Morning Advertiser (London)
19 November 1888
DOUBLE MURDER AND SUICIDE AT BRADFORD. Last night, between nine and ten o'clock, the attention of a policeman was called to a house in Church-street, Manningham, occupied by a man named Kirby. The door was locked and the blind drawn, and a child inside was crying. The policeman on entering found Kirby suspended from the ceiling in the front bedroom, and the dead bodies of Mrs. Kirby and her child, eleven months old, they having been strangled. Kirby and his wife were both young, and jealousy is supposed to have been the motive of the act.
THE WHITECHAPEL MURDER.
On Saturday afternoon a communication from the Birmingham detectives to the effect that a man suspected of being concerned in the Whitechapel murders had left Birmingham by train for London was at once acted upon by the Scotland-yard authorities. Detectives Leach and White, of the Criminal Investigation Department, proceeded to Willesden Junction and Euston respectively, and at the latter station Inspector White, on the arrival of the Birmingham train, detained the suspected individual and conveyed him to Scotland-yard. It was stated that the man had been staying at a common lodging-house in Birmingham since Monday last, and the theory was that if, as was supposed by the police, he was connected with the East-end crimes, he left the metropolis by an early train on the morning of the tragedies. The suspected person was a medical man who was some years ago practicing in London with another gentleman of some repute. He was of gentlemanly appearance and manners, and somewhat resembled the description given by the witnesses at the inquest as having been seen in company with Kelly early on the morning that she was murdered. Upon being minutely questioned as to his whereabouts at the time of the murders, the suspect was able to furnish a satisfactory account of himself, and was accordingly liberated.
The police in the East-end had given into their custody last night a man who was supposed to be connected with the recent crimes. It appears that this individual, who gave his name as Charles Akehurst, and his address at 27, Canterbury-road, Balls Pond-road, North, entered a house in Flower and Dean Street, Spitalfields, with a female, and there made use of certain remarks, and acted in a manner which was considered sufficient to justify the woman in handing him over to the police. He was taken to the Commercial-street Police-station, where he was questioned, and was still under detention at one o'clock this morning.
Throughout the day the local police received numerous statements and descriptions of suspects, but there had been no arrests.
It has now been definitely decided that the funeral shall take place at 12.30 to-morrow.
At the Worship-street Police Court on Saturday Nikaner A. Benelius, 27 years of age, a Swede, and described as a traveler, living in Great Eastern-street, Shoreditch, was placed in the dock, before Mr. Bushby, charged with entering a dwelling-house in Buxton-street, Mile-end, for an unlawful purpose, and with refusing to give an account of himself.-Detective-sergeant Dew attended from Commercial-street station, and stated that the prisoner had been arrested that morning under circumstances which made it desirable to have the fullest inquiries made as to him. Prior to the last murder-of Mary Kelly, in Miller's-court-the prisoner had been arrested by the police and detained n connexion with the Berner-street murder, but was eventually released. He had, however, remained about the neighbourhood, lodging in a German lodging-house, but having, the officer said, no apparent means of subsistence; in fact, the landlord admitted that the prisoner was 25s. in debt to him.-Harriet Rowe, a married woman, living in Buxton-street, Mile-end, then deposed that at about 10.30 that morning she had left the street door open, and whilst sitting in the parlour the prisoner, a stranger to her, opened the door and walked in. She asked him what he wanted, but he only "grinned" in reply. She was greatly alarmed, being alone, and ran to the window, but the prisoner then opened the parlour door and left. She followed him into the street until she saw a constable, but the prisoner first stopped the officer and spoke to him. She (witness) ran up and told the constable what the prisoner had done, and he was thereupon taken to the station.-The police-constable, Imhoff, 211 H, said that the prisoner was asking him the way to Fenchurch-street when the witness Rowe ran up. After hearing her complaint, he asked the prisoner what he wanted to go to Fenchurch-street for, and the prisoner said he expected some letters at the post-office. The prisoner was searched at the station, but nothing was found on him. In answer to the charge he said he only went into the house to ask his way to Fenchurch-street.-Mr. Bushby said he should follow the usual course and remand the prisoner for inquiries. The prisoner was remanded till Friday.-Two men, one of whom was stated to be the prisoner's landlord subsequently called abut him and said that he had been preaching in the street at times and acting of late very strangely.
Alexander Dundron, 23, was charged with assaulting Mary Ann Barham, of 6, Chancery-place, Shadwell.-About ten o'clock on Friday night the parties were in the "Bell," Ratcliff Highway, when Dundron and his young woman, Elizabeth Phillips, began fighting. The accused struck his young woman, knocked her down, and kicked her. Prosecutrix interfered, whereupon Dundron said "You old -----, I will come round to-night, and set fire to your place, as well as rip you up." He then punched prosecutrix about the head and face in a most brutal manner. Her head was cut open, and she lost a great quantity of blood. When the constable came up the accused struck the officer, and knocked his helmet off.-Dundron said Elizabeth Phillips was prosecutrix's niece. They both attacked him, and the former dug a hair-in into his face. He struck prosecutrix by mistake. Mr. Lushington said there was no justification for the prisoner having committed the assault. At the same time, he thought prosecutrix had exaggerated her case. Prisoner would be fined 20s., or 14 days.
