Foto von Joseph Lawende

[Lestrade]

Ach, ich weiß nicht Mort. Natürlich, die Licht- und Sichtverhältnisse waren nicht immer die besten. Letztendlich soll es ja nur einen Mann gegeben haben, der einen wirklich guten Blick auf den Mörder hatte. Da müssen krasse Unterschiede zwischen den Zeugenbeschreibungen geherrscht haben.

[Stordfield]

Hallo!

A story appeared in the Pall Mall Gazette dated 7 May 1895, which reported that Grainger had been unhesitatingly identified by the one person whom the police believe saw the murderer with a woman a few moments before her mutilated body was found. If the witness was Joseph Lawende, he told the police in his original statement that he had only noticed the man's height, and did not think he would recognise him again. It is therefore curious as to why he was expected to identify him several years later.

Habe ich jetzt richtig verstanden, dass Lawende 1895 Grant Grainger wiedererkannt haben will?

Gruß Stordfield

[Lestrade]

Hallo Storfield!

Noch zu William Grant Granger/Alice Graham:

"one person whom the police believe to have actually seen the Whitechapel murderer with a woman a few minutes before that woman's dissected body was found in the street"

“he was probably the witness who reportedly identified William Grant”

Lawende "seine" verschiedenen Aussagen (in folgender Reihenfolge, 2.10. in der Times/ Inquest/ Swanson wieder am 19.10./ möglicherweise bei Francis Coles/ 1892/ Sir Henry Smith (meinte wohl auch Lawende) :

"of shabby appearance, about 30 years of age and 5ft. 9in. in height, of fair complexion, having a small fair moustache, and wearing a red neckerchief and a cap with a peak"

"a cloth cap on with a cloth peak" (and according to one report that he "looked rather rough and shabby")

"age 30 ht. 5 ft. 7 or 8 in. comp. fair fair moustache, medium built, dress pepper & salt colour loose jacket, grey cloth cap with peak of same colour, reddish handkerchief tied in a knot, round neck, appearance of a sailor."

"aged from thirty to thirty-five; height 5ft 7in, with brown hair and big moustache; dressed respectably. Wore pea jacket, muffler, and a cloth cap with a peak of the same material."

"A man of thirty-five, standing 5ft 7in to 5ft 8in, rather square shoulders, clean shaven with the exception of a heavy moustache, inclining to be sandy."

"Young, about the middle height, with a small fair moustache, dressed in something like navy serge, and with a deerstalker's cap - that is, a cap with a peak both fore and aft."

(die Körpergröße schwankt zwischen 1,70m, 1,72m und 1,75m)

Noch zum Falle Francis Coles/ Thomas Sadler:

Lawende evidently made an unsuccessful attempt to identify James Sadler after the murder of Frances Coles in February 1891. This was reported in the press, with the unnamed witness being described as "Probably the only trustworthy description of the assassin", having seen him with a woman at the corner of the passage leading from Duke Street to Mitre Square on the night of Eddowes's murder. The report then gave another version of the man's description:

siehe oben, vierte Beschreibung

Noch zu Major Smith:

Smith also commented on Lawende's demeanour when being interviewed by the police: "I think the German spoke the truth, because I could not "lead" him in any way. "You will easily recognize him, then," I said. "Oh no!" he replied ; "I only had a short look at him." The German was a strange mixture, honest apparently, and intelligent also. He had heard of some murders, he said, but they didn't seem to concern him.

Lawende könnte also sehr oft genutzt worden sein. Zur Zeit der Ripper- Morde, 1891 bei Coles und 1894 bei Granger. Da waren aber auch Joseph Hyam Levy und Harry Harris. Vielleicht auch noch jemand anderes am Mitre Square. Bei den unterschiedlichen Beschreibungen auch durchaus möglich. Wir könnten darüber sicherlich ganz tiefgründig diskutieren und Hypothesen aufstellen.

Grüße.