Joseph Henry Helson was born c. 1846. He was assigned to J Division of Scotland Yard by 1888. He was involved in the investigation of the murder of Mary Ann Nichols along with John Spratling, and also investigated the murder of Annie Chapman. He was also involved in the investigation into the possibility of John Pizer being Jack the Ripper. He retired from Scotland Yard in 1895 at the age of 49. Â Â Â
He appeared in Eddie Campbell and Alan Moore’s From Hell, where he complained about the fact that the press had spelled his name incorrectly, calling him “Helston” instead of “Helson”. He was portrayed as overly concerned with his representation in the press. Â