hammer and then stabbed her several times in the abdomen. Left for dead, she surprisingly lived through the night and was found the next morning.
October 1, 1977 Sutcliffe attacked Jean Jordan, striking her in the head thirteen times and hid her body in a cemetery. Nine days later he went back to the body and took a piece of broken glass to “hack up” the body, nearly severing the head. Her body was found on October 10, 1977.
On December 14, 1977, prostitute Marilyn Loore was attacked. She was struck several times in the head but survived.
Prostitute Yvonne Pearson age 22 was murdered on January 21, 1978. Sutcliffe had propositioned her from his car and she agreed to go with him only to be repeatedly struck in the head with a hammer until she was dead. Afterwards, Sutcliffe stomped on her chest, breaking all the ribs. Her body was undiscovered for almost two months and later evidence would show Sutcliffe returned several times to the body to try and make it more conspicuous.
Helen Rytka, age 18, was murdered on January 31, 1978. She was struck six times on the back of the head with his hammer, followed by three stab wounds in the chest and mutilation.
May 16, 1978 Vera Millward, age 41, was struck three times in the head and then disemboweled. She had also been stabbed in the back, the side and one eye. Tire tracks that matched those found at the murder of Irene Richardson were found.
Josephine Whitaker was leaving her grandparent’s home on April 4, 1979 when Sutcliffe asked her if she knew the time. While she was distracted, Sutcliffe struck her several times in the head with his hammer. Dragging the body a short distance, he then stabbed her twenty-five times in the chest, breasts, abdomen, thighs and vagina. Like Jayne McDonald, she was not a prostitute.
Barbara Leach, age 20, was another “respectable girl.” She was murdered on September 2, 1979 after leaving a local bar. Although Sutcliffe smashed her skull in with his initial blow and killed her, he dragged her out of sight and proceeded to stab her eight times.
The Yorkshire Ripper seemed to take a break from murder during the latter part of 1979 and most of 1980. Quite possibly this was because Peter Sutcliffe was a suspect in the killings and had undergone several questionings by police during this time. The 5 pound note that Marcella Claxton’s attacker had left her as well as some found on other victims were traced to a company that Sutcliffe worked for. Not being able to pin the murders on Sutcliffe, police had no choice but to allow him to go free.
There is some debate about the next victim. Sutcliffe didn’t confess to the killing, nor was he convicted of it but most experts agree Marguerite Walls, age 47, was a victim of the Yorkshire Ripper. She was struck several times in the head with a hammer but instead of stab wounds, she died by strangulation on August 18, 1980.
Dr. Upadhya Bandara was attacked on September 9, 1980 while walking home from a friend’s house. She was struck in the head with a hammer and knocked unconscious but before Sutcliffe could finish her off, Mrs. Valerie Nicholas approached on foot and scared Sutcliffe off. Dr. Bandara survived the attack.
On November 5, 1980 Theresa Sykes, 16, was right outside her own home when Sutcliffe jumped her and struck her three times with his hammer. Her screams brought her boyfriend out of the house and she survived.
Another young girl, Jaqueline Hill, age 14, was walking home from her bus stop when Sutcliffe attacked her. He struck her in the head with the hammer, drug her to a vacant lot where he proceeded to slash and stab her body. She was found the next day on November 17, 1980.
On January 2, 1981 Sutcliffe picked up prostitute Olivia Reivers. Attempting to have sex with Reivers, he was never able to become aroused. With his hammer and knife in his pocket, Sutcliffe was waiting for the right moment to strike but fate stepped in to save Olivia Reivers. Sgt. Robert Ring and Constable Robert Hydes were driving by when they noticed Sutcliffe’s parked car. During questioning by these two, Sutcliffe stated his name was Peter Williams and that Reivers was his girlfriend. Sgt. Ring recognized Reivers as a formerly arrested prostitute. Before they asked too many questions, Sutcliffe requested permission to walk towards the entrance of a nearby building to urinate. During his trip, he hid the hammer and knife inside an oil barrel.
On his return, Reivers had confessed that she was a prostitute and the officers had discovered his real name was Peter Sutcliffe. He was then arrested for solicitation.
While being held at the Dewsbury station, it was noticed he wore a size 7 boot. Yorkshire Ripper investigators were called in and Sgt. Ring was informed of police suspicions concerning Sutcliffe the following day. Remembering Sutcliffe’s walk to relive himself, Ring went back to where the arrest was made and searched the area. It was he who discovered the secreted ball-peen hammer and knife.
Police received a warrant to search Sutcliffe’s home on January 4, 1981. They found a number of tools and various hammers. When investigators told Sutcliffe they had found the knife and hammer he had hid within the oil barrel, without fuss, Sutcliffe then admitted to being the Yorkshire Ripper.
On May 22, 1981 after only fourteen days of trial and six hours of jury deliberation, Peter Sutcliffe was convicted of thirteen counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison to be served at Parkhurst. In 1984 Sutcliffe was transferred to Broadmoor Mental Hospital where he is currently being held.
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