The hunt for The Yorkshire Ripper intensifies (Part 3/3) | Forensic Files

[Music] at 10:50 p.m. on Friday the 2nd of January 1981 her Brown rover saloon motor vehicle was parked in the driveway
of the light trades house a steel manufacturer in Sheffield 50 minutes south of Leeds being late at night the
area was completely deserted but it was a popular place for sex workers to take clients to police officers on patrol
drove past the vehicle they believed that could only be there for one reason they stopped their patrol
car next to the robot and one of the officers approached the male driver he asked the driver if it was his vehicle
the driver replied it was he gave his name and address as John Williams 65 Dorchester Road came close rather the
driver had a woman in the vehicle with him and the officers asked who she was the driver replied she was his
girlfriend but couldn't give a name as he hadn't known her that long the woman gave her name is Olivia Rivas the
officers radioed in the two names and asked for details on the registration plate of the rover
there was no match for a man by the name of John Williams they found out that Olivia was 24 years old and a known sex
worker they found out the plate was registered to someone by the name of Aslam Khan and it was registered to a
completely different make and model of vehicle Olivia and the male driver were both arrested on suspicion of theft when
they got back to the police station they learnt the male driver's name wasn't John Williams it was Peter Williams
sotloff and this wasn't his first encounter with the police in fact his name had come up several times before in
the Yorkshire Ripper investigation [Music] Peter Sutcliffe was born in Bingley ten
minutes north of Bradford on the second of June 1946 his first convictions were for driving without a license when he
was 18 he was charged with trying to steal a car he was fined and two official records with his name date of
birth address and information about the offense were submitted to West Yorkshire
and to London when he was 23 he was seen sitting in a car late at night in Manning room the engine was on but the
lights were off a police officer on patrol went to speak with Sir Cliff but he took off Sutcliffe was later
apprehended and when they searched him they found a hammer the police described this in the report
as being equipped to steel he was photographed and that photo appeared on his record he had dark curly hair a
beard and a mustache when Sutcliffe was 29 years old the 15th of October 1975 a tire company he worked
for reported in to the police for stealing and when questioned he admitted he'd done it he appeared a court for the
stealing in February 1976 Sutcliffe was a married man and lived in Bradford Sutcliffe's name came up numerous times
in the Ripper investigation vehicles registered to him around the tracking inquiry list his name was on the list of
241 suspects that Ridgeway came up with after all his work on the five-pound note his registration had been recorded
in the red-light districts in numerous times but each time he was questioned and cleared as they weren't storing
information on computers clerical errors meant that when other police went to question sir cliff they had no idea his
name had come up previously and he had already been questioned like on the 29th of July 1979 Sutcliff
was visited by two detectives because his car had recently been seen and recorded going through three red-light
district areas Bradford Leeds and Manchester the detectives that visit him this day had no idea this was actually
the fifth time Sutcliffe had been questioned during the Ripper investigation all these
detectives knew about him was that his name was paid to suckle if he was a truck driver and his car had been
flagged for a triple area sighting it was a Saturday afternoon and suckle if let the detectives into his front lounge
room they were joined by his wife Sonya detective Andrew elapsed you went through the routine questions name date
of birth what he did for a living and who he worked for when that you heard Sutcliffe say he works for one of
the companies who had come up in the five pound note inquiry he had a really close look at him he suddenly realized
Sutcliffe looked very similar to the photo fit Maryland Moore had provided after her attack the one describing the
Jason King style of moustache he also noticed he had a gap in his front teeth although he didn't have a Geordie accent
like the men on the Ripper tape what you also noted Sutcliffe Fendi's wife Sonya
seemed a bit strange they didn't seem to have much of a reaction to any of the questions or comments made by the
detectives when they wanted to ask him about sex workers but you did what all detectives used to do in these
situations he asked for a glass of water which resulted most times in the wife saying she'd make tea that gave their
detectives at least five minutes alone with the husband to ask questions without making things uncomfortable when
lets you ask Sonya for water I went to plan she said she'd make tea giving them time alone Sutcliffe told the detectives
he didn't have anything to do with sex workers he passed through Bradford frequently to go to work and of the red
light area was on his way for the lead sighting he said he had taken Sonya to a nightclub and to get to the club they
had to pass through the red light but suckle if denied ever passing through Manchester the detectives didn't
have the times in which Sukkoth passed through each area so they couldn't ask more specific questions and that they
couldn't confront him about being in Manchester because confrontations were prohibited during these lines of
questioning they didn't want to break up marriages that was an order from the boss when Sonia returned she alibi'd
Suckley for several dates that Ripper murders had occurred when asked about his blood group
Sutcliffe said he didn't know what he was but he didn't mind providing a sample he also provided a handwriting
sample by giving them a letter he had written to Sonya the detectives searched his car and garage but found nothing
they spoke to sucklings boss who described him as a model worker they learned he had been to Sunderland for
work but not on the dates the Ripper letters were sent the vehicle that had been recorded through the red-light
areas was a Sunbeam rapier Sutcliffe had since sold that car and was now driving
the rover saloon the detectives tracked down the new owner of Sutcliffe srei PR but again fee under nothing this 5th
interview with Sir Cliff took two hours by the end of it that too was more suspicious of southcliffe than it was a
bit beginning he said I had bad feelings about the men he had too many uncanny links with what we knew and the thing
that struck me more than anything was the striking resemblance to the Marilyn more photo fit before leaving elapsed
you and the other detective debated about arresting Sutcliffe on suspicion but in order to arrest him or even
question him further they needed express approval from Oldfield what you did a check on Sutcliffe and found out about
his previous convictions for stealing ties and being equipped for theft but he didn't get specific details about the
crimes so latu has never informed Sutcliffe was found in possession of a hammer when he was arrested for being
equipped for theft black-tea completed a report regarding the suspicions he had about suc leaf
it was dated the second of August 1979 and in the report by saying the reporting officers are not fully
satisfied with this men that you took the report directly to dick Holland so he'd read it straight away instead
Hollander left it in a tray with a whole heap of other paperwork that you insisted with Holland and told him I'm
not happy with this bloke who you have another look through it he specifically mentioned the photo fit resemblance
Holland's answer was anybody who mentions photo fits to me will draw a uniform and do traffic for the rest of
their service latitude let it go Holland marked the report in green ink with the
word file because Sutcliffe's handwriting didn't match the Ripper letters Sutcliffe was interviewed for a
sixth time only two months later the 23rd of October 79 the index cards in the incident room
were a complete mess only four index cards existed for Sutcliffe relating to his previous five interviews one was
missing but on those four cards to read Peter William Sutcliffe and to read William Peter Sutcliffe each one had a
different date of birth so it seemed like it was two different people a few weeks earlier an inspector had found an
action report from what had been suk leaves fourth interview Sutcliffe's mother and his wife Sonya had provided
him with alibis for the murders of Jean Jordan and Vera Millwood during this fourth interview the inspector wasn't
happy with the alibis and one at another interview with Sir Cliff so he ordered what was actually suck cliffs sixth
interview the detectives who conducted this interview had the papers from his fourth and fifth interview but no other
information latchees detail report he had written two months earlier that was marked file had been lost the cards from
interviews four and five contained only bare basic information when they knocked
on the door Sonya answered and said oh no not again she said Sutcliffe was out and they
been questioned three times before the officers left and returned later that evening when Sutcliffe was home
the officers are stuck lift to produce a handwriting sample due to the poor record-keeping they didn't know he had
already provided one while one of them dictated subtly for paragraph two right Sonia said my husband is not the Ripper
to which one of the officers replied I think he is suck live stopped writing looked at the officer then got back to
writing again when asked about sex workers he denied he had anything to do with him he said he stayed at home with
his wife during the evenings because being a truck driver he was often away so when he wasn't working he likes
spending time with her if they ever went out at night it was always together when
asked for alibis on different murder dates Suckley would ever say who is with his wife well then he couldn't remember
once more the detectives considered him strange but they didn't go as far as writing a detailed report like that you
they looked at his handwriting sample saw that it didn't match the Ripper letters no dude his voice didn't match
the Ripper tape so that completed the interview filled out an index card and filed it it was only a few months later
December 79 when Ridgeway narrowed down the list of six thousand names to two hundred and forty-one names in relation
to who could have received the new five-pound note as part of a payroll found at Jean Jordans crime scene
Sutcliffe was on that list of 241 names Ridgeway ordered detectives to do a search on all 241 men to see if they had
come up before in the Ripper investigation or if they had any other relevant information about them
Sutcliffe's name had of course come up before he'd been interviewed six times an important facts had come out in some
of those interviews he matched the photo feed of Marilyn more his vehicle had been cited numerous times cruising red
light areas but when detectives completed the search 18 men came back as no trace meaning they hadn't come up
before in the investigation somehow suck LIF was on that list of eighteen men Sutcliffe was still
interviewed about the note in total he was interviewed on a further three separate occasions these interviews
occurred in January in February 1980 in the first interview he was noted as strange but nothing more in the second
interview detectives inspected his truck but they found nothing in the third interview which was actually his ninth
overall detectives had managed to dig up some of that background info on Sutcliffe and they were ordered to go
home question him further about his vehicle sightings in the red-light areas but this time they wanted to question
him about a Ford Corsair being cited these sightings had occurred earlier in the investigation they were also ordered
to get a proper alibi out of him for the murder of Joseph M Whittaker the detectives met Sutcliffe at work in
relation to his vehicle being sited in the red-light areas he said he was out with Sonia and another couple but he
couldn't remember the other couples last names Sonya backed up this story Sutcliffe
said that he had taken his Ford Corsair that was cited in the red light area to a car rental when detectives visited the
wrecker there was no record of that car on the night of Josephine's murder he said he'd been home with Sonya which she
again confirmed when they got back to the incident room the detectives said it was difficult to eliminate suck lifts
and recommended to start afresh on him if another murder occurred the inspector though felt they'd gone as far as they
could with the information and on the 10th of March 1980 he recommended Sutcliffe's interviews be filed with no
further action at 11:30 p.m. on the 26th of June 1980 Sutcliffe drove erratically
in his Rover saloon and passed two officers in many room they chased him but didn't actually stop him until he
was already parked in his driveway they arrested him for drunk driving and took him to Bradford station they ran a
routine check on him and found he'd been interviewed and eliminated from the Ripper investigation
so they didn't question in any further on the 25th of November 1980 a man by the name of Trevor birds'll wrote an
anonymous letter to the police incident room it said to whom it may concern I am
writing to inform you that I have very good reason to believe I know the man you were looking for in the Ripper case
it is an incident which happened within the last five years I could not give any
date or place or any details without myself being known to the Ripper or you it is only until recently that something
came to my notice and now a lot of things fit into place I can only tell you one or two things that fit for
example this man has had dealings with sex workers and always had a thing about them also he is a long-distance truck
driver collecting engineering items I'm quite sure if you check on dates you might find something his name and
address is Peter Sutcliffe five garden lane Shipley Hayden Bradford the incident Trevor was referring to was
annoyed on the 15th of August 1975 when he went out drinking with Sutcliffe after visiting several pubs they passed
through booth Pen Halifax and Sutcliffe suddenly stopped the car and told Trevor he was going to talk to
someone he returned 20 minutes later and said he'd been talking to a woman but that's
all he said he then kept quiet Trevor found this odd and the next day he read in the newspaper about olives
smelts attack in booth town Trevor had also been out with Sutcliffe six years earlier when he beat a woman however she
decided not to press charges against him after sending the anonymous letter Trevor's girlfriend told him he hadn't
given the police enough information so on the 26th of November he went to Bradford police station and
told officers about what happened the night of olives felts attack the junior officer who saw him took notes and these
were then forwarded to the leads into the room they were so overrun with paperwork it's not clear if these notes
were ever looked at were acted upon with that history will now go back to where we were at the start of the
episode the arrest for suspicion of theft with the stolen number plates in Sheffield 2nd of January 1981 the
officers who had Sutcliffe at the police station in the interrogation room were not aware about any of these previous
facts or dealings that suck live had with the Ripper investigation but they had a feeling something was up with him
he had fake plates on his car he looked eerily similar to the photo fit of the Ripper
they had displayed in the station he was from Bradford which by now that specialist team of detectives had made
clear that's where they believed the Ripper resided and they found a piece of red and blue nylon rope when they surged
him there was three feet long and had knots at the end and in the middle when questioned Sutcliffe said he used
it to repair cars the officers looked at him confused how do you use this piece of rope to repair a car Sutcliffe
couldn't answer sir cliff seemed to be extremely nervous about his situation he avoided a lot of questions and when they
offered to call his wife to let her know where he was he gave a false telephone number one of the officers officer ring
then took Suckley fear to his Rover and searched it ring saw that there was a hammer missing from the toolbox Sukkoth
denied there was ever a hammer in the toolbox back inside the station there was a chart with information on the
Yorkshire Ripper a detective approached Sutcliffe and said have you been questioned by the ripest would suck leaf
replied everybody has been questioned they are always questioning and makes you sick Sutcliffe was shifting around
and glancing in different directions he looked very uncomfortable officer ring then said if you are the
Ripper why don't you admit it all you have to do is admit it are you sigh cliff started breathing heavily but
didn't reply so ring got closer to him he placed both of his hands on Sutcliffe shoulders and said
I think you are at 1:00 a.m. Saturday the 3rd of January 81 officer ring called the incident room at Leeds and
talked to a sergeant there the sergeant checks up live out and found some of the previous interview
files the sergeant said that apart from not having matching handwriting there were some details that matched up with
the Ripper on Sutcliffe files even though he had already been eliminated from the investigation at 7:40 a.m. to
West Yorkshire officers took Sutcliffe for further questioning they asked him routine questions about his life and
then jumped to the reason why he was in Sheffield the previous night suck we've told them that after his drunk driving
charge back in June the previous year he was scared of losing his job as a truck
driver because authorities would take his license away and there was no point in trying to renew the insurance either
so he had the idea of stealing number plates from his scrapyard after each thought the plates and put them on his
vehicle he met three people who offered to paying ten pounds to drop them off at
Sheffield suckle if agreed to do it and while it was in Sheffield a woman flagged him down he thought she might
need assistance of some sort instead she offered him business to which Sutcliffe
explained I was surprised I thought about things and realised I had 10 pounds burning a hole in my pocket and
thought I might as well use it this girl then disappeared so I drove on and saw another girl and stopped she asked me if
I wanted business she got in the car and told me where to drive I paid at 10 pounds I didn't want sex I just wanted
to talk about my problems at home I didn't want sex at all they then wanted to know her suck live had sexual
problems with his wife which he denied they asked for an alibi for the night Teresa Sikes was attacked he said he was
at home with his wife they took another handwriting sample and took a blood sample Sutcliffe was blood group B
non-secretor the letter writer was blood group B but a secretor banya that specialist team of detectives that were
hand selected and brought in to assist the investigate had declared the letters and tape a hoax
the detectives then found out that Sutcliffe vehicle had been sighted in red-light areas previously they focused
in on the sighting in Manchester Sutcliffe had denied ever being in Manchester when he was first interviewed
about that sighting and he stuck to that story in this interview but this time the detectives could confront him about
it as his wife was an airy and eventually Sutcliffe said his car had broken down in Bradford and he had to
leave it for the night so someone must have stolen his car driven to Manchester and then returned it to the same spot
the next day the detective des stared at him and asked the obvious question how did someone steal your car if it was
broken down sigh cliff had no answer they then got to the day Jacqueline Hill was murdered sigh cliff again said that
he was at home with his wife Sonia the interview went until 10:00 p.m. the detective who led the questioning
detective O'Boyle planned to see Sonia the next day he wanted to pressure her and see what he
could come up with meanwhile officer ring who had arrested suc live at Sheffield the night before was bothered
by something sigh cliff had said that he needed to go to the toilet before he was
taking it so ring let him go with everything that had come to light since ring wanted to go back and check out the
area sigh cliff had gone to the toilet when he got back to that spot he found a hammer and a knife he radioed the Leeds
incident room and fuelled in detective O'Boyle now sigh cliff had some real questions that he had tell the next
morning Sunday the 4th O'Boyle went to see Sutcliffe in his cell Sutcliffe had been on suicide watch or
not they didn't want to take any chances with him Oh Boyle asked him how he slept
and suckler said he hadn't a Boyle said neither and he or the other police because they'd been in Sheffield on i/o
Boyle lets Sutcliffe know they'd found the hammer and the knife without coming out directly and saying it
oh boy he will then left to let that play on suck lips mine at 10 a.m. that morning big Holland went with another
detective to search suck Leafs house in Bradford when Sonia answered the door Holland told her the Sutcliffe was being
held for questioning and that she would have to come with them for questioning as well inside Sutcliffe's house they
found a set of knives in the kitchen that matched the one they found in Sheffield
they also found a piece of rope four feet long in the bedroom into hacksaw through the entire search sonya didn't
seem surprised or even remotely curious about what was happening at 12 p.m. that
day the second interview took place with sockless it was conducted by detectives
Boyle and Smith boy all been different to the one who conducted the first interview detective O'Boyle I started
the interview with the same questions that Sutcliffe got asked in his first interview again he said his reason for
being in Sheffield was dropping off hitchhikers Boyle told him that he was lying the only reason he was there was
to find a sex worker and the reason why he changed his number plates was to hide
his real identity then they had the following exchange Boyle do you understand what I'm saying I think
you're in serious trouble Sutcliffe I think you've been leading up to it Boyle leading up to what sir cliff
the Yorkshire Ripper Boyle what about him suck live well it's me boil our suck leaf if he wanted a lawyer
suck live said no I don't need one I just want to tell you what I've done I'm glad it's all over I would have killed
that girl in Sheffield if I hadn't been caught but I'd like to tell my wife myself I don't want her to hear it from
anyone else it's her I'm thinking about in my family I'm not bothered about myself
Sutcliffe admitted to hiding the hammer in the knife in Sheffield he said it was
hoping he'd be released after the first lot of questioning so he could go back and pick them up sigh cliff confessed to
the murders but strongly denied being Joan Harrison's killer in Preston 75 boy L asked him if he knew all of his
victims names and Sutcliffe said he did when asked if he kept press cuttings or something to help him remember he said
no they are all in my brain reminding me of the Beast I am Hollander was staring
at suck lift through the two-way mirror of the interview room he really couldn't
believe this was the men they'd been searching for for so long he looked normal in his words he looked like the
sort of person you would meet on the way to church on a Sunday morning but he did
admit how astonishingly similar he looked to Marilyn Moore's photo fit at 11:00 p.m. so cliff was allowed to see
Sonia they had the following conversation Sonia what on earth is going on Peter Sutcliffe that's all
those women I've killed all those women Sonya what do you mean Sutcliffe it's me on the Yorkshire
Ripper I've killed all those women Sonia what on earth did you do that for Peter even a sparrow has a right to live
after that she asked him if he had sex with any of his victims he said he had only with one but it meant nothing
the sex was just mechanical detectives went with Sutcliffe to his house in Bradford sigh cliff pointed out all of
the clothes he wore on each attack Sonya was there and said that she'd saved a piece of Christmas cake for Sukkoth
insisting he couldn't be taken away before eating the piece of cake in drinking a glass of warm milk suck live
asked the detectives if that would be okay and they said yes Sutcliffe eighties cake and drink his
milk while handcuffed to one of the detectives during his interviews so cliff said his hatred for sex workers
started because of a Wilma McCann he picked her up hitchhiking and she asked him if he wanted to do business sir
cliff said he didn't know what she meant so she started mocking him saying do I have to spell it out for you when psy
cliff realized what Wilma meant he agreed but then he said Wilma started mocking him and taunting him when he
couldn't get aroused so he decided to hit her in the head with a hammer he said that when he realized what he
had done he knew he would be in serious trouble so he stabbed her to make sure she wouldn't live to tell anybody that's
how he says his hatred for sex workers started but it was only the next day when he changed his story the next day
he said his hatred started in 1974 when a sex worker stole ten pounds from him but his story changed again he said no
actually that happened in 1969 then it changed again stating and it all started around 1965 when he had an accident in
his head in relation to pulling up his victims clothes to expose their body he said he did it quote so that when
they're found they will look as cheap as they are he also said it satisfied a sexual
revenge fee once he committed his first murder on Wilma mccannon he said he became completely unhinged and felt
nothing but hatred for sex workers his intention was to hunt down as many as he could and get rid of them the more he
killed the more it became an obsession Sutcliffe said he felt bad about the Jane MacDonald murder because he had no
idea she wasn't for sex burger and it was this murder where he first felt like an inhuman Beast however he soon
realized he had the ability to easily detach himself from the murders and talk openly about the Ripper to other people
joining them in conversations about the crimes and speculating who was responsible he recounted how he had come
face to face with Maureen long only a few weeks prior to his arrest he was at a shopping center with Sonia when they
crossed paths he recognized that straight away but myrin didn't recognize him his intention was to kill Maureen
when he attacked her and he was surprised to learn she had survived he became worried she would be able to
identify him but when he heard she was suffering memory loss he felt safe in relation to Jean Jordan's murder he
confirmed the police theory was right after he had killed her he realized they had left the 5 p.m. no so he returned
and when he couldn't find it he became frustrated and tried the sawed off her head so as to make the killing look
different he confirmed details about the Maryland more attack saying he pretended
to talk to someone on the street before getting in the car with her and telling her his name was Dave intended to kill
her however he noticed there were people walking about 40 meters away when the attack started so he became scared and
drove off with the murder of Yvonne Pearson Sutcliffe said he hit her with a hammer and dragged her to a spot about
20 meters away from his car then suddenly another car turned up and parked next to his car he had to hide
with Avon's body until the car left there was a man and a woman inside the car Avon's body wasn't found until two
months later if she had been found sooner maybe the couple would have come forward remembering the car they had
parked next to that night Sutcliffe said he was in tears after this murder as he
hadn't claimed they kill anyone that night after murdering Veera mild' Sutcliffe said the killings became more
random and indiscriminate he now had the urge to kill any woman he just happened
to drive past josephine whitaker when she was walking home from her grandparents he approached her and
started talking to her telling her she should be careful about walking alone as you never know who you can trust
the Barbara Leach and Jaclyn hill murders were the same he just happened to drive past them and had the urge to
kill when he was questioned about Margaret Walz murder he initially said no that wasn't me you have a mystery on
your hands with that one however on further questioning he admitted it he said he was in a rage and
just happened to see Margaret walking home he didn't have a knife with him no so he strangled her with a piece of rope
he also admitted to strangling hoop a Jay bendera with a piece of rope as he didn't have any other tools with him at
the time he said he was overcome with remorse during this attack so he said sorry and left but it's more likely the
headlights of the approaching police patrol car is what scared suk leaf off he also admitted to the Teresa Sykes
attack saying he followed her down a path and attacked her but then somebody started yelling at him so he ran off
after these confessions Sutcliffe had to be immediately taken to his first court
hearing however he hadn't been properly searched or had his clothes removed and given
their usual prisoner clothes when they did this they found he had holes inside his coat so that he could reach for the
weapons through the pockets without being noticed also he wasn't wearing underwear he was
wearing a sweater as a makeshift sort of underwear the arms of the sweater were on Sutcliffe's legs and due to the way
it was placed it meant his genitalia was exposed detectives asked him what he was
doing Sutcliffe said there were leg warmers what they found though was that this
meant his knees were padded so it made it easier to put pressure on his victims and also men he could easily masturbate
during the attacks he is being questioned in relation to the Yorkshire Ripper murders it is
anticipated that he will appear before the court in Dewsbury tomorrow can you tell us whether he has a Geordie accent
I cannot tell you that because I've not heard him speak I can tell you that we are absolutely delighted with
developments of this state absolutely for Sutcliffe's first court hearing there were 1,500 people outside waiting
for him they were yelling and shouting hang the bastard hanging die the crowd was in a frenzy and Sutcliffe
was terrified he was going to be killed they managed to get him inside the court
safely where he was charged with murder and then taken to prison in Leeds on the
29th of April of 1981 Sutcliffe had his first trial in court number one at the Old Bailey Court in London all the
weapons that were found both in his possession and in his house were on display there were eight hammers a
hacksaw a long kitchen knife eight screwdrivers a knife with a wooden handle and a short rope Peter was
charged with 13 counts of murder and seven counts of attempted murder he pleaded guilty but on the grounds of
diminished responsibility he was claiming he wasn't responsible for his actions he had been seen by three psychiatrists
before this court appearance and he told them that he heard voices and the reason
why he killed was because God asked him to he claimed he had to take sex workers
off the streets because a higher power had ordered the psychiatrist's believe him one thought Sutcliffe had been a
paranoid schizophrenic since he was about 20 at the trial the prosecution was ready
to accept Sutcliffe's plea but the judge stepped in he said the matter that troubles me is not the medical opinions
because there is a consensus but it seems to me that all these opinions and are sadists without criticism all these
opinions are based simply on what this defendant has told the doctors nothing more moreover what he has told the
doctors conflict substantially with what he told the police on the morning of his
arrest in statements to the police he expressed the desire to kill all women the judges conclusion was to have a
second trial this time with a jury the second trial started on the 5th of May 1981 Sutcliffe's plea didn't change and
once again he was backed up by the psychiatrist who had seen him on the 22nd of May 1981 the jury made their
decision they deliberated for seven hours and returned with the majority verdict ten votes to two guilty they
didn't accept his diminished responsibility defense the judge gave Sutcliffe 20 life
sentences and recommended a period of 30 years before he could be given parole but on that he said that is a long
period an unusually long period but I believe you are an unusually dangerous man i express my hope that when I have
said life imprisonment it will mean precisely that in January the following year a report about the
handling of the Yorkshire Ripper investigation was completed it was called the Byford report who is
completed by Laurence Byford the man who was consulted in 1980 after Margaret Thatcher threatened to take over the
investigation and solve it herself he put into place the group of five hand-picked detectives from around the
country that went to Leeds to try and help crack the case the idea of the report was to be honest and critical so
the mistakes made on the Yorkshire Ripper case wouldn't be repeated the problem was that so many mistakes
had been made that if all were revealed the report would sink the West Yorkshire
police so once the report was complete it was edited before being sent anywhere the
complete report totaled 156 pages but it was reduced to far less only about 1200
words throughout the years very few people have read the entire report in March 1984 Sutcliffe was transferred
from prison to Broadmoor psychiatric hospital three psychiatrists had seen him again and recommended the move they
believed Sutcliffe's condition had deteriorated and he now suffered a loosen Asian's the hallucinations were
him being revisited by his victims and him smelling their perfume the public were far from impressed with this
transfer and Sutcliffe didn't start taking medication for schizophrenia until 1993 nine years after the move
Sutcliffe was continually questioned over the years to see if they could link any more attacks to him it's believed
Sutcliffe could be responsible for as many as 13 other attacks for which is not yet been charged recent media
reports State Police are currently considering whether to add further charges they have obtained fresh DNA
evidence and have taken new victim statements leading people to believe further charges could be laid to one of
the victims of these other attacks linked to Sutcliffe is Tracy Brown on the 27th of August 1975 14-year old
Tracy was walking home from a friend's house near Bradford a men started talking to Tracy along the way and she
thought he probably just lived close by and didn't consider him a threat when they got to the entrance of Tracy's
family farm the men stayed behind her Tracy kept going a few steps towards her house and was about to turn around to
thank the man for keeping a company during the walk but before she could she was knocked down by hard blows to the
head a car with its headlights on approached and scared her attacker off when she
entered a house and mother saw her and at first believed she'd had red paint thrown over then she saw the hole in
Tracy's head and quickly rushed at a hospital she needed neurosurgery and bone had to be removed from her brain
two years later Marilyn Moore was attacked and a photo fit was completed based on the description that she gave
of her attacker that photo fit was widely circulated and when Tracy saw it she recognized the men as being the same
one who had attacked her she went to the police to report it the response from the officer who saw her that day was
we're all having fun and games today aren't we Tracy didn't think she'd be taken seriously after that N Rooney was
attacked in the outskirts of Leeds in 1979 she was hit in the head with a hammer from behind
she gave a description of her attacker which matched Sutcliffe and she said her attacker was driving a dark Sunbeam
rapier which suck lifts drove at the time but her attack was never linked as her wounds were not caused by the same
type of hammer used in the other river attacks Sutcliffe has since actually admitted to the attacks on Ian Rooney in
Tracy Brennan but nothing has been done he hasn't been charged because at the time the reasoning was that it wouldn't
be in the public's interest to charge him again and to have another trial some other attacks believed to be committed
by Sutcliffe that he has never been charged with and that of MOLLE she was attacked in 1980 by a man with a hammer
and then she was stabbed with a screwdriver somehow no link was made to the other Ripper attacks at the time
despite bearing all of the same hallmarks the attack happened in Leeds just before the murder of Jacqueline
Hill Gloria wood was attacked in November 74 in Bradford by a man with a hammer she was hit in the head and required
hospitalization Evon missile which was attacked by a man with a hammer in 79 she was also hit in the head and
suffered a severe head injury the description she gave of her attacker matched sotloff her attack was never
linked to the other Ripper attacks as it was considered at the time as being the
work of a copycat one journalist believes these attacks weren't linked previously because the police were
already so overwhelmed there was pressure from the forces managers to leave some of the attacks out of the
official count as it would only add to the mounting pressure of the case some believe the number could be closer to 23
attacks and murders the Sutcliffe was responsible for but never charged with the police are currently using new
technology to test their nation apples from old police exhibits the writer of the letters and sender of the tape
known as the Yorkshire Ripper hoaxer was in court until the 18th of October 2005
his name was John humble a DNA match finally brought him undone the night he made the call to the police that told
them the tape was a fake he tried to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge he was charged with four counts of
perverting the course of justice his trial was held on the 21st of March 2006 he was sentenced to eight years in
prison Barbara leeches mother blamed him for her daughter getting killed when asked
why he did it he said I don't know why I done it I must have been daft I regret it like especially them lasses who've
died the coppers were useless I thought I was doing them a favor and catching him because it intensified the hunt then
didn't it in 2010 a DNA match showed who killed John Harrison in Preston 75 his name was Christopher Smith he had died
of cancer two years earlier but before he died he left a note to whomever it concerns I would like to
put the record straight I can't go on with the guilt I've lived with it for over 20 years I'm
truly sorry for all the pain I've caused to anyone please believe me when I say I'm sorry
that same year suckler started the campaign to be given parole in March 2010 he had a preliminary court hearing
where he asked the judge to give him a definite number of years before he could be released the judge made a ruling on
July 16 that year Sutcliffe would never be released Sutcliffe lawyers and doctors commenced
an appeal they said his conviction wasn't fair since he shouldn't have been considered responsible for his actions
the Court of Appeal gave a final answer on the 14th of January 2011 Sutcliffe's papers were marked never to be released
on the 24th of August this year Sutcliffe was transferred out of a Broadmoor psychiatric hospital and back
to prison sigh cliff had spent 32 years in the psychiatric hospital he stay there has
been heavily criticized with many believing and had been far too cushy a tribunal ruled that he no longer
required mental-health treatment and he was ordered to Frankland prison before heading to prison he called his brother
and said he was scared for his life he had constantly received death threats over the years and he was savagely
attacked during his first prison stint and he had been attacked in hospital as well his brother told him that he
thought he should have been executed anyway last month that was reported that suck live who is a jehovah's witness was
considering converting to Islam in order to try and get protection in prison Frankland prison is known as one of the
UK's toughest prisons and cyclic was terrified of being attacked in 2012 a convicted child killer was murdered and
disemboweled by fellow inmates at Franklin prison Suckley fears similar treatment
according to the most recent media reports Sutcliffe has taken steps to make the conversion but it's not yet
complete over the years Sutcliffe has received a large quantity of letters from women some with
provocative pitches it's believed that the aim of many of these letters is to get a response from suck live which then
sell online for high prices in a recent letter cyclists said the media has painted a false picture of him and he's
really a kind and gentle person Tracy Brian who Sutcliffe attacked on the 27th of August 75 had to have
constant brain scans and required drugs to prevent seizures afterwards she had flashbacks and insisted the lights
couldn't be switched off at night or the door on her bedroom closed or her curtains drawn she had panic attacks and
broke into cold sweats for a long time after Marcella Claxton who Sutcliffe attacked on the 9th of May 76 not only
lost the child she was pregnant with but also suffered from blackouts and severe
headaches she said it is like my brain is bursting and hitting the inside of my head sometimes all day marine long who
suck cliff attacked on the 10th of July 77 suffered from fits as a result of her
head injuries and had to remain as an outpatient for years she suffers from depression and can't watch anything on
television that involves violence Teresa Sykes who suckle if attacked on the 5th of November 1918 broke up with
her boyfriend after the attack she was convinced her attacker was going to come back to her she had constant nightmares
and barricaded the door of her room she had to sleep with a knife under her pillow olive smelt who suckle if
attacked on the 15th of August 75 became afraid of all men and she almost lost her marriage she experienced be out of
anger depression and frustration she said sometimes I get so depressed I almost think it would have been better
if he had finished me Olive passed away in 2011 the Yorkshire Ripper investigation has been one of the
largest and most expensive investigations that has ever been around 250,000 people were spoken to 20 8687
statements were taken the failure to cross-reference vital pieces of information the miss filing of vital
information on index cards West Yorkshire is belief that the Ripper letters and tape were genuine ignoring
the photo fit and many other missteps led to Sutcliffe being interviewed and eliminated nine times during the
investigation suckler himself has said that it got to the point where he thought he must have been invisible he
believed he was never going to be caught [Music] you

Case 37: The Yorkshire Ripper (Part 3)

[Part 3 of 3]

“Well I think the time had come, you might say the time had come a few murders ago, but it’s certainly come for a rethink about the whole investigation."

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research, writing – Victoria Dieffenbacher Writing – Anonymous Host Production, scoring – Mike Migas Additional scoring – Andrew Joslyn

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources please visit https://www.casefilepodcast.com/yorkshire-ripper-part-3

Brief Summary

The episode details Peter Sutcliffe's arrest, confessions, and the failures of the police investigation into the Yorkshire Ripper case.

Key points

The Arrest of Peter Sutcliffe. On January 2, 1981, Peter Sutcliffe was arrested on suspicion of theft, leading to shocking revelations.
Sutcliffe's Confession. Peter Sutcliffe admits to being the Yorkshire Ripper, revealing his motivations and feelings about the murders.
The Courtroom Frenzy. Sutcliffe's first court appearance draws a massive crowd, leading to a chaotic scene outside.
The Byford Report. A critical report on the Yorkshire Ripper investigation highlights numerous mistakes made by police.
John Humble's Regret. John Humble expresses regret for his actions that led to tragedy, saying he must have been daft.
Christopher Smith's Confession. Before his death, Christopher Smith reveals his guilt over his past actions.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I think you are the Ripper.

An officer confronts Sutcliffe during questioning.

19:20WatchNov 19, 2018

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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