The 137-year-old mystery surrounding the identity of infamous serial killer, Jack the Ripper, responsible for the brutal rape and murders of at least five women, may have been solved at last. British historian and self-proclaimed ‘Ripperologist’, Russell Edwards has claimed to have made the breakthrough, based on evidence recovered from one of the victims, according to a report in news.com.au.

Mr Edwards purchased a shawl belonging to one of the victims, Catherine Eddowes, 46, in 2007 which contained blood and semen. Eddowes was an orphan with a daughter and two sons who was killed on the same night as the Ripper’s third victim.

Working as a prostitute, she was found brutally murdered at 1:45 am. Her throat was cut and she was disemboweled. Her face was also mutilated. As per reports, the shawl left at the crime scene belonged to the killer, not Eddowes.

Mr Edwards put the shawl through forensic testing where it was found to contain DNA from two separate people. He explained that the DNA work took over four years with issues such as contamination and “many other hurdles” slowing down the process.

“We tested the semen left on the shawl. When we matched that, I was dumbfounded that we actually had discovered who Jack the Ripper truly was.”

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One of the samples matched with a descendant of the female victim while the other matched the descendants of a Polish immigrant. Upon discovering this male’s name, Mr Edwards was able to unravel the mystery with the serial killer’s name being: Aaron Kosminski.

“When we matched the DNA from the blood on the shawl with a direct female descendant of the victim, it was the singular most amazing moment of my life at the time,” said Mr Edwards.

“Considering his DNA is on the shawl that was at the murder scene and he was named, I have never considered anyone else to be the Ripper,” Mr Edwards said.

Notably, Kosminski was born in Klodawa in central Poland in 1865. His family fled the imperial Russian anti-Jewish pogroms and emigrated to east London in the early 1880s. He lived close to the murder scenes.

While Mr Edwards stands firmly behind his claims, some scientists have disputed his testing process and the eventual outcome.

More than 175 unexploded bombs, dating back from World War II have been discovered underneath a children’s playground in northern England, according to a report in BBC. The ordnance, described as practice bombs, still contain charge and were found in Wooler, Northumberland, in January with experts fearful that more will be unearthed.

“As these have been found with their fuse and contents still intact – and the detonator burster and smoke filling in-particular can still be potentially hazardous,” the Wooler Parish council said in a press release.

It is believed that the area was used as a Home Guard training guard and the ordnance was buried deep inside the ground after the end of the war.

Notably, it was in December that Parish Council received a Rs 1.6 crore (150,000 pounds) grant to build a playpark to be added to the existing play area in Scotts Park. However, on the first day of the construction, the workers found the suspicious object and alerted the authorities.

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‘Scale of the problem’

The Parish Council engaged Brimstone Site Investigations to conduct a survey, initially for a two-day period. After more digging, it became “apparent that the scale of the problem” was far greater than anyone had anticipated.

“By the end of day 2 the pit had been extended to 2m sq and a further 90 practice bombs had been recovered, and these were safely removed to the designated storage area,” the council stated.

County Councillor Mark Mather expressed surprise at finding himself in the middle of the situation, stating: “I never thought as a parish councillor I’d be dealing with bomb disposal.”

“It’s quite something to think the children have been playing on bombs and it’s been a really challenging situation,” he added.

The work is expected to continue until at least the middle of February but it remained unclear who would pay for the entire exercise.

“The Army will not support us in any way, either looking for the ordnance or removing it, which has been extremely disappointing,” he said.

As per the Ministry of Defence, a team had attended the site only twice, since the discovery was made in January.

A castle straight out of a fairytale is up for sale for the first time in nearly 700 years in the UK. Ripley Castle, located near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, has been put up for sale with an asking price of a casual Rs 225 crore (£21 million), which could make it the most expensive property ever sold in the UK outside of London.

The property is spread across 445 acres of land and contains a lake, a pub, a helipad and a car park. The estate has been split into nine lots which could be bought individually or together, and also features a cricket pitch, hotel, tea room, gift shop and wedding venue, according to a BBC report. 

Sir Thomas, who has looked after the property for decades alongside his wife Lady Ingilby, is the proud owner of the property. The Ripley Castle came into family heirloom after Sir Thomas Ingilby, who lived between 1290 and 1352, married heiress Edeline Thwenge in 1308/9 and acquired the estate as dowry. His son Thomas saved King Edward III’s life when he was gored by a boar and was knighted.

Quizzed why he was selling the property, Sir Thomas said the couple wanted to retire and do other things after spending years maintaining the large property.

“There are days when we are very positive about it, there are other days when we are sad for what we will miss,” Sir Thomas told the publication.

“I’ve been looking after the place for over 50 years, so this has been my whole life. I don’t want to be carried out of here feet first, I’ve got things I want to do.”

“We’ve ticked every box on that list. We’ve left it in the best state possible and safeguarded the heritage for future generations.”

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The couple who has four grandchildren, is planning to do some travelling after the process of selling the estate is complete.

“Some of the events we’ve hosted here have been incredibly moving … There are evenings when we walk around the gardens by the lake, and deer come down to drink while the scent of the flowers surrounds us. It feels like something out of a fairy tale,” said Lady Ingilby.

Amid the uptick in knife crimes in the UK, actor Idris Elba has come up with a solution that has divided the public. The British actor said the government must consider “innovative” prevention methods, including blunting or banning knives. Mr Elba has spent the last year developing a documentary about solutions to knife crime during which he met families of the victims, police officers and the perpetrators.

“The truth is that kitchen knives are perhaps 25 per cent of the knives used in most of the terrible crimes. That’s one of the stats in the film. And those kitchen knives are usually a domestic situation. So kitchen knives…of course, it’s very difficult. They’re a domestic knife,” said Mr Elba.

“I do think there is areas of innovation that we can do with kitchen knives. I hate to say it. Not all kitchen knives need to have a point on them. That sounds like a crazy thing to say, but actually, it would reduce- you know, you can still cut your food without the point on your knife, which is an innovative way to sort of look at it,” he said. “In a country in crisis, I’m sorry, but yeah, let’s look at that.”

The Thor star also called out social media platforms and said they should take responsibility for their actions.

“When it comes to big tech, there needs to be accountability within their own policies, and their policies need to be educated and driven by what society deems is right or wrong,” he argued.

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Social media reacts

Social media users did not take kindly to Mr Elba’s suggestion with many pointing out that the weapon did not stop an accused from going on slicing sprees.

“Next time he does an action movie, I want him to use a Nerf gun instead of a realistic, looking one,” said one user, while another added: “Maybe all cutlery should be banned and everyone issued with their own spork?”

A third commented: “I don’t think that will solve the problem, sir.”

I don’t think that will solve the problem, sir.

— Dunkie (@DunkieX) January 31, 2025

Knife crime

The knife crime crisis in the UK came into the spotlight yet again after Axel Rudakubana, 18, was sentenced to 52 years in prison after he stabbed three young girls to death and attempted the murder of eight other children and two adults in July last year.

The Labour government, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer has called knife crime a “national crisis”. His administration has pledged to halve knife crime in the next decade. A ban on some knives and machetes came into force in September last year but the spate of stabbings has not stopped.

In a twist of fate that could only be described as ironic, a UK locksmith found himself locked out of his own van by one of his French bulldogs. 31-year-old Peter Macann, a resident of Dereham, Norfolk was on his way to a customer when he took a pit stop at a service station to fill the tires with air. As he stepped out, one of his dogs sitting inside the vehicle, stood up on the central locking button and locked him out.

“I’m a 24-hour locksmith so I had a job at about 21:00, and I went to put air in the tyres, went to pay for it, got back and I just couldn’t get in,” Mr Macann told BBC.

Mr Macann, who has not been a locksmith for long, said the pets were “completely unbothered by the incident”. Aware of the irony of being locked out despite being a locksmith, Mr Macann said he did not want to call any other locksmith to rescue him.

“I didn’t want to call another locksmith or tell my customer I had locked myself out of my van.”

Instead, Mr Macann turned to the Dereham Community Notice Board Facebook group asking for assistance. While the search for help on social media was unsuccessful, Mr Macann’s dogs once again took matters into their own hands.

As per Mr Macann. Bella and Vinnie, his two pets, somehow stepped on the button again, allowing him to venture inside and gain control of the situation.

He said he was too embarrassed by the entire incident and told his customer that he was “caught in traffic” when quizzed about why he was late.

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Social media reacts

Social media users saw the light side of the incident and poked fun at Mr Macann while applauding the dogs.

“Well, now that’s ironic,” said one user, while another added: “One tool is left standing outside in the cold.”

A third commented: “Note to self: never hire a locksmith who gets locked out of his own van by his own dog. Hire the dogs”

Notably, Mr Macann only became a fully qualified and competent locksmith in September last year after completing a training course. 

In a bizarre case of immigration fraud, a woman has been arrested in the UK for using different wigs and disguises to impersonate applicants during British citizenship tests. As per the Home Office, as cited by BBC, the accused 61-year-old from Enfield, North London, took the “Life in the UK Test” on behalf of at least 14 other people, both male and female, to help them gain an unfair advantage in obtaining ‘indefinite leave to remain’ status which essentially means permanent residency.

The authorities executed a warrant at the accused’s home on Monday (Jan 27) and discovered a stash of false documents and an array of wigs that were seemingly worn to trick the interviewers. The woman is alleged to have taken the tests across different centres in the UK between 1 June 2022 and 14 August 2023.

The Home Office released images of her wearing the wigs as well as CCTV of her taking part in the interview. Inspector Phillip Parr, involved in the investigation, described the scheme as “dangerous”, highlighting that meticulous planning was done on her part to execute the entire operation.

“This individual is believed to have orchestrated a pre-meditated plan to avoid detection, meticulously selecting disguises and test centre locations across the country to evade the authorities,” said Mr Parr.

“As with many criminals who commit this type of crime, we believe her motive was financial gain,” he added.

The woman remains in custody with the Home Office yet to inform about future course of action.

A woman has been arrested on suspicion of completing UK citizenship tests for at least 14 applicants.

She allegedly used disguises to pass herself off as the true applicants.

These fraudsters lead to people wrongly being granted the right to remain, putting the public at risk. pic.twitter.com/BfnB0kylrR

— Home Office (@ukhomeoffice) January 28, 2025

Internet reacts

As the news of the woman’s arrest went viral, social media users questioned the government and agencies for not having stricter safeguards in place to avoid such a situation.

“Time to start using biometric identification such as fingerprints for Citizenship Tests?” said one user, while another replied sarcastically: “Fab news. The people she sat the tests for have had their British citizenship removed I take it?

A third commented: “You don’t even fingerprint people? All of the atrocities committed against citizens is a direct result of incompetence at the Home Office. Shame on you!”

What is Life in the UK Test?

The Life in the UK Test, required for anyone seeking UK citizenship or indefinite leave to remain, consists of 24 questions aimed at ensuring applicants have adequate knowledge of British values, history, and society. An applicant must score 75 per cent or more to pass the test.

As per the Home Office, fraudulently completing these tests for others can result in individuals being wrongly granted residency, bypassing the necessary scrutiny.

A network of nearly 200 dinosaur footprints, dating back to the Middle Jurassic period, has been found at a quarry in Oxfordshire, marking the largest discovery of its kind in the United Kingdom. The trackways, believed to be around 166 million years old, were uncovered at Dewars Farm Quarry by researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham.

They are part of a vast “dinosaur highway” and feature footprints from the 9-metre-long, fierce predator Megalosaurus and herbivorous dinosaurs that were up to twice its size, according to a news release by the University of Birmingham.

Gary Johnson, a quarry worker, first noticed unusual indentations while extracting limestone for roadworks in 2023. His discovery has since drawn attention from palaeontologists eager to piece together a more detailed picture of life in the Jurassic era.

Our palaeontologists worked with their counterparts from @UniofOxford to uncover a huge expanse of quarry floor filled with hundreds of different prehistoric footprints on Britain’s ‘dinosaur highway’ https://t.co/UIWhfbCV8y pic.twitter.com/HbbemtftqH

— UniBirmingham News (@news_ub) January 2, 2025

“It’s like a snapshot into the day of the (dinosaurs’) life, and what they were doing,” said Dr Kirsty Edgar, a micropalaeontologist, who was part of the excavation, in a statement.

In June 2024, a team of around 100 volunteers and researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham spent a week excavating and documenting the site. Their findings have been linked to a previously discovered trackway in the same quarry, uncovered in 1997, though that section is no longer accessible.

In the latest find, the longest trackway stretched over 150 metres. While some of the tracks were left by massive sauropods, others belonged to the carnivorous Megalosaurus. Megalosaurus, originally named in 1824, was the world’s first scientifically described dinosaur.

“The general rule of locomotion is that the faster the animal is moving, the farther apart the footprints will be,” Lawrence Tanner, a paleontologist who was not involved in the excavation, told CNN, likening the movement of the sauropods to modern elephants.

It remains unclear exactly where the dinosaurs were headed, but Tanner believes they may have been navigating along a shoreline or seeking food.

The exceptional preservation of the tracks is attributed to the unique conditions of the time. The site’s soft sediment, combined with just the right amount of moisture, created an ideal environment to capture the impressions, according to the CNN report.

“The preservation is so detailed that we can see how the mud was deformed as the dinosaur’s feet squelched in and out,” Dr Duncan Murdock, an earth scientist, was quoted as saying by the University of Birmingham.

Using aerial drone photography, researchers captured over 20,000 images of the site, which will be used to create detailed 3D models of the footprints.

Given the limited time researchers had to document the site before quarry operations recommenced, much of the surface remains unexplored. Dr Edgar expressed optimism that further excavations could reveal even more tracks and insights into dinosaur life. “We’ll be continuously evaluating and working with the quarry workers as new areas are exposed,” she told CNN.

Britain’s Science and Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has said that children should be allowed to use ChatGPT to help with their homework. During an interview on BBC, Mr Kyle was quizzed whether it was “okay for kids to use ChatGPT to do their homework?” as the UK attempts to build a framework regarding the future of artificial intelligence (AI).

He responded: “Actually with supervision and used in the right way, then yes, because ChatGPT and the AI technology that is using language is already being used across the economy.”

“I am of an age where I remember this conversation about calculators. We need to make sure that kids and young people are learning how to use this technology and integrate it into their learning development,” he added when pressed if it was the correct approach.

ChatGPT is an online AI-powered large language model (LLM) that enables users to have human-like conversations and much more with a chatbot. The rise of AI chatbots in the last couple of years has raised questions regarding the learning structure in schools and colleges where more and more students are simply relying on such programs to complete homework and pass examinations.

However, as per Mr Kyle, the use of ChatGPT could ‘turbo-charge’ the minds of the children.

“There are kids with real outlier talents. Using ChatGPT and other AI assistance could really turbo-charge [them] and give them a challenge they’re not getting in other places.”

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AI action plan

The British government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be launching its AI Action Plan this week. Mr Starmer’s administration has been largely optimistic regarding the technology with its ministers claiming that if AI is “fully embraced”, it could bring £47 billion to the economy every year. With the private sector set to invest £14 billion in the field as well, it could bring around 13,000 jobs.

Though the complete details of the AI plans are not yet clear beyond rumours of a “sovereign AI team”, it is already evident that the Labour Party is taking a stance that is radically different from its Conservative predecessors.

As per Mr Kyle, the Labor administration will implement a “course correction” on AI safety, after former PM Rishi Sunak placed an overbearing amount of attention, spooking the public in the process.

A woman dark web hacker who made around £42,000 (Rs 44.75 lakh) selling unreleased music from bands and musicians such as Coldplay, Bebe Rexha, Melanie Martinez, Taylor Upsahl and Shawn Mendes has avoided jail, according to a report in The Independent. The woman, identified as 22-year-old Skylar Dalziel of Luton has instead been handed 21 months in prison suspended for two years by the Luton Crown Court. Additionally, she will have to complete 180 hours of unpaid work and 10 rehabilitative activity days.

Ms Dalziel was facing 14 counts relating to the trading of copyrighted music without the consent of the recording artists or labels. She pleaded guilty to nine copyright offences and four computer misuse offences.

“Dalziel had complete disregard for the musician’s creativity and hard work producing original songs and the subsequent potential loss of earnings,” said Richard Partridge, specialist prosecutor of the Crown Prosecution Service.

“This type of activity doesn’t just impact on the artists themselves but also on employees of the record companies involved. She selfishly used their music to make money for herself by selling it on the dark web.”

Cloud access

She reportedly stole the tracks by illegally accessing several cloud storage accounts linked to the popular artists. A raid at her home in Winchester Gardens last January led to the recovery of a hard drive containing up to 291,941 songs.

The police told the court that a review of Ms Dalziel’s PayPal and bank account showed she received payments worth a total of £42,049 between April 2021 and January 2023.

“Stealing copyrighted material for your own financial gain is illegal. It jeopardises the work of artists and the livelihoods of the people who work with them to create and release their music,” said Daryl Fryatt, a detective constable at the intellectual property crime unit.

“It’s estimated that this type of criminal activity contributes to over 80,000 job losses each year.”

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The lid on Ms Dalziel’s operation was blown after Sony Music Entertainment filed a complaint in 2021, informing the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) that a cloud account linked to US artist Upsahl had been compromised and 40 unreleased tracks extracted were being sold online.

The IFPI and the Recording Industry Association of America managed to uncover that an account on an online forum was selling songs not only related to Sony’s label but also to the likes of Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group.