Could he have committed similar murders we’ve never heard about?

[AmeliaV]

Kind of a vague question, but I couldn’t put the whole question in the title.

What I’m specifically asking is if the killer killed either before or after the Autumn of Terror in the same
manner, only in a different area or country that at the time had a poor or non-existent press industry, would it be possible that those crimes were never known to police at the time or subsequent Ripperologists and were almost immediately lost to time?

If so, what areas of the world in 1888 would have such a dearth of a press influence?

[The Rookie Detective]

That's a very good question


There were reports of similar Ripper style murders in various other countries, but in terms of whether any murders occurred in countries that we never heard about, is more likely to be the influence and attitude of the English press rather than any reflection of the competency of any foreign press.

There were alleged to have been similar murders committed in Canada, the US, France, and even Mexico, but they would not be attributed to just one killer.

It's likely there were Ripper style murders in scores of other countries.
It's important to remember that the Jack the Ripper case stands out, not for the fact that prostitutes were murdered or had their throats cut; it stands out because the killer's actions created a means by which the press could make money by selling newspapers. The Ripper killings were somewhat lucrative for the newspapers and the press helped to push through the idea that the Ripper was unique and the process of an unknown man killing unfortunates became a way to fuel profits.

In other words, the press reveled in the Ripper killings and so when we look at the basis of your question: there were almost certainly similar murders we never heard about, because the press picked and chose what to print.

If the Ripper had been active in Zanzibar, Peru, Hungary or India etc...etc..., his actions wouldn't have featured in the English press as much as a killer lurking around London.

Of course, the single biggest reason why the Ripper murders are still discussed today; is because he was never identified or caught.
It's the unknown that makes the case stand out and not the murders themselves.
There are literally scores of other murders that were commited during the time of the Ripper murders, but nobody remembers those because they were either solved or the press didnt invest in pedalling the story.

RD

[The Rookie Detective]

There is one particular killer who makes Jack the Ripper seem like an amateur in comparison.

You may or not be familiar with the child killer named Amelia Dyer (Amelia Hobley)

She was active around the same time as the Ripper and in almost a 30 year period murdered anywhere between 300 to 400 babies and infants in her care, possibly more.

But to anyone who has no interest in historic murder cases, it's unlikely that the average person would have heard of her or know who she was or what she did.

400 babies

That seems almost unbelievable

It also highlights my point; that the only reason why the Ripper has become the most popular and well known murder series in history, is only because he was never identified or caught.

He is the modern entertainment equivalent of an over-night social media sensation, becoming a populist celebrity, or a one hit wonder who produces an annoyingly catchy Christmas tune that we can't get out of our heads.

Known and subsequently remembered for all the wrong reasons and yet paradoxically, unknown and unidentified.


RD

[Lewis C]

There are 2 men that I consider viable suspects - Bury and Deeming - that did commit murders after the Ripper murders that have at last some similarity to the Ripper murders, in Deeming's case, minus the mutilations. We've heard about them, but it could be that neither of them is the Ripper, but the true Ripper has a story similar to theirs.

[Michael W Richards]

The Ripper is a special case, I dont think you will find another murderer quite like him. The public murders are one aspect that is rare, the other is the penchant for abdominal butchery/surgery on the spot.