Jack the Ripper's grisly legacy: The latest updates in the case of the 19th-century serial killer

The latest season of Netflix's true crime docuseries Unsolved Mysteries delves into the unsolved case of one of history's most notorious serial killers, Jack the Ripper. A man who has become more the stuff of sensationalist legends and tourist trappings than a real person in recent years, Jack the Ripper has captivated people for over a century. Despite his infamy, the case still hasn't been solved, and sometimes, it seems unlikely that it ever will.

Unsolved Mysteries doesn't aim to steer viewers in any one particular direction as much as it hopes to debunk some rumors and underline just how gruesome the murders, which took place in 1888 Whitechapel, were.

One erroneous theory addressed in the episode is the belief that Sir William Gull might have been the culprit, as part of an elaborate conspiracy involving the royal family.

Gull has become a popular suspect, and many Hollywood adaptations have featured him as the killer, such as the 2001 movie From Hell, adapted from Alan Moore's graphic novel, and the 1988 miniseries starring Michael Caine.

But, as noted by several of the documentary subjects, Gull was never an actual suspect in the original investigation, most notably because he suffered from a stroke from which he never fully recovered in 1887, a year before the murders reportedly began (at least for the canonical five victims, Mary Ann "Polly" Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly).

Woman with alleged familial connection to original crime claims to know Jack the Ripper's identity

Unsolved Mysteries doesn't shed any particularly new light on the case. If you've watched and/or read any of the myriad of Jack the Ripper documentaries and books, you probably didn't learn much you didn't already know.

But in July 2023, a woman did come forward claiming the killer's true identity. Per The Telegraph, true crime writer Sarah Bax Horton labeled a cigar maker named Hyam Hyams a suspect due to his physicality matching alleged witness descriptors of Jack the Ripper. Horton claims that her grandfather was part of the original investigation, granting her access to medical records and witness descriptions others haven't necessarily been privy to.

Horton claims the witness descriptions portrayed the killer as a man with "a stiff arm and an irregular gait with bent knees," which correlates to Hyams, who also allegedly had a stiff arm from an injury and other conditions that led to his own irregular physicality. Additionally, Horton says Hyams was a frequent patient in asylums and had once been arrested for attacking his wife and mother. Plus, his occupation as a cigar maker suggests he'd know his way around a knife.

The Telegraph quotes Horton as saying, “For the first time in history, Jack the Ripper can be identified as Hyam Hyams using distinctive physical characteristics.”

Horton is not the first to suggest Hyams as a suspect. Notable Ripper authority Paul Begg has endorsed her research, which she published in the book One-Armed Jack: Uncovering the Real Jack the Ripper (published this past February), calling it a "well-researched, well-written, and long-needed book-length examination of a likely suspect."

Interestingly, in the episode of Unsolved Mysteries that highlights Jack the Ripper's legacy, the historians mention their desire to learn more about Jack the Ripper from anyone who might have it. They say the key to solving this case could very well be lying in a document tucked away in someone's attic, just waiting to be found.

So, who knows? Maybe Horton really is onto something with her theory. It might be the closest we ever get to solving this case.

If you have any information to share regarding the Jack the Ripper case, you can submit it through unsolved.com. To stay up to date on thrillers, sci-fi, and horror, bookmark 1428 Elm and follow our Facebook page and Twitter account!