America Unearthed (2012–…): Season 4, Episode 4 - The Ripper Unmasked - full transcript

♪♪

[ both laugh ]

[ footsteps ]

♪♪

♪♪

[ footsteps ]

♪♪

♪♪

[ crows caw ]

[ gasps ]

[ gasps ]



♪♪

[ squish ]

Wolter: The history that we were
all taught growing up is wrong.

My name is scott wolter,
and I'm a forensic geologist.

There's a hidden history in this
country that nobody knows about.

There are pyramids here,

Chambers, tombs, inscriptions.

They're all over this country.

We're gonna investigate
these artifacts and sites,

And we're gonna
get to the truth.

Sometimes, history
isn't what we've been told.

AMERICA UNEARTHED - SEASON 4
EP - 4 - The Ripper Unmasked

♪♪

♪♪



Any good detective
will tell you,

To unmask a serial killer,

You have to put yourself
in his shoes.

Cut the throat.

♪♪

And the killer I'm trying
to identify is jack the ripper.

He's a fiend
who I'm fascinated with.

Now...

The main cut
up the middle of the body.

Why? In recent months,
as headlines show,

There have been
a bunch of new suspects,

But I think one key detail
has been overlooked...

The probability that the ripper

Was a long-ago member
of the freemasons,

A secretive group
I know a lot about

And belong to, myself, today.

It's been almost 150 years

Since a spate of bloody
murders in london, England,

Were attributed
to a single stealthy killer

Who left at least four women
mutilated and dead

And the enigmatic
scotland yard perplexed.

My investigation
not only led me here

To this operating theater
in london,

But to a new suspect
who just might be

One of the most famous
freemasons of all.

All this started three weeks ago
when I met a father and son

Who practiced medicine
on long island

Who showed me evidence
based on medical research.

♪♪

♪♪

Well, dan and gene, thank you
for taking some time here.

You know, I've done a little
research on jack the ripper.

They called them
the white chapel murders

Because they happened
in that district of london.

In the late summer
and early fall of 1888,

London was thrown
into utter chaos

By a series of four murders

Taken place against women
of a certain class.

You said four murders.

What I've read is that
there were five murders.

I believe that murder number
five was just a copycat killing.

Jack the ripper
terrorized the streets

Of working-class london,

Killing part-time prostitutes.

During four frightening months,

At least four such women fell
victim to the killer's blade...

Mary nichols, annie chapman,
elizabeth stride,

And catherine eddowes.

♪♪

But the murderer
didn't just kill them.

He mutilated and even
eviscerated them, quickly...

Some say with the skill
of a surgeon.

There's been over 100 suspects
that have been named,

But you guys seem to think
you've got it figured out.

Yes, we think we do. Who is it?

The ripper is
arthur conan doyle.

Arthur conan doyle.

Born in scotland in 1859,
arthur conan doyle is famous

For creating the enduring
character of sherlock holmes,

The detective.

But before he became an author,

Doyle was actually a doctor,

Something many people
don't know.

You think he's jack the ripper?

100%.

Why?

When I went to pick up
a scientific journal

Off the shelf when I was
studying for my medical boards,

It happened to have an article

That detailed
his thesis paper from 1885,

And that paper was on syphilis.

I think doyle's father
had syphilis.

And where do you get
syphilis from?

You get it from prostitutes.

So, your thesis is is that
because his father had syphilis,

Probably got it
from a prostitute,

He harbored some bad feelings
towards prostitutes.

Wolter:
Arthur conan doyle's father

Suffered a severe illness
in his later life,

Spending 12 years
in a mental asylum.

But the friedmans think
he was misdiagnosed,

As his neurological problems
and other ailments

Suggested a chronic
syphilis infection,

A sexually transmitted disease

He could have caught
from a prostitute.

The ripper victims
were allegedly prostitutes,

But how strong is this
as a motive?

Doyle may have thought that
he was going to get syphilis

Or that he already had it.

He was taking a medication

That was only used
to treat syphilis

On himself in double the dose.

Heredity at that time
was thought to be lamarckian,

Which means your father
could give it to you.

So, with arthur conan doyle,
you've got a motive...

Syphilis, right?

What other evidence do you have
to pin it on him?

He was a natural-born killer.

He would get involved
in street fights.

He stabbed his prep school
roommate on the first day.

He beat his mother's lodger
to within an inch of his life,

Which required
a 23-day recovery period.

This is a self-portrait
drawn by doyle

Once he graduated
from medical school.

The caption says it all.

Now, this is a self-portrait?

Yes. "licensed to kill"?

Licensed to kill,

Which is a totally inappropriate
comment to make,

Unless you truly meant it.

Arthur conan doyle
was a skilled surgeon.

♪♪

He could cut open a body and
find a uterus and take it out

Without damaging any
of the other organs around it,

A skill that the ripper
happened to have, too.

Doyle was 28 or 29 years old.

The descriptions of the ripper

Were a man of about 28
to 30 years of age.

Doyle always wore a red muffler
and a navy pea coat.

That was the only
valid description

Given of the ripper
at the time of the crime.

Okay.

He had the physical
attributes to do it,

And he had the motive to do it.

Arthur conan doyle...

One thing I can definitely
tell you about him

Is that he was a freemason.
And I'm a freemason.

Well, that's exactly
why we asked to talk to you.

Wolter: The freemasons are
a fraternal society organized

Into groups called lodges
across the world.

Steeped in mystery
because of tightly held rituals,

Freemasonry originated
in 17th-century England,

Before being brought to america,

Where early members included
george washington

And benjamin franklin.

Dan: Arthur conan doyle did
join the masons in 1887,

And he rose up the ranks
pretty quickly.

We saw the parallels
between a masonic ritual

And what jack the ripper was
able to commit on the streets.

You're making some parallels
between masonic ritual

And what happened
to the victims.

The way I saw
those ripper murders,

They were almost identical.

♪♪

Wolter: As a mason myself,
I can tell you that mercy,

Not murder, is at the center
of everything we believe.

But could freemason
arthur conan doyle

Really be a merciless
serial killer?

Do you think there's some type
of a connection

Between the ripper murders
and freemasonry?

That is correct.
That's our take on that.

When he became
a third-degree mason,

I think doyle just happened
to be reading

The material that he was given.

Wolter: Masonic initiates
like conan doyle

Would have been introduced
to secret rituals

As they advanced through
the degrees of the order.

Some of the victims' wounds
that dan described

Were consistent with
ancient symbolic penalties

Familiar to freemasons for those
who violated their vows.

Others were symbols used by
esoteric members of the order,

Like the v's carved into
catherine eddowes' face.

Freemasonry certainly
doesn't condone murder,

I mean, not even in the least.

But that's not to say that
somebody couldn't go rogue.

Well, that's exactly
what I think happened there.

A great line that doyle uses
in one of his stories,

"the speckled band",
is, "when a doctor goes wrong,

He's the first of criminals.

He has nerve,
and he has knowledge."

Well, doyle is a doctor
who has gone wrong

And who had all this knowledge

Of the freemasons
up in his head.

In addition to doyle,
there have been other freemasons

Accused of being
jack the ripper.

In the 1970s, a sensational
claim suggested william gull,

A freemason insurgent to queen
victoria, was jack the ripper,

And he murdered the victims
to cover up

A royal prince's
scandalous affair.

A more recent book said
that a michael maybrick,

A freemason and famed singer,

Killed the ripper victims.

[ gasps ]

Today, both theories have often
been debunked or criticized,

But the potential freemasonic
ties to the murders

Can't be ignored.

To tie it into the freemasons,

The first suspect
was named leather apron.

Obviously, freemasons,
we wear leather aprons.

There's been a lot
of speculation

That it could have been
a freemason clue there.

This could be a clue.

Leather aprons are ritual
garments worn by freemasons

Which often show their rank
in the order.

London newspapers ran articles

Describing the white chapel
murderer as leather apron

At the time of the killings.

Of the ripper, one witness said,

"the distinguishing feature of
his costume is a leather apron,

Which he always wears.

His expression is sinister
and seems to be full of terror

For the women who describe it."

This is what a masonic apron
looks like.

It's actually a very sacred item
to all masons.

I mean, once you receive
your leather apron,

You are now fully vested
as a master mason.

If doyle was a mason,
and he was a murderer,

It's possible
he may have incorporated

Some of the symbolism
in freemasonry

Into some aspects
of his killings.

It's also possible

That if he wore his apron
during the killings,

As the term
leather apron may suggest,

There could be blood
of the victims on it.

Dna could be the clearest
evidence yet,

Proving a connection
between arthur conan doyle

And the ripper.

Today, doyle's apron is part of
a collection in a chicago museum

Along with other things
that will help me learn more

About arthur conan doyle
himself,

And that's where I'm going next.

♪♪

Dan's joining me,
as he's eager to see

If I can help him
find evidence for his theory,

Especially after seeing
a recent headline

Making claims to have
identified the ripper

As someone other
than arthur conan doyle.

Before we go in,
I have something to show you.

Sure, not a problem at all.

There's an article here
about an aaron kosminski

Who they've identified
as the ripper

Based on a shawl that was found
at the crime scene,

And dna of semen ties it to him.

Have you heard about this?

It's absolute nonsense.

First of all, as you know,

None of the ripper's victims
were sexually assaulted.

There should be no semen
left behind at the crime scene.

Not only that, sotheby's
dates that shawl

From being manufactured
after 1900.

The murders took place in 1888.

I'll tell you what we do have.

We potentially have dna
on a masonic apron

In this building.

I say we go check it out.

I say you're right.

♪♪

Before we even get to the apron,

Which I've been granted access
to test for blood

Using brand-new,
non-invasive technology,

I can't help but admire
some of the other things

In the doyle collection.

Wolter: What we're looking at
here are two copies

Of the first edition
of the sherlock holmes novel

Written by doyle.

This was first published
in 1888,

The same year
as the ripper killings.

There's a famous line
that he wrote in this book,

"there's a scarlet thread
of murder

Running through the colorless
skin of life,

And it is our job,
indeed, our duty

To uncover it or to expose it."

Kind of like we're doing here

In the ripper
investigation, right?

Very much.

There's one other
interesting scene

That doyle writes about
in this book,

And that is he identifies
a freemason

By the compass and square
on his ring,

Which I also have right here.

Yes.

Well, as cool
as all these things are,

This is what we came to see.

This is doyle's masonic apron,

And it's definitely
a master mason's apron.

It's got leather, of course,

And I have to say, something
jumps out at me right away.

Look at these stains right here.

Yeah, even down here,
there's a stain.

Right there, too.

And I have to say, my first
thought is it could be blood.

Possibility.

How do you feel
looking at his apron?

You know, I look at this,
and I say, "here's a man...

I know he worked hard to get
this, and once he received it,

He basically resigned
from the lodge

And didn't show up
for the meetings."

If he was the ripper,
in his mind, he was done,

So he checked out of masonry
and checked into murder.

♪♪

Lee, this is dan.

- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you, as well.

Alright.

♪♪

Well, lee, I have worked
with xrf guns before.

I mainly looked at metallic
objects and metallic alloys,

But if these spots indeed are
blood, will this pick it up?

Yeah. Primarily,
it will see the iron

From the hemoglobulin
that's in the blood.

Wolter: This prototype xrf gun

Picks up more detailed
signatures of metals

Than any other on the market.

But, lee, how about
if doyle washed it?

If he washed it, a lot of it
could have been removed.

That's a possibility.

But I can see a stain there,

So it obviously wasn't
too good of a wash.

Ready? Ready.

Alright, here we go.

♪♪

♪♪

Alright, what do we got?

Alright, let's see.

So, what I see
first and foremost,

We've got a very strong
sulfur signal.

Got a little bit
of zinc coming up.

Zinc? Zn, zinc, yeah.

But unfortunately, no blood.

If we had blood,
we should see an iron peak?

Should see a little bit more iron,
yes. Okay.

Dan:
Not finding blood on the apron

Doesn't really change
my mind-set

About doyle being
jack the ripper.

It just means that he wasn't
kind of carrying this apron

With him
when he committed the crimes.

Clearly, there's a connection

Between the ripper murders
and freemasonry.

If you're right that arthur
conan doyle was jack the ripper,

Then he clearly got away
with murder.

The lack of any victim's dna
on doyle's masonic apron

Isn't a dead end.

As his character
sherlock holmes once said,

"it is a capital mistake

To theorize
in advance of the facts,"

And right now, I need
to find more of them

To support the friedmans' theory

In the city
doyle once called home.

♪♪

♪♪

I'm meeting a fellow freemason
here in london

Who says he has
a potential clue to the case

Steps away
from doyle's front door.

Sir arthur conan doyle
actually lived

On this street for a while.

Wolter:
So here is where he wrote

A lot of his sherlock holmes
mysteries, right?

Yeah. And he lived here in 1891

For about a year or so,
and he practiced medicine.

And didn't work out,

So he went on
to bigger and better things

In the literary world.

♪♪

♪♪

Well, I see a sign
that says sherlock mews.

Is that what I'm looking for?
Sherlock mews.

Well, baker street
is just down there,

And you've probably
heard of 221b.

221b baker street is
sherlock holmes' fictional home

Where he would have met
with his partner, dr. Watson,

A character doyle created

Based on a brother
from his freemasonic lodge.

And there's something incredible

On the intersection
with baker street.

I'm ready. Where is it?

Straight down there.

Well, that's a cross

Carved into the curb stone.

I'm gonna take a look at this.

I have a handy flashlight here.

♪♪

It's quite weathered.

Mm-hmm.

It kind of looks like
a jerusalem cross, doesn't it?

A jerusalem cross, yeah,
that's right, yeah.

There's plenty of these
littered around this area.

Yeah. What do you think
of the significance?

Well, they're called
the london curb stones.

And no one really knows
the purpose.

It's a bit of a mystery.

This has got to be probably
at least a century old.

My first thought is that
the people that put these in

Probably were stonemasons. Yeah.

Maybe they used the ancient
tradition of stonemasons

Where they would
mark their stones.

As a freemason,
I often get the question,

"are stonemasons and freemasons
the same thing?"

The answer is no,
but there is a link.

Stonemasons are laborers who
craft things from rough stone

And often mark their work
with distinct symbols.

Freemasons are just
a social brotherhood,

But they use some of the same
symbols the stonemasons use

To represent principles
and ideals.

Right there. Yep.

That's two right there. Mm-hmm.

Here's your cluster going.

Yep. Oh, my gosh. Look at this.

Two x's, and they have dots
right here, right?

Yep. Wow.

In freemasonry, the x stands
for transformation,

But it's the v symbols
carved into one of the curbs

I'm interested in.

Over time, a v has been used
to symbolize many things...

The number five
or v for victory,

As in winston churchill's
famous world war ii campaign.

But for certain
esoteric freemasons,

It is an ancient symbol

That stands for
the reverence of women.

A set of double-v shapes appear
on the curb stones

And on the face of
ripper victim catherine eddowes.

As a freemason,
doyle would have had knowledge

Of all these symbols and more.

So, what do you think
this all means, these carvings?

Well, it could be
a number of things,

But there is one place
that I'd like to take you now...

Okay.
...That might reveal the answer.

Alright. Let's go.

Right here.
There's one right there, yeah.

Right there. Yeah.

Another jerusalem cross.

There's another one right there.
That's two.

There's another?
Yeah, right there.

Yep.

Well, this almost like
a bread crumb trail.

And I can't believe
where it leads...

Straight to
freemasonic headquarters.

♪♪

Are you telling me
that these symbols led us

To the united grand lodge
on England?

♪♪

♪♪

Wolter: When I look up from
the mysterious curb carvings,

I realize I'm staring at a place

Arthur conan doyle
likely would have known well...

The oldest masonic grand lodge
in the world.

These symbols led us right here
to the grand lodge.

Imagine that.
Right to the front door.

Amazing coincidence,
but maybe not a coincidence.

Yeah, well, fascinating, really.

These carvings... you know,
when I look at them,

Maybe a little over a century?
Yep.

Late 19th century, early 20th
century, something like that.

If we do go back that far,

This is about the time
of jack the ripper.

Yeah, that's right.

I asked the grand lodge
what its position is

On the curb stones and doyle,

And they would only give me
their response in writing.

They're sticking
to the stonemason

Versus the freemason theory
for who carved the stones,

But what intrigues me more
is this statement.

"there is very little
documentary evidence

Relating to conan doyle

Despite there being careful
record-keeping by his lodge."

To me, I think
there is no question

He was not an active mason
or was in poor standing.

And the fact
that he became a freemason

The year before
the ripper killings

And fell off the radar
the year after seems suspicious.

There are people who believe
that the freemasons

Were involved
in the jack the ripper killings.

I mean, do you think
that's a possibility?

A rogue guy perhaps?
A rogue guy,

A rogue loner. Yeah.

Yeah. It's all about evidence
at the end of the day.

♪♪

One piece of key evidence
to consider

Is whether
freemason arthur conan doyle

Looked anything like
the ripper suspect

Who walked these streets.

♪♪

One eyewitness account
of the ripper

Appeared in a london newspaper,

Showing a man with a knife
escaping into this...

The tower subway,
which runs under the thames,

But closed when
the tower bridge opened up.

I promised dan friedman I would
update him on my investigation,

But I want to ask him more

About the physical description
of the suspect.

♪♪

Hi, dan. How are you?

Doing good, scott.

I want to ask you
about something.

The suspect was described
as having dark hair,

A mustache, a dark suit,
and about 30 years old.

How does this match with doyle
at that time?

He was 29, sporting a mustache,

And he always wore a suit.

That's very interesting.

One second.

Right now, I'm sending you
a side-by-side comparison

Of a composite sketch
of the ripper

Based on some of
those eyewitness accounts,

And doyle
at around the same time.

I'm sending it to your e-mail
now, actually.

Let's see what this guy
looks like.

♪♪

That's a spot-on match.

Dan, that's... that's amazing.

That's really close.

The composite sketch
of jack the ripper

Was created a decade ago
based on eyewitness accounts.

Seeing its striking similarity

To an image
of arthur conan doyle

Builds the case that the
famous writer was the killer.

So, where are you headed to now?

Tomorrow, I've been able
to get special access

At the archives in london

To look at letters
written by the ripper.

What I'd like to do is take
a look at these letters

And see if any of them

Match some of doyle's
known handwriting.

He was a prolific writer.

I can take those examples
and hopefully see

If I can find a connection
between doyle and the ripper.

♪♪

♪♪

I've got a sample
of conan doyle's handwriting,

And I'm meeting up with ripper
historian lindsay siviter.

My goal is to see
if doyle's handwriting

Is a match to the handwriting
of the jack the ripper letters.

If it is a match, then
it's possible doyle wrote them

And was the ripper.

Siviter:
This is the national archives.

They have 11 million documents.
Wow.

And they have the original
metropolitan police files.

♪♪

Alright. Okay.

I think this is the one.

♪♪

Should be in this row.

There.

There. Okay.

Let's take a look. Okay.

Well, this is awesome
that we were given

Special access to these letters.

And is this really the first
letter from jack the ripper?

Yes, well, this is the very
famous "dear boss" letter.

The letter was written

17 days after the second killing

And gets its name because
it was addressed to "the boss"

At london's central news agency.

Seeing it up close
and in person is disturbing

But exciting at the same time.

It's the very first letter,
first document, really,

That you will see the words
jack the ripper on.

♪♪

"dear boss, I keep hearing
the police have caught me,

But they won't fix me just yet.

That joke about leather apron
gave me real fits.

I am down on whores
and shant quit ripping

Till I do get buckled."

That must mean caught.

"my knife's so nice and sharp

I want to get to work
right away if I get a chance.

Good luck. Yours truly,

Jack the ripper."

And then, there's a p.S.,
and the last thing he says is,

"they say I'm a doctor now.

Ha ha."

I mean, doyle was
a doctor, right?

And so, maybe there could be
a connection here.

Doctors actually commented
that the murderer

Must have had
some anatomical knowledge,

So the press then started
printing stories

Saying he might have
been a doctor.

Let me show you something.

I actually brought an example
of doyle's handwriting.

So let's just take a look here.

Here you can see
doyle's writing.

♪♪

As I look at these two,
they're similar,

But I don't know
if they're the same.

At first glance,

There's actually
some surprising similarities

Between the handwriting of this
first jack the ripper letter

And the writing
of arthur conan doyle,

Especially the letters "l,"
"a," and "e."

But closer inspection
shows big differences.

The ripper writing is at
much more of an angle,

And the letters like "t"
and "h" don't match.

They look different,
don't they? Yeah.

On the other hand,
he was a very intelligent guy.

Certainly he would have done
something to alter the writing

Because that's the first thing

The police are going to
look at, right?

So that doesn't necessarily
exclude him.

It's kind of
an intriguing theory.

He clearly was fascinated
with the case.

So what do you think
about this letter?

I don't think
the murderer wrote it.

I personally think that it's
the sort of the invention

Of an enterprising journalist.
Oh.

Jack the ripper...
It's a newsman's dream.

The whitechapel murders
created a media sensation,

So there was incentive
to keep the story alive.

It's why some people think
the "dear boss" letter,

Which gave jack the ripper
his name,

Might just be the creation
of an over-eager reporter.

But another letter
attributed to the ripper

May very well be real.

It's known as
the "from hell" letter.

Though its handwriting
is completely different

And unlike doyle's,

It's the gruesome item
sent with the letter

That leads experts
to think it's the real deal.

"from hell.

Catch me when you can.
Mister lusk.

Send you a kidney"?

And with it in the post
came half a human kidney.

♪♪

Wolter: So, a real kidney?

Siviter: Well, half
a human kidney came in a box

With this letter
sent to this guy.

This is mr. George lusk,

And he was head of the
whitechapel vigilance committee,

A group of local men
patrolling the streets,

Trying to help the police.
And with it in the post

Actually came
half a human kidney.

Really? Wow.

God.

So this victim they think
the kidney is connected to...

Who is this person?

Her name is catherine eddowes.

She was heavily mutilated
in mitre square.

Wolter: In addition
to the crime-scene photos,

Artists would do sketches
of crime victims,

And there's
a particularly graphic one

Of catherine eddowes.

He slit her throat
from left to right,

Stabbed her in the vagina,
ripped up to the breast bone,

Took out various organs
including her intestines,

Placed them over her shoulder.

He then cut the tip
of her nose off.

He cut her ear off,

And he also took away with him

A kidney and her uterus.

Oh. That's brutal.

I mean, that's about
as brutal as it gets.

It's just crazy how he does it,
in literally a few minutes.

So, a few minutes... the timing,
that's interesting.

To be able to do
that much damage to a body,

You had to know
what you're doing.

The only thing I can conclude

Is that the person
that committed these murders

Had to have been a physician,

And I'm gonna see
if I can prove it.

♪♪

♪♪

The fourth ripper victim,
catherine eddowes,

Was murdered and mutilated
in under nine minutes.

That's between the time between
when eddowes was last seen alive

And when her cut-up body
was found.

My theory is that it took
the skills of a doctor

Like dr. Arthur conan doyle

To slice up a body
and extract the organs

In the same ritualistic fashion
as the ripper did.

And to prove it,
I'm going to see

Exactly what it would take
to do what he did.

This is not a human cadaver.

This is a dummy, right?

Yeah, so,
the cadaver is silicone.

It's what we use to train
healthcare professionals.

It's not real.

But all of the internal organs,

They are laid out anatomically
in the anatomical positions,

So they're exactly
where you'd find them

Inside your chest
and inside your abdomen.

The uterus was also cut out.

Now, this is a male body.

The specimen doesn't have

The female body parts
like the uterus.

What I'm gonna try to do is
replicate what the ripper did.

I'm going to try and do it

In under nine minutes,
like the ripper did.

But he would have had
more to contend with.

With a fresh deceased person,

Removing the organs,
you'd have had a lot of blood.

I mean, I'm talking
four or five liters of blood

That would have spilled
into the cavity.

That would have impeded
your vision, as well, so...

And plus, he has to subdue
the victim.

I mean, he has to get
that person still

Before he can do his work. Yeah.

One of the kidneys
was taken out,

And I don't even know
where that is,

But I will find it
and try to get it out.

I'm a geologist.
I'm not a biologist,

Certainly not a doctor.

I did pretty good
in biology class.

I got the pig dissection done.

I think I did well,

But this is
a whole different thing,

So, um, I guess
I'll give it my best shot.

Well, I'd absolutely recommend
rolling up your sleeves,

'cause it's going
to get quite messy.

Oh, okay.

The ripper did the work
in the dark,

So I have to do it in the dark.

I'm only going to dim the lights
to make my best attempt

At removing the organs
with the same precision.

I don't feel like I'm going
to get a lot of help from you.

Jack the ripper
didn't have any help.

Good point.

Let's get the lights.

Set? Set.

Go.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

Wolter: Cut the throat.

♪♪

I'm cutting the nose

And down to the lower jaw.

Then there was another cut here.

This might be the craziest thing
I've ever done

To get to the truth
in an investigation,

Proving that it took
surgical skill that I don't have

To eviscerate a body
like jack the ripper.

♪♪

Okay.

Well, here's the heart.

I think that's the liver.

The stomach is right here,
so these are the intestines.

I don't know if I'm cutting
the right stuff or not.

♪♪

So, this part of the intestines

Went over the shoulder.

So now there's the...
Where's the kidney?

Is that the kidney right there?

♪♪

I hope that's the right thing.

♪♪

So, that's the liver.

Oh! [ laughs ]

Alright.

Oh, I see. Okay.

The kidney's got a...

Is that it? There's your kidney.

Okay.

Time.

So, lights on.

4 minutes 46.

I mimicked
a ripper-like evisceration

In just under five minutes,

Roughly half the time
it took the ripper.

But I'm convinced it would
have taken me double that

If I'd had
the same conditions he had.

Well, that's pretty good,
but, you know, let's be fair.

There are some variables here
that I'm not dealing with

That had to be in place
that night.

For one thing,
it was pitch black

When the ripper did his work.

I'm not dealing with
the chest cavity and bones.

And as far as the uterus goes,
this is...

We don't...
This is not female body parts,

So I kind of had to pretend.

So that probably would have
taken longer.
Yeah.

And let me just ask
your opinion.

Do you think... was it somebody
that knew what they were doing?

If you wanted to remove
the intestine

And the kidney
and that was your intention,

Then yes, absolutely,

You would need surgical
knowledge to do that.

I don't think
I've disproven my theory.

I think, if anything,
I've supported the theory

That the person that did
the ripper killings

Did have medical training.

♪♪

♪♪

Having medical training
checks one box

For arthur conan doyle
being jack the ripper.

Another is that conan doyle
was a freemason.

And I'm struck by all
the masonic connections

In the ripper murders.

But I think the biggest clue yet

The murders were perpetrated
by a mason

Is the goulston street graffiti,

A message found
scrawled on the wall

Near the site of
catherine eddowes' killing.

A top researcher
in hidden symbolism

Is going to show me
exactly where it was found.

Even though people
have suspected

It has a freemasonic connection,

Getting someone on the inside to
confirm it has been a challenge.

But maybe that someone is me.

Wolter: So, mitre street.

"mitre" is a masonic word.

Many lodges have "mitre"
incorporated into their name.

Do you think maybe the ripper
picked this place,

And catherine eddowes
just happened

To be walking at the wrong place
at the wrong time?

Well, if he didn't,
it sure is coincidental.

Arthur conan doyle was a mason,
so it makes you wonder.

Catherine eddowes was murdered
right over here

In the early hours
of September 30, 1888.

The police report says the only
way he could have gotten out,

The most likely way,
is to go around the corner here.

Let's check it out. Okay.

This way? Yeah.

♪♪

After the murder of catherine,

It was discovered

That there was
this really peculiar graffiti

Written in chalk.

♪♪

I need to show you,
'cause it's very strange.

"the juwes are the men

That will not be blamed
for nothing."

Now, not only is it
peculiar english,

But jews is spelt "j-u-w-e-s."

And there's no record
ever of the word "jew"

Being spelt that way
then or at any time.

Well, andrew, that is
an unusual spelling,

But I recognize it.

That is the way you spell
the collective

Of the three ruffians
in the master mason degree

Who kill hiram abiff.

Jubela, jubelo, jubelum.

Hiram abiff is
an important figure

For all initiates
of freemasonry.

An allegorical story says
that hiram abiff was murdered

When he refused to give up
secret masonic passwords.

Abiff's killers were said
to be three men

Named jubela, jubelo,
and jubelum.

The three killers' names

All start with
the letters "j" and "u,"

And the men have sometimes
been called the juwes.

For me, this is elementary.

I can confirm this is
a freemasonic reference

Without a doubt.

How do we know that
ripper's attached to this?

Well, if this isn't
strange enough,

On the very site
where this was written,

They found a piece of the apron
of catherine eddowes,

Who had just been
murdered moments earlier.

Whoever killed her
came this way.

Well, if it hadn't been
seen before,

They found this piece
of bloody apron

And that word was written
or chalked onto the wall,

That certainly could be
a masonic connection,

And you're doing nothing
to dispel

Arthur conan doyle
being the suspect.

All this seems to fit.

♪♪

As sherlock holmes,
or, should I say, doyle said,

"when you have eliminated
the impossible,

Whatever remains, however
improbable, must be the truth."

And that's what I think
I found here,

That dan and gene
friedman's belief

That jack the ripper
was arthur conan doyle

Isn't farfetched at all

And that there is plenty of
evidence to suggest a freemason

Who also had medical
training was the killer.

Perhaps he left the clues
we found on purpose

So that one day a good detective
would finally crack the case.

♪♪

If you have a mysterious
artifact or site

I need to see,
I want to know about it.

Go to travelchannel. Com/
americaunearthed.