Buck Ruxton | |
|---|---|
 Ruxton outside his home in Dalton Square, Lancaster, c. 1934 | |
| Born | Buktyar Rustomji Ratanji Hakim 21 March 1899 |
| Died | 12 May 1936 (aged 37) |
| Other names | The Savage Surgeon |
| Occupation | Physician |
| Criminal status | Executed 12 May 1936 |
| Children | 3 |
| Motive |
|
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal charge | Murder |
| Penalty | Execution by hanging |
| Details | |
| Victims | Isabella Ruxton (née Kerr) Mary Jane Rogerson |
| Date | 15 September 1935 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Location(s) | Lancaster, Lancashire |
Date apprehended | 13 October 1935 |
| Imprisoned at | HM Prison Manchester |
Buck Ruxton (born Bukhtyar Chompa Rustomji Ratanji Hakim; 21 March 1899 – 12 May 1936) was an Indian-born physician convicted and subsequently hanged for the September 1935 murders of his common-law wife, Isabella Ruxton (née Kerr), and the family housemaid, Mary Jane Rogerson, at his home in Lancaster, England. These murders are informally known as the Bodies Under the Bridge[1] and the Jigsaw Murders, while Ruxton himself became known as The Savage Surgeon.
The case became known as the "Bodies Under the Bridge" due to the location, near the Dumfriesshire town of Moffat in the Southern Uplands of Scotland, where the bodies were found. The case was also called the "Jigsaw Murders" because of the painstaking efforts to re-assemble and identify the victims and determine the place of their murder.[2] Ruxton himself earned the title of "The Savage Surgeon" due to his occupation and the extensive mutilation he inflicted upon his victims' bodies.[3]
The murders committed by Buck Ruxton would prove to be one of the United Kingdom's most publicised murder cases of the 1930s. The case itself is primarily remembered for the innovative forensic techniques employed to identify the victims[4] and to prove that their murders had been committed within the Ruxton household.[5]
- ^ Whittington-Egan 1992, p. 139.
- ^ "The Buck Ruxton "Jigsaw Murders" Case". NLM. nlm.nih.gov. 3 December 2014. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
- ^ Jessel & Wilson 1990, p. 1706.
- ^ Jessel & Wilson 1990, pp. 1711–1719.
- ^ Jessel & Wilson 1990, pp. 1703–1704.