Joseph Barnett (1858-1926)

Suggested in: "Jack the Ripper: The Simple Truth" by Bruce Paley

Born in 1858 in Whitechapel, he was 30 years old at the time of the murders and knew the area perfectly. He was of medium build, fair complexion, with a moustache and blue eyes, 5' 7" tall.
Joseph's father, himself a fish porter, died in 1864, and his mother deserted the family soon after. As a result, he was raised by his older brothers. All of the Barnett brothers were working at the local fish market by 1878.

Joseph met Mary Jane Kelly on April 8th, 1887, and the two decided soon after to room together at various locations for the next year and a half. By the time of the Ripper murders, they were living in 13 Miller's Court, Dorset Street. In June 1888 he lost his job and Mary returned to prostitution to bring more money in. The relationship had begun to break down and he moved out when Kelly allowed a prostitute to sleep at their house. Nevertheless he continued to visit her and leave her money right up until her death on November 9th 1888.

The theory is that Joseph Barnett was tired of Mary Kelly prostituting herself to other men. In an attempt to "scare" Kelly off the streets, Barnett raged through Whitechapel murdering prostitutes in the autumn of 1888. His plot didn't succeed, though, so he murdered her in a rage. At this point the murders stopped.

In terms of evidence, ginger beer bottles were found in 13 Miller's Court by police on November 9th. In the "Dear Boss" letter, the author says that he "saved some of the proper red stuff in a ginger beer bottle over the last job to write with...". Secondly, Kelly's door had been locked by the killer after he left - even though this could only have been done by reaching through a broken window from the outside, as Kelly and Barnett did after losing their key.