British police fear serial killer in women’s deaths

LONDON – British police feared a serial killer could be on the loose after finding the naked bodies of three prostitutes and reports two others were missing on Monday.

Britain has a history of killers targeting prostitutes. The most notorious was the 19th century murderer known as “Jack the Ripper”, who was blamed for the deaths of five prostitutes in east London in 1888 but was never found.The most prolific was Peter Sutcliffe, called the “Yorkshire Ripper”, who murdered 13 women, mainly prostitutes, in northern England from 1975 to 1980 before he was caught.In the latest case, a manhunt was under way after three women were found dead within a few miles of each other over the past nine days near the port of Ipswich in eastern England.Police said there were striking similarities in the murders.”While we can’t formally link the discovery of the (third) body…with the two murders, the facts speak for themselves,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Stewart Gull.Police warned prostitutes in Ipswich that they were putting their lives at risk by continuing to work and urged all women in the area not to travel alone.Gull also appealed to prostitutes and people who used their services to come forward if they had information.All three were prostitutes and were found naked.Detectives said none was believed to have been sexually assaulted.Nampa-ReutersThe most notorious was the 19th century murderer known as “Jack the Ripper”, who was blamed for the deaths of five prostitutes in east London in 1888 but was never found.The most prolific was Peter Sutcliffe, called the “Yorkshire Ripper”, who murdered 13 women, mainly prostitutes, in northern England from 1975 to 1980 before he was caught.In the latest case, a manhunt was under way after three women were found dead within a few miles of each other over the past nine days near the port of Ipswich in eastern England.Police said there were striking similarities in the murders.”While we can’t formally link the discovery of the (third) body…with the two murders, the facts speak for themselves,” said Detective Chief Superintendent Stewart Gull.Police warned prostitutes in Ipswich that they were putting their lives at risk by continuing to work and urged all women in the area not to travel alone.Gull also appealed to prostitutes and people who used their services to come forward if they had information.All three were prostitutes and were found naked.Detectives said none was believed to have been sexually assaulted.Nampa-Reuters