Detective Chief Superintendent Dennis Hoban

Detective Chief Superintendent Hoban, of West Yorkshire’s Eastern Crime Area, was assigned to investigate the brutal murder of Wilma McCann. Wilma was brutally murdered on 30th October 1975.

An incident room was established at the former Leeds City Police Headquarters in Brotherton House. It was initially treated as an independent murder and was not linked with the attacks on Olive Smelt and Anna Rogulskyj.

Following the brutal murder of Emily Jackson on 20th January 1976 Detective Chief Superintendent Hoban was assigned her case too. The incident room was set up at Millgarth Police Station.

On the 15th March 1978 Detective Chief Superintendent Hoban the investigating officer in the Wilma McCann and Emily Jackson murders who had subsequently been appointed Deputy Head of the force CID, died unexpectedly. He was 52 years of age, and many of his friends and associates attributed his death to the strain and over work brought about by the Ripper Investigation.