LONDON // A mature student studying serial killers was last night charged over the murder of three prostitutes in an English city infamous as the home of the murderer dubbed the Yorkshire Ripper.
Stephen Griffiths is studying for a PhD in criminology at the University of Bradford in the Yorkshire city that Peter Sutcliffe used as a base to kill 13 women, mainly prostitutes, in the 1970s.
Mr Griffiths, 40, was arrested as the partial remains - including the severed head - of the sex worker Suzanne Blamires, 36, were found in a bag beside a local river.
According to reports yesterday, Ms Blamires was seen on CCTV footage being beaten by a man close to the apartment block where Mr Griffiths lives. She was then shot through the head with a bolt from a crossbow.
Detectives were also questioning Mr Griffiths, who has a degree in psychology, about the disappearance of Shelley Armitage, 31, and Susan Rushworth, 42.
Ms Armitage has not been seen since vanishing from the streets in April while Ms Rushworth, a grandmother with a heroin addiction, has not been seen since last June.
Aside from the inevitable links to the Yorkshire Ripper, who stalked Bradford's red light district and killed three women there including his first victim, the case also has echoes in the 2006 murders in Ipswich, where five prostitutes were killed in little more than a month.
Mr Griffiths describes himself on his MySpace social networking site as a "misanthrope who brought hate into heaven".
Using the name Ven Pariah, he describes his mood as "evil" and cites the passage from the Old Testament book of Ezekiel that reads: "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides" - a quote made famous in an execution scene from Quentin Tarantino's film Pulp Fiction.
Mr Griffiths also wrote on the site: "Humanity is not merely a biological condition. It is also a state of mind. On that basis I am a pseudo human at best. A demon at worst.
"Ven Pariah has finally emerged into the world. What will this pseudo human do, one wonders?"
People living around Mr Griffiths's home in an apartment block on the edge of the red light district, described him as "a little weird".
With the apartment block still sealed by police yesterday as forensic officers continued working inside, a local shop worker where Mr Griffiths bought his daily newspaper said: "He wouldn't say much but used to say hello and buy a few things. I thought he was a bit weird."
Neighbours who knew him described him as an oddball and a loner who would dress in black, "Goth" clothes.
Police had been examining a number of derelict buildings in the area since Ms Armitage, who also had drink and drug problems, disappeared last month.
The last images of her were captured on CCTV cameras as she plied her trade on the streets of the city centre.
Ms Blamires vanished on Friday and her partial remains were found by a passing dog walker on a riverbank outside Bradford.
A friend told The Daily Mail yesterday: "Suzanne was always sent out on to the streets by the boyfriend she lived with and when she went missing people were very, very upset and scared.
"For many of the older generation, it brought back all the horror of the Yorkshire Ripper ... and this is just appalling."
dsapsted@thenational.ae
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Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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SPECS
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Brief scores
Toss India, chose to bat
India 281-7 in 50 ov (Pandya 83, Dhoni 79; Coulter-Nile 3-44)
Australia 137-9 in 21 ov (Maxwell 39, Warner 25; Chahal 3-30)
India won by 26 runs on Duckworth-Lewis Method
Three ways to boost your credit score
Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:
1. Make sure you make your payments on time;
2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;
3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Omania, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 1,600m
Winner: Brehaan, Richard Mullen, Ana Mendez
6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m
Winner: Craving, Connor Beasley, Simon Crisford
6.30pm: The President’s Cup Prep (PA) Dh100,000 2,200m
Winner: Rmmas, Tadhg O’Shea, Jean de Roualle
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
Winner: Dahess D’Arabie, Connor Beasley, Helal Al Alawi
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: Fertile De Croate, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.