 Lamb returned to the police station and charged William with Ellen's murder. Ellen's jewellery, found in William's pockets, was confiscated. A preliminary search of the premises revealed chalk graffiti on the rear door of the flat, which read "Jack Ripper [sic] is at the back of this door", and on the stairwell leading up from the rear of the property, which read "Jack Ripper is in this seller [sic]". The press and the police thought they had been written by a local boy before the tragedy, but the writer was never identified. A more extensive search the following morning found blood-stained clothing in the crate that had contained the body, and the remains of more clothing and some of Ellen's personal effects burned in the fireplace. The flat was bereft of furniture, indicating that it may have been burnt on the fire, either for heat or to destroy evidence. A large penknife was found with human flesh and blood upon it, and the rope that William had bought on the morning of 4 February was found with strands of Ellen's hair caught in the fibres.
