Police poised to name 'Ripper's' fifth victim
Detectives are expected to name the fifth victim of England's so-called Ipswich Ripper today and reveal how she died.
She will almost certainly be identified as missing prostitute Annette Nicholls, 29.
Her body was found near Levington, five miles from the town, on December 12. She had been missing for a week.
Post mortem tests were being carried out on her body at an Ipswich hospital last night.
Her identification will be the latest development in the wake of the killings which have horrified the close-knit community in Ipswich.
Since December 2, the bodies of five women have been found dumped in the area, prompting a massive manhunt by police.
A second body has been identified as that of prostitute Paula Clennell. She had been missing since Sunday.
Last night police said they had found some clothes in Ipswich town centre. They are checking whether or not clothes belonged to Miss Clennell.
In today’s Daily Mirror Miss Clennell’s boyfriend Paul Turner, 44, says he believes the serial killer is a Felixstowe man, in his 30s or 40s, who slept with her and other prostitutes.
He said the prostitutes had stolen from the man who might have had killed them in revenge.
Referring to Miss Clennell, he said: “I think I know who killed her.”
He said of the Felixstowe man: “Maybe this guy had enough of being ripped off and lashed out. It could be that he got the killing bug or that he wanted to get revenge on every one of them who’d stolen from him.”
Miss Clennell, 24, died as a result of her neck being “compressed“, which a pathologist said “almost certainly” implied strangulation.
Media speculation has been rife about a chubby man in a blue BMW seen at the place where one of the murdered prostitutes, Anneli Alderton was last seen.
The 24-year-old’s naked body was found in woods at Nacton on December 10. She had been strangled.
Today the Sun says the significance of the BMW has increased after tattoo shop owner Steve Hockley told police he had seen another of the victims, Miss Nicholls, getting into a blue BMW.
Reports also claim that the prostitutes may have been drugged before they were killed.
Toxicology tests are being carried out on the first two victims – Gemma Adams, 25, and Tania Nicol, 19 – to discover whether or not they had any substances in their bodies which could have played a part in their deaths.
The causes of their deaths have not yet been revealed.
The Guardian claims today that Ipswich prostitutes are being given money by the police and drug workers to keep them off the streets.
