Ripper hoaxer pleads guilty

A former labourer who has admitted being the infamous Yorkshire Ripper hoaxer known as Wearside Jack pleaded guilty today to four counts of perverting the course of justice.

John Humble, 50, of Flodden Road, Sunderland, taunted detectives when he claimed to be the Ripper in three letters and on an audio tape which he sent in the late 1970s.

Ripper squad detectives wasted huge amounts of time and effort when they concentrated on the Sunderland area and searched for a man with a distinct Wearside accent after receiving the hoax letters and tapes.