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  • PC John Wilkins

    Hi all


    I am trying to find a record for a Scotland Yard PC named John Wilkins.

    He was said to be active during the Whitechapel murders.

    He eventually went on to become a D.I. for Scotland Yard.

    The reason why I am asking is because he appears to have taken a personal copy of some of the alleged Ripper correspondences, and kept it for personal use.

    I was wondering whether taking copies of the Ripper letters would be commonplace for an officer to do after leaving the Police?

    Or whether that is particularly unusual behaviour?

    I have not been able to find any trace of him thus far.

    I had wondered if the article meant Pc Watkins, but as far as I am aware, Watkins never became a D.I for Scotland Yard.

    The reason why I ask; is because I have found an interesting article printed in 1937, which tells an interesting story of a man in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, named Mr Crisp, who was given a framed copy of some of the alleged Ripper correspondences by one of his best friends who had retired, but who had served as a Scotland Yard uniformed officer at the time of the murders; a man named John Wilkins.


    Here is the rather fascinating article below...

    (Of course, it may be that John Wilkins didn't exist and Mr Crisp has fabricated his story, and has somehow managed to procure a copy of the Ripper letters)


    Here is the article...

    Click image for larger version  Name:	Coventry_Evening_Telegraph_15_June_1937_0004_Clip.jpg Views:	0 Size:	346.4 KB ID:	830891

    What's fascinating, is that in the Postcard transcription, it states "number 5 squealed a bit"

    That is certainly different from what I expected.


    It is also interesting to see the proposed list of victims... and the inclusion of Emma Smith, but the omission of Coles.

    But here's what I find is the most fascinating...it lists the Pinchin Street torso...as a proposed Ripper victim.

    It also makes me wonder whether this character Mr Crisp, had any other Ripper-related memorabilia that he may have procured and/or was given from his friend Detective Inspector Wilkins, and whether he later passed the items down to the next generation, as the article eludes to him having had more Ripper case-related material.


    How intriguing.


    Thoughts?


    RD
    Last edited by The Rookie Detective; 03-12-2024, 12:03 PM.
    "Great minds, don't think alike"

  • #2
    Hi Chris,

    There's some discussion of a possible ID on this JTR Forums thread but no one made any firm ID I recall.



    The thread also has a link to a discussion about the original and facsimile versions of the Dear Boss letter in existence. I had wondered at the time if Mr Crisp's version of Dear Boss could possibly have been the original as it was missing for a number of years.

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