The Zodiac Killer’s disturbing message finally deciphered after more than 50 years
Topics: Crime, True Crime, Netflix
Britt Jones
Featured Image Credit: Bettman/Getty
Topics: Crime, True Crime, Netflix
The notorious Zodiac Killer code went 51 years without anyone ever knowing what was contained in the message... until now.
In light of Netflix’s new documentary which was released yesterday (October 23), titled This is the Zodiac Speaking, new information has been brought to light about the suspected killer, named Arthur Leigh Allen.
The killer stood accused of murdering at least five people and attempted to kill two more in California, US, between 1968 and 1969, marking a year of terror for the community.
Advert
During the spree, the killer sent local newspapers written letters, in which he took credit for the slayings and threatened to kill more if they didn’t publish his notes.
In August 1969, after three of the victims were killed, the Zodiac Killer sent three near-identical letters to three different Bay Area newspapers, and they contained one-third of a 408-symbol cryptogram which, if cracked, would reveal his identity.
A week after they were sent, a couple in Salinas managed to figure it out.
They shared that he explained he was collecting slaves for the afterlife and wouldn’t disclose his identity as he didn’t want to stop his plans.
Then in November, the Zodiac Killer sent a letter to The San Francisco Chronicle which included the Z-340 cryptogram, which appeared to be a jumble of shapes.
Not one person in the world has ever been able to crack it, until Dave Oranchak gave it ago with two other men.
He said by email, according to Wired: “The cipher had been unsolved for so long, it had a huge target on its back, and I felt like it was a challenge that had a chance of being solved.
“It was an exciting project to work on, and it was on many people’s ‘top unsolved ciphers of all time’ lists.”
He explained that the code reads: “I hope you are having lots of fun in trying to catch me that wasn’t me on the TV show which brings up a point about me I am not afraid of the gas chamber because it will send me to paradice all the sooner because I now have enough slaves to work from me where everyone else has nothing when they reach paradice so they are afraid of death.
“I am not afraid of death I am not afraid of death because I know that my new life will be an easy one in paradice death.”
The decoded message references a lot of things that were going on at the time, particularly when he mentioned a TV show and gas chambers.
This refers to a call made to a show on KGO-TV just one month earlier, where someone who was claiming to be the killer said: “I need help. I’m sick. I don’t want to go to the gas chamber.”
In other letters, the Zodiac Killer also used the same misspelling for the word ‘paradise’, as well as his talk of collecting slaves for the afterlife.
The FBI in San Francisco confirmed that the cryptogram had been officially solved in 2020, writing in a statement: “The FBI is aware that a cipher attributed to the Zodiac Killer was recently solved by private citizens. The Zodiac Killer case remains an ongoing investigation for the FBI San Francisco division and our local law enforcement partners.
“The Zodiac Killer terrorized multiple communities across Northern California and even though decades have gone by, we continue to seek justice for the victims of these brutal crimes.
"Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, and out of respect for the victims and their families, we will not be providing further comment at this time.”
Oranchak explained that the note was a transposition cipher, which rearrange messages in a variety of ways, such as rearranging columns of a message.
The man and his colleagues then developed an app that helped him to figure out the puzzle, which he had been working on solving since 2006.
Now, the three-part true crime docuseries This is the Zodiac Speaking shares this detail amongst others, including those who suspected Allen of the heinous crimes.