The Whitehall Mystery is an unsolved murder from London in 1888. The dismembered remains of a woman were found at three different sites in central London, including the future site of Scotland Yard.

Discovery of remains

On October 2, 1888, during construction of Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...

's new headquarters on the Victoria Embankment

Victoria Embankment

The Victoria Embankment is part of the Thames Embankment, a road and river walk along the north bank of the River Thames in London. Victoria Embankment extends from the City of Westminster into the City of London.-Construction:...

 near Whitehall

Whitehall

Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...

 in Westminster

City of Westminster

The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...

, a worker found a parcel containing human remains.The female torso was discovered in a three-month old vault that made up part of the cellar. It was placed there at some point after September 29 when Richard Lawrence, a workman, had last been inside the unlocked vault. The body had been wrapped in cloth, possibly a black petticoat, and tied with string.

The torso was matched by police surgeon Thomas Bond

Thomas Bond (British physician)

Dr Thomas Bond FRCS, MB BS , was a British surgeon considered by some to be the first offender profiler, and best known for his association with the notorious Jack the Ripper murders of 1888.-Early life:...

 to a right arm and shoulder that had previously been discovered in the muddy shore of the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

 in Pimlico

Pimlico

Pimlico is a small area of central London in the City of Westminster. Like Belgravia, to which it was built as a southern extension, Pimlico is known for its grand garden squares and impressive Regency architecture....

 on September 11. The Times newspaper had initially suspected that the arm was placed in the water as a medical students' prank.

Speculation

Newspapers suggested a tie to Jack the Ripper

Jack the Ripper

"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...

's killings of prostitutes that were occurring simultaneously, but the Metropolitan Police

Metropolitan police

Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...

 said there was no connection.
An inquest was opened by Westminster's coroner, John Troutbeck, on October 8. It determined that the woman had been "of large stature and well-nourished", and suggested that she had been approximately 24 years old. The uterus had been removed from the body. The right arm had been severed by someone with knowledge of human anatomy, had been tourniquet

Tourniquet

An emergency tourniquet is a tightly tied band applied around a body part sometimes used in an attempt to stop severe traumatic bleeding. Tourniquets are also used during venipuncture and other medical procedures. Severe bleeding means the loss of more than 1,000 ml of blood. This flow of blood...

ed to stem blood flow, and was removed post-mortem. It was also revealed that the victim had been wearing a broché satin dress at the time of death. The dress had been manufactured in Bradford, England with an estimated pattern date of three years old. Pieces of paper found with the remains were from the "Echo" of August 24 and an unknown date of the "Chronicle". Although the cause of death was unknown, the victim had not suffocated or drowned; besides the uterus being absent, the left lung had severe pleurisy

Pleurisy

Pleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura, the lining of the pleural cavity surrounding the lungs. Among other things, infections are the most common cause of pleurisy....

; no marks were found that the victim had borne children; the heart was healthy and the right lung, liver, stomach, kidneys and spleen were normal. She had been dead for an estimated time of six weeks to two months and had fair skin, dark hair, and was not someone who was used to manual labour.

Further discovery

Later, a reporter used a Spitsbergen dog, with the permission of the police and the help of a labourer, to find a left leg cut above the knee that was buried near the construction site. The head and remaining limbs were never found, and the identity of the victim remains unknown.

It has become a point of trivia and irony that Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...

, one of the world's best-known police agencies, is built on the crime scene of an unsolved murder.

External links

• Inquest into the death