(Serial Killers) The Zodiac Killer - Part 2: The Suspects, the Silence, and the Myth That Remains

Episode Summary:

In Part 2 of our investigation into the Zodiac Killer, we turn our focus to the victims—who they were, what happened to them, and how their stories helped shape one of the most haunting unsolved cases in American history. We take you to Lake Berryessa, where a disturbing attack was carried out in broad daylight, and to the streets of San Francisco, where a cab driver was murdered in cold blood.

 

We explore how police began to connect the dots between these brutal crimes and examine the disturbing letters and ciphers that continued to arrive at newspapers and law enforcement offices. Finally, we begin to sift through the most prominent suspects—some supported by evidence, others by myth—and consider why the Zodiac has never been definitively identified.

 

What You’ll Learn:

•A victim-by-victim account of each confirmed Zodiac attack

•How the killer’s methods evolved—and what remained consistent

•Key forensic evidence from the Paul Stine crime scene

•The Zodiac’s taunting communication with police and press

•An overview of major suspects, including Arthur Leigh Allen

•How the case continues to influence true crime, cryptography, and pop culture

 

Victims Discussed in This Episode:

•David Faraday & Betty Lou Jensen – December 20, 1968

•Darlene Ferrin & Michael Mageau – July 4, 1969

•Bryan Hartnell & Cecelia Shepard – September 27, 1969

•Paul Stine – October 11, 1969

 

Key Locations:

•Lake Herman Road, Benicia

•Blue Rock Springs Park, Vallejo

•Lake Berryessa, Napa County

•Presidio Heights, San Francisco

 

Sources & References:

•Zodiac by Robert Graysmith

- The Zodiac Killer: The Story of America's Most Elusive Serial Killer 

•Zodiac Unmasked by Robert Graysmith

•FBI Vault: Zodiac Killer Files

•San Francisco Police Department Archives

•ZodiacKiller.com victim and letter archives

•Napa County Sheriff’s Department case files

•ZodiacKillerCiphers.com

•Casefile Podcast – Case 12: The Zodiac

•“The Most Dangerous Animal of All” by Gary L. Stewart

•San Francisco Chronicle coverage by Paul Avery (1969–1971)

•Archival interviews with SFPD Inspector Dave Toschi

•CBS News, ABC7, and CNN retrospectives

•Audio dramatizations based on the Zodiac letters and police transcripts (public domain)

 

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