A chilling connection between Armidale and the infamous Jack The Ripper murders has given rise to a special panel being held this Sunday into what would happen if a serial killer was at work in Armidale today.
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Physician Charles Alfred Hebbert, who worked on the grisly murders in London and died a lonely death in Armidale’s Tattersalls Hotel in 1925, could be a key suspect, according to UNE forensic anthologist Xanthe Mallett.
Dr Mallett, who was a presenter for BBC documentary History Cold Case before moving to Armidale earlier this year, will be hosting the hypothetical debate being held at the Armidale Court House on Sunday.
In the role, Dr Mallett will question legal, medical, police and press representatives into how they would treat the Jack The Ripper murders if they were to happen in Armidale in modern times.
Dr Mallett said a lot of questions are remain unanswered about Hebbert, who ended up in Armidale after leaving England to work in the United States and Australia.
“The Armidale connection is interesting because of all the suspects I think he’s actually the best one,” she said.
“Certainly he’s got a very interesting personality, there are traits there that lead me to believe he could potentially be capable of some of these crimes.
One discovery by Hebbert’s family in the 1960s lends even further weight to the theory that the police physician may have actually have been the killer, Dr Mallett said.
“The most interesting thing about him is in his desk... they found two mummified left hands in gloves hidden in a secret compartment,” she said.
“Psychologically I think that is really intriguing because they were in a desk beneath where his hands would have been.
“I don’t know any anatomist that would do anything like that, that’s dark.”
The panel extends from an exhibition being held at the moment detailing Hebbert’s connection to the case,
Hebbert is buried in an unmarked grave in the Armidale cemetery. Dr Mallett said she was looking forward to being involved in the hypothetical, which she said was different from any of her previous projects.
“It’s really about what their roles would be if this happened now,” she said.
“Imagine if this did happen in Armidale, it would be shocking today.”
The panel will be held from 2pm on Sunday and is open to the public, with limited spaces available and bookings required.
The Touching Fingers with Jack The Ripper exhibition will run until November 30 at the Legal Minds office from 11.30am-1.30pm and 4.30pm-5.30pm.
More information is available from Legal Minds.
