More than a century on from his crimes, experts and amateur sleuths alike remain fascinated by Jack the Ripper.

There are around 100 theories on the identity of the notorious serial killer, said to have murdered at least five young women in Whitechapel between August and November 1888.

Despite the work of “ripperologists” across the world and countless books on the case, parts of the killer’s tale still remain shrouded in mystery.

But, recently the hunt for information on the true identity of his final confirmed victim have led experts to clues beneath a cemetery in Leytonstone.

A team from the University of Leicester has explored claims surrounding the true identity of Mary Jane Kelly, who was murdered in Spitalfields on November 9, 1888 and buried at St Patrick’s Catholic Cemetery in Langthorne Road.

The experts, who were also behind research that identified the remains of King Richard III in 2012, were commissioned by author Patricia Cornwell to determine whether Mary Jane could be traced.

The project was carried out following contact with Wynne Weston-Davies, who believes Mary Jane Kelly was actually his great aunt, Elizabeth Weston Davies.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Professor Kevin Schurer, of the University of Leicester, checks St Patrick's burial records

Professors visited the cemetery in May last year to decide if Mary Jane’s remains could be pinpointed and whether to apply for samples to be exhumed for DNA testing.

However, those eager for more information on the ripper’s crimes may be forced to wait longer, after a report by the team concluded it would take a “herculean” effort to find the victim’s body.

“There have been several modern markers in the cemetery which have commemorated Kelly since the 1980s", explains Mathew Morris, field officer for the University of Leicester’s archaeological service.

“Its location is likely to have little or no relevance to the real location of the grave. 

“Problems surrounding the location of the grave stem from the fact that this area of the cemetery was reclaimed in 1947, with earlier grave positions being swept away to make way for new burials.

“We concluded that in order to locate Mary Jane Kelly’s remains, one would most likely have to excavate an area encompassing potentially hundreds of graves containing a varying, and therefore unknown, number of individuals.”

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

Mary Jane Kelly's grave is not thought to be her actual resting place

Mr Weston-Davies, a surgeon, had published his research on the case in the 2015 book The Real Mary Kelly, where he claimed the woman known as Mary Jane Kelly was living under a pseudonym.

However, the university's team concluded without a full review of evidence cited in the book, the case for Mary Jane Kelly and Elizabeth Weston Davies being the same person was largely circumstantial.

Unfortunately for ripperologists, Dr Turi King, reader in genetics and archaeology at the University of Leicester, believes it will be difficult to ever determine whether the claims are true.

“As information presently stands, a successful search for Kelly’s remains would require a herculean effort that would likely take years of research”, he added.

“As such it is extremely unlikely that any application for an exhumation licence would be granted. 

“The simple fact is, successfully naming someone in the historical record only happens in the most exceptional of cases.

“Most human remains found during excavations remain stubbornly, and forever, anonymous and this must also be the fate of Mary Jane Kelly.”