How the Yorkshire Ripper's reign of terror finally came to an end in Sheffield

Women were terrified to walk the streets alone as the number of his murders and attempted murders increased year after year as he continued to evade arrest.

His killing spree triggered one of the largest police manhunt’s in history.

DEATH: Yorkshire Ripper dead at 74: Peter Sutcliffe dies of coronavirus alone in hospital

Peter Sutcliffe died today in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus.

OTHER CRIME: South Yorkshire Police team commended for securing justice for tragic tot

The 74-year-old serial killer was serving a whole life sentence for 13 murders and seven attempted murders.

He was finally captured on January 2, 1981, when two police officers on patrol in Sheffield – Sgt Bob Ring and PC Robert Hydes – spotted a car with false number plates.

Sutcliffe was found in the vehicle with a prostitute in Broomhall, which was Sheffield’s red light district at that time.

He was taken in for initial questioning at Hammerton Road police station, Hillsborough, before being transferred to Dewsbury Police Station to be questioned about the Yorkshire Ripper case as he matched many of the killer’s known physical characteristics.

The following day, Sgt Ring returned to the scene of the arrest and discovered a knife, hammer and rope that Sutcliffe had discarded in bushes when he told officers he was ‘bursting for a pee’.

A second knife was found hidden in a toilet cistern at Hammerton Road cop shop.

Sgt Bob Ring and PC Robert Hydes were commended for the part they played in bringing the Yorkshire Ripper to justice.

Sutcliffe finally admitted he was the Ripper after two days of intensive questioning but he pleaded not guilty to murder at his trial but admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

He claimed to have heard voices ordering him to kill prostitutes while he worked as a gravedigger.

Sutcliffe, who was married, was a regular user of sex workers in Leeds and Bradford and his outbreak of violence towards them is believed to have been triggered when he was swindled out of money one woman and her pimp.

A Prison Service spokesman said: “HMP Frankland prisoner Peter Coonan (born Sutcliffe) died in hospital on November 13. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed.”

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