[MacMattico]

I agree with most everything you've said. Although I never thought Frances Coles was a victim. I did think it was a local, Jewish immigrant that could easily blend in to his surroundings and not be seen as an “outsider”. Kosminski has always been near the top of my list, and he was a suspect in 1888.

I want it to be solved, but there have been so many false leads. I'll wait for more information.

[FredZarguna]

I've always regarded Kosminski as quite possibly one of the Rippers. The real question to my way of thinking is, how many were there? The similarities of about 13 murders in the East End during an extended time frame that includes the five canonical murders in the middle, really makes you wonder.

I personally have always thought that a number of the earlier knife assaults, including the Tabram murder, were Ripper crimes. Like most mentally ill people, the impulses that eventually come to control serial murderers progress throughout their lives. The escalating violence and depravity of the Ripper's crimes seem to follow that pattern, and there is, as is true of a lot of complex behaviors, an element of "confidence" involved as well. At some point he committed his first violent assault(s). It was probably not a murder. Kosminski had such a history.

Coincident with the Green River Killer, who also targeted prostitutes, there were five [maybe six or seven] murders in Spokane, WA, in the same time-frame. Those victims were also hookers. The MO was similar to the GRK. The cases were only differentiated after the fact because two different police departments, and later two different task forces had jurisdiction. The question of overlap was considered.

Muddle it all with much poorer communication and turf protection between the City Police, Scotland Yard, add a century, and note that there are dissimilarities in even the five canonical murders which make you wonder if the same man was involved, and you have a very interesting case file indeed.