Who was Peter Sutcliffe's wife? Learn more about the Yorkshire Ripper's family

Netflix recently released a true-crime miniseries called The Ripper on December 16. The show has created a lot of buzz on social media ever since it was released. Based on the crimes that occurred in West Yorkshire and Manchester between 1975 and 1980, the show narrates the horrific tale of a serial killer who killed 13 women within a span of five years.

The British serial killer, Peter Sutcliffe, had terrorised not only entire Britain but the whole world with the slurry of disturbing murders committed by him. Read on to find out, “Who was Peter Sutcliffe’s wife?”

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Who was Peter Sutcliffe's wife?

Peter Sutcliffe also known as the Yorkshire Ripper, was a British serial killer who had murdered 13 women during his infamous 1970s killing spree in Britain. The Netflix series reveals that The Ripper had managed to evade authorities for years before finally being apprehended. However, his killing spree had not started until he had been married for a year in 1975. While he was out on the streets terrorising the quaint British town of Yorkshire, his wife Sonia Sutcliffe, had absolutely no idea that her husband was a serial killer. 

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A report by Daily Mail reveals that Peter was born in 1946, in Bingley, Yorkshire and had begun displaying anti-social behaviour very early on in his life. He met a girl named Sonia Szurma during a disco night at a local pub. Sonia was only 16 at the time and had no idea that the charming truck driver she had just met actually, went out raping and killing women across the city in his spare time. 

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Who was Sonia Sutcliffe?

When the pair met, Sutcliffe was studying to become a teacher but had been diagnosed as having paranoid schizophrenia. The report reveals that sources close to her had described her as short-tempered and constantly dissatisfied. The report reveals that Peter had to often “contain her physically by pinning her arms to her side,” when she was having one of her unprovoked outbursts of rage.

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Why was Peter Sutcliffe killing women?

Peter Sutcliffe’s motives were never clarified, though some people theorised that his brutal attacks on prostitutes stemmed from a bad personal experience with a sex worker. The Netflix miniseries reveals that almost every time Sutcliffe mutilated his victims with a hammer from behind before stabbing them to death. However, he was caught in 1981 and tried in court.

After he pleaded guilty to all the charges, he was sentenced to 20 concurrent life sentences. When Sutcliffe recounted his crimes to the police in thorough detail, it became clear that his wife was utterly unaware about what he had been doing. Before he stood trial for 13 counts of murder, Sutcliffe was given the opportunity to finally admit to his wife what he had done over the past seven years of their marriage.

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Sutcliffe passed away on November 13, 2020, after contracting COVID-19. Another report in The Sun reveals that the 72-year-old had refused treatment and was also suffering from underlying conditions such as pneumonia, diabetes, and heart disease. Peter's ashes were reportedly given to his brother Mick Sutcliffe, who is 70 and also suffers from lung disease. Sonia Sutcliffe reportedly held a funeral two weeks after he died.

The pair did not have any children during the time of their marriage. However, Sonia did not file for a divorce until Sutcliffe had been in prison for 13 years already. Sonia remarried in 1997 after the pair divorced in 1994.

Peter Sutcliffe's family

The Netflix true-crime miniseries reveals that Peter Sutcliffe was born in Bingley in the West Riding of Yorkshire. He came from a working-class family and had left school aged fifteen and had a series of menial jobs. Strangely he had done two stints as a gravedigger in the 1960s. He is survived by his brother Mick Sutcliffe who is 70 years old now.