Fred Abberline A.K.A. Jack the Ripper

[Celesta]

Can Abberline's whereabouts be accounted for during any of the alleged murders, from Tabram to Kelly?

If not, then it leaves him without an alibi...again, another circumstancial piece of evidence against him.

I think he was out trying to solve the Whitechapel and Adjoining Area Murders. I just don't see Abberline as JtR or any other killer.

[belinda]

No wonder my papers won't hold up!




Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

There you have it

[amarti9]

The theory of it being a policeman is one thats never been as explored as maybe it should be.Its one of my favourite theories.Abberline knew Whitechapel very well and would have been a reassuring presence maybe.

The only two things that are against him are

1.what was his motive???

2. Why did he stop??

It is my favorite theory by far. However Abberline being JTR is a bit out there even for me.

But I will take on your 2 questions from both Abberline and the patrolman(my theory) perspective.

1. Motive? For Abberline, I guess it would be the same for any suspect. Hatred for women, caught a disease and was upset about it..etc. Patrolman same thing. Unless of course Abberline was in on the royal theory. But you can basically put any reason for any suspect.

2. Why did he stop?

Abberline? Well didnt he continue to be on the job after the Ripper case? Didnt he continue to live or work near whitechapel afterwards? Usually the general consensus is that it can only end in 3 ways.

1. The killer dies
2. Killer is caught
3. Killer escapes abroad. Abberline doesnt seem to fit the bill that Im aware of.

Of course if the royal theory is true and Abberline was in on it then it could be said that the job was done and he no longer needed to kill.

Patrolman.......falls in the usual 3 endings like most, if not all suspects. I believe he was dismissed from duty thus losing his "advantages" of being an on duty patrolman in uniform.

[Archaic]

Another Possibility

Hi Amarti; welcome to Casebook. hiya: And please say hi to Louisiana for me. I love visiting your state and adore New Orleans...I miss it!

There is actually another way a serial killer can go besides your 3 suggestions.
It really is possible for them to stop, either for an extended period of time or indefinitely/permanently. (BTK, Green River, etc. are examples.)

The thing is, those who might fall into the latter categories are the least likely to be caught at all...so they are the least likely to be analyzed in depth and have their "end" added to our pool of knowledge regarding SK behavior.

Unfortunately, sometimes serial killers simply get away with murder.

Best regards, Archaic

[amarti9]

Hi Amarti; welcome to Casebook. hiya: And please say hi to Louisiana for me. I love visiting your state and adore New Orleans...I miss it!

There is actually another way a serial killer can go besides your 3 suggestions.
It really is possible for them to stop, either for an extended period of time or indefinitely/permanently. (BTK, Green River, etc. are examples.)

The thing is, those who might fall into the latter categories are the least likely to be caught at all...so they are the least likely to be analyzed in depth and have their "end" added to our pool of knowledge regarding SK behavior.

Unfortunately, sometimes serial killers simply get away with murder.

Best regards, Archaic

All true but lets take your two examples though.

The BTK killer acted as if he wanted police to catch him. He communicated with them silently and almost tauntingly in a way that seemed as if he was handing out clues for them to piece together to find him.

As for both the BTK and Green River stopping for awhile. Well lets put it into perspective vs that of JTK. JTK had no fear of the police or their abilities to catch up to him. No DNA, fingerprinting, no FBI profiling or coordination. JTK was likely the first of his kind. BTK and Green river were not the first of their kind and therefore DID fear the police in at least some capacity because there were those tools of detection available during their time that wasnt during Jack's. They probably made a calculation that they needed to stop otherwise they would eventually be caught sooner rather than later if they continued on.

[Archaic]

Hi Amarti.
It looks as though by your own statement you are accepting the fact that some Serial Killers can stop of their own volition, for reasons of their own, whatever those reasons may be. You state that one reason may be fear of capture. I agree. Stopping doesn't appear to be the most common choice they make but it is a possibility.

BTK didn't want to get caught, he just wanted to have more fun with the police in order to feed his sick ego and relive his previous murders. It was all part of his perverted fantasy, his game of "omniscience" with those working so hard to catch him. He considered killing again but didn't; perhaps his behavior might have ramped up to the level of murder again if he hadn't been caught due to his own ego but we'll never really know.

What appears to happen with some SK's is that their compulsion to kill lessens as they age. Whether they have really slaked their appetite for murder or just wised up or have merely turned the compulsion in another direction is another question.

Psychologists have discovered that some killers eventually realize that the actual murders they commit aren't quite as satisfying as the fantasies that drove them. This is because no murder "goes perfectly" like a fantasy does. Thus some killers return to the fantasy mode and go either a long time between kills or cease killing indefinitely. Fear of capture and all the other complications that committing murder bring to an individual might play a part in that behavioral shift.
Some killers cease for a long time, perhaps waiting until either the compulsion is overwhelming again. Sometimes that overwhelming compulsion happens out of the blue because an opportunity that seems "easy" and "too good to pass up" presents itself. Many factors both internal and external come into play.

My point is that even serial killers are human beings, not robots- and as human beings they have at least the potential to change or modify their behavior over time. Remember, the ones that don't do so are the ones most likely to get caught.

Best regards,
Archaic

[amarti9]

Archaic,

I agree with the psychological aspect of a SK's behavior over time. I would also like to add to that the fact that some or most people do things for the thrill of it.

For instance a thief isnt interest in the money in the bank only the actual act of committing robbery. Or a hunter enjoying the thrill of the hunt rather than actually catching his prey. The question is which is greater? The thrill of doing the act or the end game(murder) or the need to be cautious and not get caught....and/or finally, the need for attention/fame?

I figure they all play a small part. As for JTR I can assume 1 or more factors was the dominate factor in doing what he did. The question on what made him stop will always be up for debate till we put a face/name to him or her.

For now I can only see two schools of thought

1. As he kept on killing he kept taking it to the next level by making it more gruesome than the last with Mary Kelly being the Grand Finale. He stops figuring he cant really top that.

2. He wants to go even further the next time he kills after MJK. Maybe he wants to kill 2 or 3 women at the same time in the same spot. Sending Whitechapel into and absolute nightmarish scene of panic and horror in the streets...........but he got caught or was killed or left abroad before he could.

Just some stuff to chew on.

[Fleetwood Mac]

Archaic,

For now I can only see two schools of thought

1. As he kept on killing he kept taking it to the next level by making it more gruesome than the last with Mary Kelly being the Grand Finale. He stops figuring he cant really top that.

2. He wants to go even further the next time he kills after MJK. Maybe he wants to kill 2 or 3 women at the same time in the same spot. Sending Whitechapel into and absolute nightmarish scene of panic and horror in the streets...........but he got caught or was killed or left abroad before he could.

Just some stuff to chew on.

Hmmmmm.....I'd suggest that opportunity was the issue with the MJK killing.....and there's a good chance he would have done something similar with the previous murders where he wasn't killing on the streets.

It has to be unlikely that he simply packed it in. There are always exceptions to the rule - but the rule - based on what we know - is serial killers don't stop out of free will.

[amarti9]

Hmmmmm.....I'd suggest that opportunity was the issue with the MJK killing.....and there's a good chance he would have done something similar with the previous murders where he wasn't killing on the streets.

It has to be unlikely that he simply packed it in. There are always exceptions to the rule - but the rule - based on what we know - is serial killers don't stop out of free will.

I agree with MJK he had the time and opportunity to do what he did. But what kept him from chopping up the body or even tearing it up a bit more while removing organs from the other murders?

Trying to preserve or keep the organs intact? Lack of time? If Lack of time how much more time would he need to slice and dice the body up? I think he could have done a lot more damage if he wanted to during the previous murders. Not necessarily MJK type damage but he could have been far more gruesome.

[Sickert]

Maybe

You may be right, but I doubt it. I haven't heard any real evidence that points in this direction.

[Fleetwood Mac]

The theory of it being a policeman is one thats never been as explored as maybe it should be.Its one of my favourite theories.Abberline knew Whitechapel very well and would have been a reassuring presence maybe.

The only two things that are against him are

1.what was his motive???

2. Why did he stop??

All due respect, it's not what's against him, I mean you could pretty much concoct anything on theory, it's what's for him; and in terms of anything approaching evidence it's nothing.

The policeman theory only holds water where you believe only someone in a position of authority could have gotten away with it, due to cover, and that is wide of the mark. Old Jack would pretty much have had to have been caught red-handed in those days, or handed himself in.

The Yorkshire Ripper managed 13 before he was caught, by chance, in an age of finger printing etc. It's not as difficult as the policeman theory demands.

The best bet is some local no mark whose mind unravelled at some point.

[chris14]

I love this theory, although, I'm not convinced (yet).

But I can tell you what Abberline's motives could have been: he was a great policeman. He saw the disadvantages and the limits of his profession. He knew that the tools and methods that the police used were old-fashioned. He knew that nobody would give the police new equipments, money for developing the methods... unless something really scary and horrible would happened... Nobody cared about those people in the East End, the crime was always in the air. But a brand new type of crime would boost up the interest as well as the fear in people. For a new type of criminal they would need modern tools.

He easily got access to everywhere, the prostitutes trusted him when he wanted to bring them to 'safe' places... He could easily kill them.

He never talked about his most famous case... only once, naming the most unlikely suspect (well, for me Kominsky is a very unlikely suspect, that's for sure).

As for the other question, 'why did he stop?'... Well... he achieved what he wanted: the police came into spotlight, as well as the crimes of the East End. There was a pressure from ABOVE to modernise the techniques at the police forces. Or simply he stopped because it would have been far too dangerous to go on with the killings. And there were a couple of murders - even years later - that could be done by the Ripper.

Chris x

[The Good Michael]

So Abberline killed a prostitute so he could be assigned to the area he wasn't assigned to just so he could go on killing prostitutes? Brilliant! He knew if he killed one, that his boss would say, "Hey. Let's assign Abberline here because he knows the area." He knew he would be assigned there. Moriarty anyone?

Mike

[Sickert]

No Way

I think there's more chance of me been JTR than Abberline. I have heard no real evidence to support him been the Ripper.

[Natalie Severn]

No way!

Abberline as the ripper? Get off!