I would like to expand on a previously discussed topic, regarding two cards likely mailed by the Zodiac Killer on March 22nd 1971 and July 13th 1971, dubbed the 'Pines' and 'Monticello' cards respectively. The March 22nd 'Pines' card contained the phrases [1] Sierra Club  [2] Sought Victim 12  [3] Peek through the pines  [4] pass Lake Tahoe areas and [5] around in the snow. The 'Monticello' card stated "Near Monticello Shought Victims 21 ...... In The Woods Dies April." One can see the similarities, with "sought" and "shought", "woods" and "pines", as well as "near Monticello" and "pass lake Tahoe areas". They were both directions to the location of a murder victim, but crucially, both postcards held the victims forenames within the design of each. They were so cleverly designed, it is difficult to believe they were not authored by the same individual, with two words linking both cards - Memorial Park. A memorial park is a designated area for remembrance of the departed. 

In the case of the 'Pines' card, the author chose a postcard of "an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a Boise Cascade Company project at Incline Village, where construction has just begun on the development". He then directed us to "pass lake Tahoe areas" to an area by the "Sierra Club". If we follow these simple instructions we find ourselves at two locations in close proximity. The first is Clair Tappaan Lodge on Donner Pass Road - but more importantly - the second is Donner Memorial State Park (preserving the site of the Donner Camp, where members of the ill-fated Donner Party were trapped by weather during the winter of 1846–1847, resulting in 39 deaths). Bearing in mind the 'Pines' card was thought to have been mailed by the murderer of Donna Ann Lass, this may be the motivation behind its design. The author was pointing us towards the Donner Memorial to signify the forename of his murder victim. Of course, this could be a simple coincidence and not the intended meaning behind the postcard. Therefore, if we can find the identical design or meaning within its sister card, mailed on July 13th 1971 (just 4 months later), then we can just call it a double coincidence, or quite possibly accept that the designer fashioned them both with the intention to give us the forename of the murdered women in question.

The July 13th 1971 'Monticello' card stated "Near Monticello Shought Victims 21 ...... In The Woods Dies April." So we need to be looking for a woman who was murdered in April, in the woods and near Monticello. On Sunday, April 11th 1971, Kathy Bilek (18) visited Villa Montalvo in Saratoga, having planned to read a paperback book (The Gabriel Hounds) and engage in a spot of bird watching​ in the seclusion of a remote, wooded portion of the park, near a small stream. Her body was found the next day by her father, Charles, while Santa Clara County Sheriff's deputies searched nearby. She had been stabbed 17 times in the back and 32 times in her chest and stomach. Villa Montalvo is situated 9 miles west of the neighborhood of Monticello. The author of the 'Pines' card directed us to a Memorial Park called Donner. In the case of the 'Monticello' card, the author didn't need to direct us to her body, because she wasn't missing - and therefore we have to discover the purpose behind him choosing Monticello. This has to be the clue to the woman's forename, as well as the destination of a Memorial Park, if we are to satisfy the template of the 'Pines' card. 

Fortunately for us, another coincidence exists. Sitting in the Monticello neighborhood is Oak Hill Memorial Park, where one of Zodiac's previous claimed victims is interred. The Zodiac Killer insinuated his involvement in the brutal stabbing of Deborah Gaye Furlong (14) and Kathy Ann Snoozy (15), who were found murdered on August 3rd 1969 in the Bay Area of San Jose. By writing "Aug" on the November 8th 1969 'Dripping Pen' card, he was effectively laying claim to the Furlong and Snoozy murders - and the very reason he chose the location of Monticello on the July 13th 1971 postcard. Not only was Kathy Snoozy buried at Oak Hill Memorial Park, but she shared the same forename as Kathy Bilek. The Zodiac Killer was leading us towards a memorial park and forename in both postcards - Donna and Kathy.

Just like the July 13th 1971 Monticello card, giving us clues and directions to the murder of Kathy Bilek in April, near Monticello in San Jose, California, the March 22nd 1971 Pines card, in similar fashion, may have been designed to direct us to the deposition or burial site of Donna Ann Lass (25), who disappeared from Stateline, Nevada on September 6th 1970 having finished her shift that day at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel. Harvey Hines, a retired detective from Groveland, believed that Donna Lass was likely buried on the Donner Ski Ranch. He stated "After studying the card, I drove to Nordin, located on old Highway 40, north of Lake Tahoe, and found the SIERRA CLUB. I learned the club was not called the Sierra Club. It was named the Claire Tappan Lodge and it was a private club for Sierra Club members only. I believed if I followed the directions on the postcard I would find Donna Lass' grave. I believe she was buried near the Sierra Club and most likely on the Donner Ski Ranch. I would later have the pictures of the Sierra Club developed. Then using a copy of Zodiac's card, I cut out the phrases he had pasted on his card. Using these phrases, I overpasted them on the copy of the Sierra Club picture. It was striking similar to the original card." [see below left].
​   

​A newspaper article stated that "the site depicted on the 'Pines Card' was from an advertisement published last Sunday by several newspapers. It was an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a Boise Cascade Company project at Incline Village, where construction has just begun on the development. While much of the Sierra area is under several feet of snow, Incline Village has only two feet on the ground. Police went to the area to determine if a search is possible".

If we use the directions given by the card from Incline Village, it tells us to "pass Lake Tahoe areas". To pass the areas of Lake Tahoe we have to travel westward, until we reach Clair Tappaan Lodge, "a private club for Sierra Club members only". 

Howard Davis, a contributor to the ZodiacKiller.com message board can pick up the story here: "Incredibly, her [Lass] grave remained hidden until August 1976, when retired Norden postmaster Otto Fredricks is believed to have found it on Donner Summit. He was hiking past the SIERRA CLUB'S Claire Tappan Lodge, near Norden, when he came across the intricately contrived wooden symbols alongside the path: in the center was a triangle around a cross containing 13 stones, and that was surrounded first by a six foot square and then by a circle of wood with a 14 foot diameter". The October 5th 1970 '13 Hole' postcard contained 13 punch holes and a red crucifix.

When they dug near the location of Clair Tappaan Lodge they found a pair of green tinted glasses, similar to a pair believed to have been worn by Donna Lass. It is not known for certain whether these glasses belonged to Donna Lass, or that the configuration was constructed by her murderer. Some believe the stone and wood configuration to be Rosicrucian in design, whereas 'The Foreigner' thought that Harvey Hines had misread the finding and it was a YMCA "Ragger’s Point" creation. Nevertheless, it is curious that "pass Lake Tahoe areas" takes us to the "Sierra Club" members of Clair Tappaan Lodge along Donner Pass Road, where we can "peek through the Pines" at the entrance to the lodge, and find some g(lass)es buried in the ground. The entrance to Clair Tappaan Lodge looks extremely similar to the depiction of the 1974 Christmas card mailed to Mary Pilker, Donna Lass' sister.​ Once inside the grounds we search "around in the snow". This can be interpreted as "a round in the snow" meaning "a circle in the snow". The circle of wood containing the crucifix. The alternative to finding meaning in the phrases pasted on the Pines card, is to believe the author pasted the text for no reason whatsoever. The two communications immediately after the Donna Lass disappearance were the '13 Hole' postcard and the Halloween card, each containing an inference to the number 13. The punch holes in the October 5th 1970 '13 Hole' postcard from the front side, arranged in a 10:3 formation (October 3rd), which could specify when he arranged the wood and stone configuration, meaning look for 13 in the form of a circle. The following Halloween card using 13 eyes in the design, telling us to look for 13. However, it must be stressed, that searching for clues and meaning behind such communications is down to the interpretation of the observer, with the above ideas often finding a resting place in the ever expanding graveyard of Zodiac theories. 

The Monticello card was mailed four months later, by somebody purporting to be the Zodiac Killer, and referencing the murder of Kathy Bilek in San Jose on April 11th 1971.

San Jose is home to the "Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, devoted to Ancient Egypt, located at Rosicrucian Park in the Rose Garden neighborhood of San Jose, California, United States. It was founded by the Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis (AMORC). The Rosicrucian Order continues to support and expand the museum and its educational and scientific activities. The museum holds the largest collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities in the Western United States, and is located next to the Rosicrucian headquarters". Wikipedia. The museum also had a purpose-built planetarium, where a budding Zodiac could add a knowledge of astronomy and the night sky to his search for the afterlife.  

"Rosicrucian Grand Master Julie Scott talks about the ancient Egyptian concept of the afterlife and shows us around the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose California". link.

But what if the murderer of Donna Lass added further directions using the crucifix, triangle, square and circle symbols as clues. Harvey Hines believed Donna Lass "was buried near the Sierra Club and most likely on the Donner Ski Ranch". So, were the symbols somehow related to the Donner Ski Ranch? Had the murderer of Donna Lass occasionally vacationed at Lake Tahoe, using the trails of Donner Ski Ranch? From 1964 to 1968 ski trails were rated on difficulty using a colored triangle, square and circle. Did the designer of the stone and wood configuration place the crucifix within the triangle, square and circle, using the glasses, to signify that Donna Lass was buried on Donner Ski Ranch along one of the trails? If the bottom left of the Pines card is placed over Clair Tappaan Lodge, the punch hole in the top right corner is facing the northeast, exactly where the ski lifts and trails are located. Was this the deduction of Harvey Hines? 

I would have to say that 'The Foreigner' is most likely correct, with the wood and stone configuration likely created by somebody other than the author of the Pines card (or Zodiac), and most probably a Ragger's Point creation. However, this doesn't preclude the Zodiac or an impostor using a pre-existing configuration as a burial site for the glasses. The wood and stone configuration would have been a perfect marker to direct the police towards, using the Pines card phrases from Incline Village.     

The following will again be a little bit of mathematical trickery regarding the 'Halloween', '13 Hole' and 'Pines' cards- placing the number 888 (Jesus) alongside each and every one.  From the 408 cipher split into three lines of 8, the 'near Zodiac' on the 20th line of the 340 forming 888, the three 8's on the '13 Symbol' cipher, coupled with the same code being used to find 444 in the final two ciphers, we will now move on to the final three cryptic cards in the Zodiac repertoire. To understand this presentation, it is important to read two previous articles 'The Bible Code of a Killer' and '340 Cipher-Embedded Symmetry'.  However, it must be stressed that this is not claiming a definitive solve to the Zodiac mystery and must be viewed with a health warning.

​In every correspondence mentioned above, it was claimed the Zodiac was attempting to place his name alongside the name of Jesus, the savior of souls for the afterlife: "All the (people) I have killed will become my slaves. I will not give you my name because you will try to slow down or stop my collecting of slaves for my afterlife." He wouldn't give us his name, but he may have given us Jesus. Here is the next cryptic correspondence with two unusual features, using the identical code employed to find 444 in both the final two canonical ciphers. The Zodiac again places his name alongside Jesus in the form of a messiah complex (also known as the Christ complex or savior complex).
Using the Zodiac code above, it was applied to the '13 Hole' postcard below, giving out the figures 43+120+347+36+342 = 888.
Jesus, the savior of souls, is now firmly alongside the Zodiac Killer once again. You will notice that the number 13 has been converted to one and three. This is done to transfer it into text form (to enter into the Zodiac code), exactly the same technique employed in the two previous ciphers, where the Omega, Taurus and Aries symbols were also converted into text form.
If we had left the figure 13 alone, that line would have totaled 360 (the degrees in a circle). Giving us 13 and 360 (13 punch holes). 

The next correspondence was the 'Halloween' card mailed on October 27th 1970. But this marked a deviation in the Zodiac's thinking. He was now likely trying to simplify things in an effort to push us towards Jesus- Hallelujah.
In the flap of the envelope he writes "sorry no cipher" twice, in the form of a multiplication sign. He could easily have written  "sorry no cipher" once, but evidently wanted to form the multiplication sign as an offering to our savior. If there was no cipher, then there is no code. The only 'cipher-like code' on the 'Halloween' card is the configuration of letters (not dissimilar to the "sorry no cipher" offering). The Zodiac intersected Paradice and Slaves, with four quadrants containing the words By Fire, By Gun, By Rope and By Knife. Was the word By a form of multiplication.
       

Using the path of least resistance we added up the letters in the 'cipher-like code', which totaled 37, and multiplied it by "sorry no cipher", placing it over the cross of Paradice and Slaves, as both formed a similar design. There are 24 letters in the four quadrants, giving us 37 X 24 = 888.
There were 37 letters in the 'cipher-like code' and we needed a number to multiply it by. In this case 24.
The next postcard was the 'Pines card' mailed on March 22nd 1971. If the Zodiac was simplifying matters, then this card would follow the identical technique displayed in the 'Halloween' card.
The 'Pines' card offered a set of 5 phrases.[1] 'Sierra Club'  [2] 'Sought Victim [3] 'Peek through the pines' [4] 'pass Lake Tahoe areas'  [5] 'around in the snow.'
The letters on this card would add up to exactly double the amount on the 'Halloween' card- exactly 74. 
We again needed a number to multiply it by. So let us take a punt on the figure 12 which the Zodiac supplied. 
​74 X 12 = 888 once again.  

But would the old Zodiac code resurface in one final offering on the 'Pines' card front- pushing us in both directions. 
The Zodiac drew our attention to Paul averly=chronicle.
Using the Zodiac code at the top of this page:
PAUL AVERLY = 3162 155522 = 32
CHRONICLE = 365215325 = 32
Thereby giving us PAUL AVERLY=CHRONICLE.

This completes the 888 and 444 sequence through seven cryptic Zodiac communications. But whether it is really there, or just a case of mathematical trickery and wordplay, is something only Zodiac knows.
Maybe the afterlife holds all the answers.

THE BIBLE CODE OF A KILLER

The Zodiac created four ciphers, of which only one has ever been solved and confirmed by overwhelming consensus. 
The third code is simply too short to achieve any meaningful decryption and the 'Button' letter '32 Symbol' code has only three repeating characters, making these two codes, without a key, effectively unbreakable. If we had the key however, then we would be back in business.
​It is perfectly reasonable after the solve by Donald Gene and Bettye June Harden in the August of 1969, to believe that all the remaining ciphers contain a message, after all, what would be the point of them other than a joke on Zodiac's part.
​It is my contention that the remaining three ciphers are all probably linked by religion, and Jesus Christ in particular.
The Zodiac chose a Celtic Cross style moniker, talked of "paradice" and the "afterlife," and placed crucifix style designs in his 'Halloween' and '13 Hole' postcards. You could say the Zodiac Code was the forerunner to the Da Vinci Code.
The key to the Zodiac Code is the previously discussed '13 Symbol' cipher, where the Zodiac splits the alphabet A through M to expose perfect symmetry in the third cipher. This is the template we shall use in the '13 Symbol' and '32 Symbol' ciphers, and in both instances arrive at exactly the same holy number. 
The Zodiac crosshairs can be noted in every cipher or code, so it is imperative we derive a mathematical figure for this moniker. But first we shall present the Zodiac Code that will be used on both ciphers.

The alphabet on the right has been split symmetrically into two halves. A through M was used in the Embedded Symmetry article, in which only the numbers 3, 1 and 5 were ever generated. The number 315 can be generated in several ways using the Zodiac Killer communications, but the simplest way is to take the Zodiac horoscope.
The Zodiac used what appeared to be an upside-down Aries symbol on the April 20th 1970  '13 Symbol' cipher. Many people also considered that the three circled 8's were in fact three circled Taurus symbols. But the reason the Zodiac Killer circled them, was possibly so they could be interpreted as both. Since we are dealing with the Zodiac horoscope, we will take the characters as one Aries and three Taurus symbols.

On the left is the Zodiac horoscope placed into the Zodiac Code (above).
This generates the figure 315 for the Zodiac crosshairs. 
Because we will be using Aries and Taurus in the '13 Symbol' cipher, I will explain how to arrive at the figures in brackets:
ARIES = A+R+I+E+S = 1+5+5+5+6 = 22.  
TAURUS = T+A+U+R+U+S = 7+1+6+5+6+6 =31.
ARIES =22, TAURUS = 31.

Before we move on it is important to mention the following again.
'In Christian numerology, the number 888 represents Jesus, or sometimes more specifically Christ the Redeemer. This representation may be justified either through gematria, by counting the letter values of the Greek transliteration of Jesus' name, or as an opposing value to 666, the number of the beast. Wikipedia.
In English gematria the figure for Jesus is 444'.  
If the Zodiac was creating his own bible code and referencing the rebirth of Christ using the number 8 for infinity, one would hope to find the figure 444 in the '13 Symbol' cipher shown below.  
​
Let us proceed and place the numbers alongside the relevant characters (see below). 
Notice again how the alphabetical characters only produce the figures 3, 1 and 5, as does the figure 315 representing the Zodiac crosshairs. 
The total value of the '13 Symbol' cipher is 444, representing Jesus. 

​We shall now move on to the '32 Symbol' cipher mailed just two months after the previous cipher. It contained only three repeating characters, the letter C, the letter O and the clear triangle, making it impossible to solve without a recognized key.
This led me to believe that these two ciphers were only solvable by some form of mathematical key.
Below I have used the same technique, using the Zodiac Code, representing the letters of the '32 Symbol' cipher by numbers. The Zodiac crosshairs are again attributed the 315 value and the Aries symbol the figure 22 once more. This time however, we have an Omega symbol, so we have to attribute it a figure.
OMEGA = O+M+E+G+A = 2+1+5+7+1 = 16. The six geometric shapes in the '32 Symbol' cipher cannot be attributed a name, and therefore cannot be attributed a value. They have been marked with a red X. 
You can see below, that when the numerical values are added up we arrive at the figure 444 once again.
Zodiac representing the figure 888, and both the remaining ciphers totaling 888. Whether it be 444 or 888, the reference to Jesus or Jesus Christ through the bible code of the Zodiac Killer is certainly possible. 

​The '408' cipher was divided up into three parts and mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle, Vallejo Times-Herald and San Francisco Examiner newspapers, but the final 18 characters of this cipher were unable to be decoded. Many speculated as to whether this was just filler to create three equal parts of 8 lines. Was this the rudimentary beginnings of 888, that he would carry through to his remaining ciphers and the name Zodiac itself? 

340 CIPHER- EMBEDDED SYMMETRY

This is a rehash of earlier articles concerning the 340 cipher and 13 Symbol cipher, regarding their symmetry and correlation to one another. If you are familiar with the 888 theory, then you need go no further.
The 340 cipher was the second cipher mailed on November 8th 1969- the 13 symbol cipher was the third cipher mailed on April 20th 1970, separated by just over five months. The Zodiac would refer to his 340 cipher at the beginning of the April 20th letter, stating: "This is the Zodiac speaking. By the way have you cracked the last cipher I sent you. My name is...."
This could be a simple clue leading into his new cipher, however, the author of the letter is highly unlikely to submit his real name. In addition, it is simply too short a code to be verifiable, and the Zodiac Killer must surely have known this if he had any rudimentary knowledge of code breaking. But with a clue or key affixed to the 13 symbol code, then we may have a chance.
Up to this point in time we only knew the murderer by the pseudonym Zodiac, so let us complete the introduction on the April 20th 1970 letter: "This is the Zodiac speaking. By the way have you cracked the last cipher I sent you. My name is Zodiac."  This however sounds a little flawed, so it is imperative we replace Zodiac with an alternative, something possibly embedded within the name Zodiac itself. 

​The 340 cipher has been entered into every powerful computer known to man with no solution being found, leading many people to believe it has no solution at all, and is in effect total 'gibberish.'  I don't know about the entirety of the 340 cipher, but the final twentieth line of the cipher does contain perfect symmetry in six of the final eight characters. In addition eight of the final nine characters are effectively carried forward from the 340 cipher to the 13 Symbol cipher, linking cipher two and cipher three together. In the 13 Symbol cipher he did refer to "My name is..," so we will look for his pseudonym in the 340 cipher and take this as the clue. 
We already know that six symbols on the twentieth line of the 340 cipher look very similar to his pseudonym Zodiac, but was this unintentional or deliberate. To find this out we shall look at the symmetry of both ciphers.
The 13 symbol cipher from a character standpoint is extremely organized. It starts and ends with three alphabetical characters. The three circled 8's are symmetrically placed in positions 5, 7 and 9. The Zodiac symbol and 'upside down Aries' symbol are four in from either side. Either the Zodiac just happened upon this symmetry, or he designed it for purpose.
Bearing this symmetry in mind, we will look for a symmetrical answer in both the 340 cipher and 13 Symbol cipher, and in addition symmetry between the two.
The Zodiac Killer was undoubtedly an egotist, so it wouldn't be all that surprising if he used his own pseudonym in the clue, and embedded the answer within the name Zodiac. In the following examination I will be using the identical mathematical technique on both the 340 cipher and 13 Symbol cipher, to show perfect symmetry in both instances. It was this egotism that led me to believe the clue resided in the 'near' Zodiac on the twentieth line of the 340 cipher. So using a comparison technique, I placed the proper spelling of Zodiac under the 'near' Zodiac and simply counted the numerical alphabetical difference in the columns. But first let us take a look at the 13 Symbol cipher and note the bottom two lines in the diagram below.
Because of not only the existing symmetry within this cipher, but the fact it was thirteen characters in length, began with an A and ended with an M, along with Zodiac's penchant for word games, it seemed the obvious choice to place the first 13 letters of the alphabet under the cipher. 
A to A = 0, B to E = 3, C to N = 11, F to K = 5, H to M = 5, K to N = 3, A to L = 11. 
It is achieved by staying within the alphabet and counting the numerical distance between the letters. Obviously, when we do not have two alphabetical characters there can be no difference, so a zero is attributed. You could attribute an X, it actually makes no difference to the resulting symmetry.

​Highlighted in red and green the obvious symmetry can be observed. But how likely can this be created by accident. 
By taking the three circled 8's as H's, it can still be seen that only three natural numbers are ever produced - 3, 1 and 5. 
How do we know if this is the technique that Zodiac employed? If we apply this technique to the 'near' Zodiac on the twentieth line of the 340 cipher using the correct spelling of Zodiac and it again produces perfect symmetry, then we have possibly bolstered our case. If, in addition, it produces something significant that relates to the 13 Symbol cipher, does it then become even more compelling? The most obvious choice this time is to place Zodiac underneath the six symbols on the twentieth line, like so:

Using the identical technique we used in the 13 Symbol cipher, we shall again count the numerical difference in the columns.
Z to Z = 0, O to O = 0, D to triangle = 0, I to A = 8, A to I = 8, C to K = 8.
That is three 0's and three 8's, carried forward to the 13 Symbol cipher on April 20th 1970. But that is not all.
Either side of the 'near' Zodiac on the twentieth line of the 340 cipher we have the crosshairs and an 'inverted Aries' in part.  
Both of which are situated on the 13 Symbol cipher, either side of the circled 8's (shown in the red rectangular boxes above).
This means, that effectively eight characters out of the last nine were effectively carried forward from the 340 cipher to the 13 symbol cipher. It could be argued that the last eight characters of the 340 cipher were carried forward, the plus sign (+) at the end of the 340 cipher signifying their addition to the 13 Symbol cipher.
​Zodiac is now represented by the three circled 8's. 'In Christian numerology, the number 888 represents Jesus, or sometimes more specifically Christ the Redeemer. This representation may be justified either through gematria, by counting the letter values of the Greek transliteration of Jesus' name, or as an opposing value to 666, the number of the beast.' Wikipedia. This may be important when we consider the Zodiac's tendency to speak of "paradise" and the "afterlife" in many of his communications, in particular his 408 cipher. He would also cross "paradice" and "slaves" in the form of a crucifix on the Halloween card, as well as pasting a red crucifix on the 13 Hole postcard.  
You can see in the above diagram that the letters K and M are embedded within the three 8's and therefore embedded in the name Zodiac. Were these his initials, and was he elevating himself to divine status? He certainly had the ego for it.

# There are some additional features of interest:
The 408 cipher was divided up into three sections of 8 lines and mailed to three different newspapers.
The final line of the 408 cipher contains an M and reversed K.
The final line of the 340 cipher contains an M and reversed K.
The 13 Symbol cipher contains the letter M and K.
The final character at the end of each of the three communications of the 408 cipher is either an M or reversed K.
The top line of the 32 Symbol cipher mailed on June 26th 1970 contains an M and reversed K.

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The 'Halloween' card was mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on October 27th 1970 inferring a fourteenth victim. On July 26th 1970 the Zodiac Killer mailed the 'Little List' letter claiming thirteen victims. If nurse Donna Ann Lass was a Zodiac victim, then the 'Halloween' card must surely have been referring to the disappearance and likely murder of Donna Lass from the Sahara Tahoe Hotel & Casino on September 6th 1970. But why did it take the Zodiac Killer nearly two months to send this correspondence to the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper? Was it imperative for the killer to somehow tie this possible murder into the Halloween festival - and did the depiction of skeletons, the pumpkin and the phrase "peek a boo you are doomed" provide any clue to the location of Donna Lass' body or burial site.

This by all accounts was a bold and brazen abduction at the end of the young woman's shift at approximately 1:50 am, in a seemingly predetermined crime. If this was a serial offender, such as the Zodiac Killer, then the clues may lie in previous similar unsolved crimes with overlapping traits. The following ideas will be examining this possibility, using the design of the 'Halloween' card and later 'Pines' card mailed on March 22nd 1971, also believed by some to have been crafted by the hand of the Zodiac Killer. 

The choice of a skeleton on this card may have been deliberate, bearing in mind Donna Lass was likely murdered the day of her abduction and had remained undiscovered for nearly two months at this juncture. It is also easy to understand how the card can be interpreted as a skeleton wearing a pumpkin. But what if the depiction is implying something more sinister, in that Donna Lass is buried beneath a pumpkin or pumpkins? This may seem a ridiculous observation, until we consider the second skeleton on the card inner wearing a mask of sorts. Could the killer have intended us to interpret the card differently - such as an eye patch, thereby implying the phrase 'pumpkin patch'? The clue may not be entirely literal, but effectively implying the young woman may have been buried on farmland, which may have grown pumpkins or sold farm produce. This is a real stretch, so we will go further. 
​
Randall Scott Clemons produced an interesting article linking the Zodiac Killer to various golf courses, and suggesting that he may have traveled extensively to murder in certain areas he was familiar with through his pastime. In his first contact with the newspapers on July 31st 1969 the killer stated "This is the murderer of the 2 teenagers last Christmass at Lake Herman + the girl on the 4th of July near the golf course in Vallejo". The murderer of Paul Stine on October 11th 1969 escaped into the Presidio Park adjacent to the Presidio Golf course. The Aetna Springs Golf Course, Napa, was one of the first golf courses west of the Mississippi River and built on the Aetna Springs Resort's property in 1891. It is only 11 miles as the crow flies from the Knoxville Road, bordering Lake Berryessa, the site of Zodiac's third attack on Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard.​

But more crucially, it is less than 5 miles from Pope Valley, the location where the three young women had driven through at around 3:00 pm on September 27th 1969, just before they encountered a strange man who appeared to be following them. Did he have a ball marker on him that day, which came in useful at around 6:30 pm?
​
Deana Hooper's skeletal remains were discovered on March 11th 1975 in an open field at Columbus Parkway and St. John's Mine Road, right next to the Blue Rock Springs Park Golf Course. She was last seen on July 11th 1974 at the Enlisted Men's Club on Mare Island.  Established in 1892, Mare Island Golf Club in Vallejo, California is the oldest golf course west of the Mississippi River. Originally built as a 9-hole course,  its first 30 years included sand greens and dry fairways. The course began near the former Marine Barracks and proceeded south to Lake Rodgers (built in 1876 and named after Rear Admiral Rodgers), then returned to the start. Was the killer somehow connected to the military, and an avid golfer, that inevitably made him familiar with these murder sites?

The 'Pines' card depicted an advertisement for mountain condominiums.
A newspaper article stated that: 'the site depicted on the 'Pines Card' was from an advertisement published last Sunday by several newspapers. It was an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a Boise Cascade Company project at Incline Village, where construction has just begun on the development. While much of the Sierra area is under several feet of snow, Incline Village has only two feet on the ground. Police went to the area to determine if a search is possible'.
Many observers toyed with the idea that Donna Lass may have been buried by the punch hole in the card - but surely that would have been too simple a clue by the Zodiac Killer. In another stretch of the imagination, could the positioning of 'Sierra Club' on the tree, be designed to give the impression of a flagpole? We would then be possibly looking for a burial site east of a Sierra Club golf course - not at Incline Village - but somewhere 'past the Lake Tahoe areas'. Somewhere the killer was familiar with and had used to bury a previous victim. 

​Judith Hakari was a nurse at Sutter Hospital, who disappeared heading back to the Markston Apartments on March 7th 1970. Her body was later discovered by Ponderosa Way in Weimar, forty two miles along Interstate 80.​
'At 11:30 pm. Hakari calls her fiance to tell him she's leaving Sutter Memorial Hospital where she works as a nurse. By 1:30 in the morning, she has still not come home. Her fiance, waiting at her apartment, begins to worry. "He went out to the apartment complex parking lot and discovered her car was parked in the assigned space that she had," Links said. But Judith was nowhere to be seen. She was found one month later, strangled and bludgeoned to death. "Some hikers discovered a body in a shallow grave up in the town of Weimar, in Placer County. And during their investigation they determined that it was Judith Hakari," Links said.' Fox40.com.
​
Both Judith Hakari and Donna Lass were nurses, who disappeared after their shift end, both at night or in the early hours of darkness, and both en route back home. Is it conceivable that the murderer of Judith Hakari is also responsible for the abduction and murder of Donna Lass, and if so, did he bury or conceal her body somewhere he was familiar with and had ultimately escaped detection before - in Weimar. Or somewhere very close?

We could be looking for a location in Placer County near farm land, that may have a connection to pumpkins. There will be a Sierra Club golf course west of the location. It may also be a location that has relevance to parts of the phrases contained within the 'Halloween' card, such as "From your secret pal," "peek a boo you are doomed" and "slaves." And more importantly, somewhere close to where Judith Hakari's body was discovered.

There is such a place in Colfax, Placer County, California. It was named after Schuyler Colfax Jr, known for his opposition to slavery while serving in Congress, and was a founder of the Republican Party. In January 1865, as Speaker of the House, Colfax made the unusual choice to cast a vote for passage of the Thirteenth Amendment. Colfax is located 4.4 miles (as the crow flies) from Ponderosa Way, the burial site of Judith Hakari.

The Bierwagen's Donner Trail Fruit and Farm Market near Chicago Park, is situated only 7 miles east of the Alta Sierra Country Club and golf course. Secret Town is 7 miles from Colfax and 14 miles from Ponderosa Way.
​
The residence of Judith Hakari and the area her body was discovered, not only were situated alongside Interstate 80, but Ponderosa Way is only 2 miles or 5 minutes from Interstate 80, and the Markston Apartments only 4 miles or 8 minutes from Interstate 80.  Interstate 80 is bisected by Colfax and runs from the Markston Apartments, where Judith Hakari lived, to Truckee, ​California on the north side of Lake Tahoe. Ponderosa Way (as the crow flies) is 38 miles from the Markston Apartments and 46 miles from Truckee. Was the same killer responsible for the murder of both women, and prepared to create a preconceived buffer zone to each burial site? A familiar 'dumping ground' similar to that employed by the likes of the Green River and Gilgo Beach Killer.
​​
Finally, we have a lonely lane in the heart of 'pine country,' where you can "peek through the pines" into "Peek A Boo" lane, just 2 miles (as the crow flies) from Ponderosa Way. But would you be doomed?   

In a previous article it was shown how the Zodiac Killer began mailing his later correspondence further afield, beginning on March 13th 1971, when the Zodiac Killer mailed the 'Los Angeles' letter from Pleasanton, Alameda County. This was followed by the 1974 letters, including the 'Citizen Card', again mailed from Alameda County, along with the 'Red Phantom' letter, postmarked San Rafael, Marin County on July 8th 1974. All had Interstate 580 in common, suggesting that the Zodiac Killer may have been mailing his letters to and from particular locations, that tied in with the military bases of Alameda Naval Air Station and Naval Auxiliary Field Crows Landing, the latter of which is situated only 24 miles from the intersection of Highway 132 and Interstate 5, the area where Kathleen Johns was abducted on March 22nd 1970. The connection we were trying to formulate was a military angle, the killer's reasons for being at specific locations at particular times and murders that took place close by to certain major travel routes. The killer, if murdering on the fly, needs ease of access and egress if at all possible, especially when you have avoided near capture, as experienced on October 11th 1969. To catch up on the previous article visit  http://www.zodiacciphers.com/zodiac-news/en-route-to-san-francisco​   

The Zodiac Killer appeared to cease his murderous rampage by 1970, yet there were four murders, one abduction and a missing woman (likely murdered), all along one particular route, that of Interstate 5 and Interstate 80, that directly spans South Bird Road, the area of Kathleen Johns abduction, to the area where Donna Lass went missing from Stateline, Nevada on September 6th 1970, having finished her shift that day at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel. There were three murders in Sacramento.
Judith Hakari was a nurse at Sutter Hospital, who disappeared heading back to the Markston Apartments on March 7th 1970. Her body was later discovered by Ponderosa Way in Weimar, forty two miles along Interstate 80.  
Nancy Bennallack was murdered on October 25th 1970 in her apartment, just a stone's throw from where Judith Hakari lived, near Glendale Lane.
Carol Beth Hilburn was murdered on November 14th 1970, last seen on Del Paso Boulevard and found on Ascot and 4th Street.  These two areas are bisected  by Interstate 80.
Sandwiched in between these murders were the two abductions of Donna Lass and Kathleen Johns.
If we look at the relevant areas off Interstate 5 and Interstate 80, then we notice certain key features.
The site of Kathleen Johns abduction and where her vehicle was discovered burnt out is only 1 mile or 2 minutes traveling time from Interstate 5. The residence of Judith Hakari and the area her body was discovered, not only were situated alongside Interstate 80, but Ponderosa Way is only 2 miles or 5 minutes from Interstate 80, and the Markston Apartments only 4 miles or 8 minutes from Interstate 80.  Regarding Carol Beth Hilburn, Del Paso Boulevard is only 2.2 miles or 5 minutes traveling time to Interstate 80, and Ascot and 4th Street only 3 miles or 7 minutes from Interstate 80.
Interstate 80 continues on to Lake Tahoe, near the area where Donna Lass went missing on September 6th 1970.
Six and a half months after her disappearance, the Pines card was mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle, purportedly from the Zodiac Killer. The search for Donna Lass was badly affected by the inclement weather in the months after her disappearance, highlighted by Police Chief Ray Lauritzen from the outset "We don't know where we're going to begin. There's a four or five foot pack of snow out there and it's still snowing heavily." 
The Pines Card made reference to the snow, but in a sinister way inferred Donna Lass may be buried under it, hence the phrase 'around in the snow' being placed at ground level and pasted upside down. In a newspaper article it stated the site depicted on the Pines Card was from an advertisement published the previous Sunday by several newspapers. It was an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a project at Incline Village, near Clair Tappaan Lodge, Norden, California, the address of which happens to be 19940 Donner Pass Road. Whether this name and that of the missing woman is a coincidence is unknown. But again, Clair Tappaan Lodge is situated right alongside Interstate 80, only 2.3 miles or 4 minutes by car, suggesting somebody traveling this route would likely have been familiar with this area and may well, as the 'Pines Card' suggested, held clues to a burial site.
On December 27th 1974, a Christmas card was mailed to Mary Pilker, Donna Lass' sister, portraying trees covered in snow. Once opened it revealed a message that was part of the card itself  - 'Holiday Greetings and Best Wishes for a Happy New Year', followed by the handwriting "Best Wishes, St Donna & Guardian of the Pines."    

Here is the card and here is the street view in winter from Donner Pass Road, outside Clair Tappaan Lodge. 
On the 'Pines Card' mailed on March 22nd 1971, text on the card read;  [1] 'Sierra Club'  [2] 'Sought Victim 12'  [3] 'Peek through the pines'  [4] 'pass Lake Tahoe areas'  [5] 'around in the snow' (pasted upside down). 
If we were reading hidden clues from this correspondence and searching for a possible burial site, then we have to follow it's directions from the last sighting  of Donna Lass, at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel and Casino, and head towards the Clair Tappaan Lodge and the Sierra Club. 
California State Route 89 skirts the western shores of Lake Tahoe towards Truckee, California and passes many 'Lake Tahoe Areas'  en route. It finally joins Interstate 80 only 1.5 miles or 3 minutes from Donner Memorial State Park, in memory of the ill fated Donner Party.
Again, whether this was Zodiac's intention to direct us to a 'Donner Memorial', using a play on words, is sheer speculation.
But this area and the site of Clair Tappaan Lodge would certainly lend weight to the phrase 'Peek through the pines', as the lodge is literally yards from Donner Pass Road. 
This brings us to the disappearance and ultimate murder of Phyllis O'Brien Carson on October 27th 1970, a significant Zodiac date, that of the Halloween Card.
Phyllis O'Brien Carson (32). was a young mother of four children, last seen after a night out at the Francis Truck Stop, French Camp, San Joaquin County, California. French Camp is a small community situated approximately a ten minute drive south of the town of Stockton CA and 15 minutes north of Manteca CA. Since the construction of California State Route 120, Manteca had become a popular choice for workers from the main towns and cities, along with the Bay Area, as rising house prices forced people to search for cheaper alternatives. Interstate 5 and State Route 99 are integral commuter routes through California and the I-5 is the main highway on the west coast of America, with links to San Diego, Los Angeles and Sacramento. San Francisco lies 80 miles and a one hour twenty minutes drive due west from French Camp.
Phyllis had visited the popular bar, along with her brother and sister on October 27th 1970 and later on during the evening placed a phone call to her home residence to check on her children, stating she was to receive a lift home from a friend. Sadly for Phyllis O'Brien Carson and her family, her journey home was never realized. She had vanished without a trace, that is until family members received the heartbreaking news, just over three weeks later, on November 21st 1970, that her body had been discovered laying down an embankment, near to Yettner Road, only five miles from the family residence. 
The cause of death and perpetrator remains unknown, but foul play was certain, as her body was partially clothed, apparently thrown from a vehicle, however robbery was likely ruled out, as her belongings were untouched. Nobody from the bar has ever come forward to this day with a name of the mystery friend that Phyllis was supposed to have left with that night. 

Interstate 5 bisects French Camp and Yettner Road, and it can be seen here on Google Maps, how close both locations are to the main thoroughfare. Both less than half a mile. Almost as though the killer in all the above circumstances is simply passing by these areas, via a main highway, he has traveled many times, possibly as a result of his profession.
The Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns, whether or not this has a Zodiac connection, provides the closest link, in that the perpetrator of this crime chose
to subject his victim to what appeared to be an aimless drive around the countryside of Tracy, CA, after which she escaped to a nearby field. Where the abductor was ultimately heading may never be known, but Tracy CA, San Joaquin County is a mere 15 to 20 minute drive from Yettner Road and only 15 miles due west from Manteca CA, so a familiarity with the area remains plausible. This now takes us back to the military connection.
Running right by NASA Crows Landing is Interstate 5, which then intersects with Highway 132 only 24 miles north. A journey of 22 minutes by car. In fact, Interstate 5 joins Highway 132, the route Kathleen Johns fatefully took that night, only 1.3 miles shy of where she was abducted and ultimately where her car was found burnt out, near Bird Road.
'McClellan Air Force Base (1935–2001) is a former United States Air Force base located in the North Highlands area of Sacramento County, 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Sacramento, California. 
NAS Fallon in Nevada was originally built in 1942 as part of a defensive network to repel a feared Japanese invasion of the west coast. It was soon taken over by the Navy for training use and has been used as such ever since with the exception of the period of 1946 to 1951, during which it was used by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. During the years prior to 1972, the base was known as Naval Auxiliary Air Station and was heavily used during the Vietnam War by various squadrons that rotated through the base before deploying to carriers headed for Vietnam.' Taken from Wikipedia.
These military connections run from Patterson in Stanislaus County to the east of Lake Tahoe.
NAS Fallon is located just south of Interstate 80.
If the Zodiac was responsible for the Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns and the disappearance of Donna Lass, are these subtle hints enough to convince us, to him as the responsible. These two areas span 160 miles. The question being, did the Zodiac Killer travel from the Bay Area (if he lived there), to simply commit his crimes and return, or was he likely stationed at any one of these military bases that punctuated Interstate 5 and Interstate 80. His profession may have involved him traveling between these bases, either as a member of the military, a supplier to the military or an independent contractor, nevertheless a profession that created perpetual mobility throughout areas of California.
Interstate 80 and Interstate 5 may have played a role to certain serial killers, but was the Zodiac Killer one of them.    

Donna Ann Lass (25), born on November 3rd 1944 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was the youngest of eight children who spent her formative years in Beresford, attending Beresford High School and eventually graduating as a registered nurse in 1965. She worked as a private nurse prior to traveling to San Francisco and setting up residence in Balboa Street, before commencing her duties as a Staff Nurse at the Letterman General Hospital in the Presidio. However, her employment at the Letterman General Hospital was short lived, spanning February 1970 to May 1970, before she took a job at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel and Casino on June 6th 1970. She initially moved in with a couple, Larry and Ann Lowe, before renting her own apartment at 3893 Pioneer Trail at the beginning of September. Six days later she would go missing.
​
The connection of Lawrence Kane to Donna Lass, claimed by retired law enforcement officer Harvey Hines, we are familiar with. Lawrence Kane, it was claimed, lived at 217 Eddy Street at the time of the Paul Stine murder. This location is less than a quarter of a mile from the Mason and Geary intersection, the presumed pick up point of Zodiac on October 11th 1969. Donna Lass moved to Lake Tahoe in June 1970, as did Lawrence Kane, with both ending up working at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel. However, this is not about Lawrence Kane, it is about the connection between Donna Lass and the hotly disputed 'Pines' card mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on March 22nd 1971, the first anniversary of the Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns.
​ 
This card is regarded a hoax by many Zodiac investigators, particularly puzzling, because it states on the card in pasted lettering "Sought victim 12". This tally of likely only eleven victims and searching for a 12th, is totally out of sync with the rest of Zodiac's correspondence. He had already claimed 12 victims as far back as June 26th 1970 when the 'Button' letter was mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle, along with 13 victims, ranging to 17+ victims, by the time the 'Los Angeles' letter arrived on March 13th 1971. Then nine days later the 'Pines' card surfaces, searching for 12 victims. The problem we have, is that even a half-decent hoaxer, who knew only the bare minimum about the case, is unlikely to have bypassed at least five pieces of correspondence and the multitude of newspaper articles. This person would have to be the worst hoaxer this side of Lake Tahoe, unless of course, it was the killer and the "sought victim 12" had particular significance. The word 'sought' may be suggestive of a killer that had previously targeted Donna Lass at an earlier time.

The question is, was Donna Lass targeted specifically by somebody with a grievance, or by a male who had been rejected or "brushed off", as the Confession letter might say? She did after all go missing from her place of work.
The date and content of the 'Pines' card may indicate this very notion. If we look at the Zodiac timeline and slot this card in where it should belong, it therefore has to come after 11 victims and before 12. ​The '13 Symbol' cipher or 'My Name is' cipher was mailed on April 20th 1970 claiming 10 victims, followed by the 'Button' letter on June 26th 1970 claiming 12 victims. Assuming the Pines card was not a mistake by a forger and actually crafted by the Zodiac Killer, it is logical that its meaning must be referring to the time period between April 20th 1970 and June 26th 1970, before victim 12 was confirmed. A newspaper article after the disappearance of Donna Lass stated that "the site depicted on the 'Pines Card' was from an advertisement published last Sunday by several newspapers. It was an artist's rendition of houses among the trees at a Boise Cascade Company project at Incline Village, where construction has just begun on the development. While much of the Sierra area is under several feet of snow, Incline Village has only two feet on the ground. Police went to the area to determine if a search is possible". ​Chief Lauritzen added "There's no point to a search at this time. It's unlikely a victim would be uncovered before spring." So its clear that this particular postcard was not designed prior to September 6th 1970, but sometime in the March of 1971. 
​
Donna Lass' date of employment by the Sahara Tahoe Hotel and Casino fell in between the dates of April 20th 1970 and June 26th 1970 - she started work on June 6th 1970. The Zodiac Killer may have been targeting Donna Lass when she announced her forthcoming plans to move to South Lake Tahoe. Was he connected to the Letterman General Hospital - the direction he may have been heading after the murder of Paul Stine on October 11th 1969? Was he rejected by Donna Lass as an undesirable suitor, or was it simply time to do his 'thing'? Donna Lass, either by necessity or the lure of a better job, prepares her move to South Lake Tahoe and the Zodiac Killer's plans are thwarted.

If the murderer of Donna Lass is the Zodiac Killer (and this is by no means certain), then there is a connection between San Francisco and South Lake Tahoe. There may also be a connection between "sought victim 12" and the time between April 20th 1970 and June 26th 1970, with respect to the Donna Lass move to Nevada on June 6th 1970, to begin her job at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel. When the Zodiac Killer decided to make good on his intention to abduct and murder Donna Lass, he would eventually travel to South Lake Tahoe to finalize what he began, then mail the 'Pines' card, pasting the words "sought victim 12", possibly suggestive of a killer who had targeted the young woman several months ago when she lived in San Francisco.   

The Zodiac Killer began his series of crimes with the double murder of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen on December 20th 1968, followed by the Blue Rock Springs attack on July 4th 1969, killing Darlene Ferrin and seriously injuring Michael Mageau. The killer confirmed these murders with details provided in three letters he sent to the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner and Vallejo Times Herald on July 31st 1969. His next attack would be in the remote region of Lake Berryessa on Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard and although there appeared to be no reference to this crime in any of his subsequent correspondence, he wasted no time laying claim to the lakeside attack, writing on Bryan Hartnell's car door within minutes of the crime. His final confirmed murder was that of Paul Stine at Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969, only fourteen days after the Lake Berryessa attack and one cannot help thinking his focus had turned quickly after his third attack, straight into the planning phase of the Presidio Heights murder, after all his dramatic costume driven attack and the recollection of surviving witness Bryan Hartnell, had given him all the publicity he could have wished for. Again, after the Presidio Heights murder he wasted no time in contacting the newspapers, writing to the San Francisco Chronicle only two days later. In other words, his first letter immediate of three of the crimes, laid claim to each one of them, with the exception of Lake Berryessa, however he still laid claim to it, in the form of written communication on the car door. Therefore, although questioned as a Zodiac crime, it made perfect sense to analyze his immediate correspondence after the Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns and see if this cryptic letter in any way suggested a link to it.
This letter contained the 13 Symbol Cipher, mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on April 20th 1970, just one month after the Kathleen Johns incident on March 22nd 1970.  

Technically a full moon is really only full for an instant in time. As we approach a full moon it is said to be waxing and as it diminishes it is said to be waning. A Waxing Gibbous denotes 95% illumination approaching a full moon and a Waning Gibbous denotes 95% illumination as we leave the full moon, everything in between can be regarded as varying degrees of a full moon. 
Therefore in the calendar above there is one full moon phase in Aries, before the Zodiac sign of Taurus takes over on April 20th, 21st and 22nd. This may explain the 3 to 1 configuration present on the 13 Symbol Cipher. We now have seven dates of relevance, March 22nd 1970, April 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd, July 24th 1970 and March 22nd 1971, but whether any significance can be attributed, remains questionable. 
The March 22nd 1971 Pines Card may also have strong ties to the Zodiac horoscope signs, in its very wording and ultimately provide us with a further link back to the 13 Symbol Cipher and its three circled symbols once again. SEE HERE.

It has often been speculated upon, that four of the symbols in this cipher may be interpreted as three circled Taurus symbols (shown in red) and one inverted Aries symbol (shown in blue). But how could these four symbols in any way connect to the Kathleen Johns abduction.
The following observation will not claim a solution, just a line of thought to be considered for discussion.
In this letter the Zodiac Killer claimed to have 'killed ten people to date'. Had he murdered Kathleen Johns and her infant daughter Jennifer, this total would have read 12.
Kathleen Johns was abducted on March 22nd 1970 and on the following anniversary of this crime, March 22nd 1971, the Pines Card was received at the San Francisco Chronicle, claiming to have 'Sought victim 12'.
There are four crucial dates at play here. March 22nd, detailed twice above, April 20th 1970, the mailing date of the 13 Symbol Cipher and July 24th 1970, the date of the correspondence the Zodiac Killer mailed, claiming responsibility for the abduction of Kathleen Johns. Bearing in mind the Zodiac horoscope signs, possibly present on the 13 Symbol Cipher, were the dates on the Zodiac calendar in any way relevant to these events.
Firstly April 20th, the 13 Symbol Cipher date is the beginning of Taurus on the Zodiac calendar. The abduction of Kathleen Johns on March 22nd 1970 is one day after the beginning of Aries on the Zodiac calendar. The Kathleen Johns letter on July 24th 1970 is one day after the beginning of Leo on the Zodiac calendar. Three horoscope dates, all within one day of the Zodiac Killer timeline. Four, if you include the Pines Card anniversary.       
The 13 Symbol Cipher was sent in the April of 1970 to the San Francisco Chronicle, so let us look at at the Moon phases and lunar calendar of San Francisco from the relevant time period. But before we do, it is important to note that the Zodiac Killer circled his three Taurus symbols and the symbol for a full moon, is basically a white circle. 

The Pines Card sent to the San Francisco Chronicle March 22nd 1971 has courted controversy on its validity as Zodiac correspondence, but it just may be the most important of them all. On first viewing it appears just a jumble of pasted words scattered randomly, but it is far from that, and along with the address side may hold the key to the entire story. It was possibly the Zodiac Killer's final attempt to push us in the right direction, to reveal the mind behind his murders and show us that religion, mathematics and coding were integral to virtually every letter, card and cipher he mailed to authorities.
Three correspondences, that of the 13 Hole Postcard mailed on October 5th 1970, the Halloween Card mailed on October 27th 1970 and the Pines Card mailed on March 22nd 1971 were as close as he would ever go to revealing the man behind the mask.
This article will cover old ground but expand slightly on the 'Hidden Message in the Pines' posting, but comes with a warning- if you are not a proponent of mathematics being used as a tool in unlocking the mystery of the Zodiac material, then it is wise that you progress no further. However, here, no mind bending techniques will be used. We will place the wording into the code and what falls out is the answer- nothing more.
The first thing to do is take everything back to basics- why did the Zodiac Killer choose the name Zodiac. When most people think of Zodiac the horoscopes come to mind- this is the simplest answer and this is maybe what our killer did. He used his own moniker of the crossed circle in all of his ciphers, so if he was to create a numeric answer to each card or cipher, he had to first apply a numeric value to his crosshairs. This was revealed in the Pines Card, but can be found in numerous other places.
The thought is, the Zodiac Killer developed his own key based around the 13 Symbol Cipher, although where it came from is not important. What is important though, is that it works in the 13 Symbol Cipher, the Button Letter 32 Symbol Cipher, the 13 Hole Postcard, the Halloween Card and the Pines Card, although the story may have began with the 340 Cipher.
So let's start with the Pines Card using the gematric code key the Zodiac chose.  

Notice in the Pines Card below we have placed the phrases into the code on the right to achieve a total of 315. This figure is also achieved by placing the entire Zodiac horoscope into the code. The 12 signs of the Zodiac are Aquarius (34), Capricorn (28), Sagittarius (56), Scorpio (26), Libra (15), Virgo (24), Leo (9), Cancer (18), Gemini (24), Taurus (31), Aries (22) and Pisces (28). These figures also add up to 315. But there was more. Placing the top row of the gematric code alongside the 13 Symbol Cipher, A through to M, and alphabetically   

counting the difference between each column, only the numbers 3,1 and 5 fall out. If we apply the gematric code directly to the letters A,E,N,K,M,N,A,M on the 13 Symbol Cipher, the figures 1,5,1,3,1,1,1 and 1 appear, again only the numbers 3,1 and 5. See below.
Lawrence Kane became a Zodiac suspect as he had worked at the same hotel as Donna Lass, missing, presumed murdered when she vanished after her nurses shift at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel on September 6th 1970. Strangely KANE is present on the left side of the 13 Symbol Cipher and KANE in the gematric code again only produces the figures 3,1,1,5, ie: the numbers 315 in order.
It was considered that this paste up card may have been indicating a burial site for Donna Lass, in view of the punch hole the author placed in the top right corner.  

However, this would have been too easy and a search of the site proved negative. The Pines Card depicted an advertisement for the Forest Pines condominiums near Clair Tappaan Lodge, Norden, California, located on Sierra Club property. The Clair Tappaan Lodge is exactly 315 degrees on a compass, when the compass is centered over the Sahara Tahoe Hotel, where Donna Lass went missing- so all may not be lost.
The circular punch hole nevertheless, still suggested a location of where Donna Lass may be buried and the author of the Pines Card had flipped the phrase 'around in the snow' 180 degrees, into an upside down position to suggest this.
You will notice that the phrase 'around in the snow' totals 56 in the code, yet when flipped 180 degrees, it reads 95.
This is very interesting because as explained in the 'Hidden Message in the Pines' article, when you place the left corner of the card over Clair Tappaan Lodge, dependent on scale, the punch hole falls over US Highway 95.  
U.S. Route 95 (US 95) is a major U.S. highway traversing the US state of Nevada from north to south, directly through Las Vegas and providing connections to both Carson City (via US 50) and Reno (via Interstate 80). US 95 is cosigned with Interstate 80, for 95 miles between a junction in Churchill County and Winnemucca before heading north into Oregon at McDermitt. (Taken from Wikipedia). View on Google Maps.
Was this the hint of a possible burial site, somewhere close to US Route 95 in Nevada.

This is a direct and fast route away from South Lake Tahoe into relatively barren terrain, heading towards parts of the Humboldt Toiyabe National Forest. View on Google Maps.
The Pines Card punch hole however, could equally fall near or over Pine Mountain situated within the Humboldt Toiyabe National Forest. It would have depended on the dimensions of the map he used and the correct measurements of the Pines Card itself, if indeed this was its purpose at all.
The green region on the map on the left, just to the right of the number 95, contains Paradise Peak. We now have Pine Mountain and Paradise Peak, and a possible source for the phrase 'Peek through the Pines'- but of course this is still highly unlikely.
Is it possible the Zodiac Killer owned or rented a cabin within this region, its remoteness is the perfect hideout- who knows.
If the Zodiac Killer did reside within the region of San Francisco, Vallejo or Benicia areas, then the phrase 'pass lake tahoe areas' from his perspective makes perfect directional sense, to discover any burial site. Your passing of the Lake Tahoe area, on a straight line, heads directly towards the region of Pine 

Mountain and Paradise Peak, seen here on the right. In fact, straight through Clair Tappaan Lodge It would exactly bisect these two landmarks.
So let us go back to our number 315, that is now representative of the Zodiac crosshairs and apply it to the 13 Symbol Cipher, 32 Symbol Cipher and 13 Hole Postcard.
It was suggested through many previous posts that the Zodiac Killer saw himself as some form of savior, delivering his victims to Paradise. In other words he was placing himself alongside Jesus, however uncomfortable a thought this vision may appear. It is not unusual for serial killers to have a religious agenda when they commit murder, albeit not the religion most people have grown up to understand.  
In Christian numerology Jesus is represented by the figure 888 and in English gematria Jesus is represented by the figure 444- so it would be highly improbable that if we used the Zodiac code he created for himself, along with the figure 315, that represented the Zodiac crosshairs, both unsolved ciphers would equal 444, and applied to the 13 Hole Postcard would equal 888. But that is exactly what happens.
The alphabetical characters on any code are directly placed into the gematric code key to give them a value, any symbols are simply converted to text form to give them a value.   

Take a look at the 13 symbol Cipher on the left.
​It was often questioned whether or not the symbols were either three 8's to give us 888 or they were three Taurus symbols. It is entirely plausible the Zodiac Killer circled them so they could be interpreted as either. The three Taurus symbols for example, are applied into the code as follows. 
TAURUS = 7+1+6+5+6+6 =31. But there are three, so 3 X 31 = 93. The whole code totals 444 or JESUS.
This technique is then applied in exactly the same manner to the Button Letter 32 Symbol Cipher (seen below) This time we have an Omega symbol, so again the code is applied.
OMEGA = 2+1+5+7+1 = 16

We can attribute a value to symbols, but not geometric shapes- for example, on the Button Letter cipher we have a triangle, or blacked in triangle, or black triangle, or solid triangle, or dark triangle. The point being- that the six geometric shapes cannot be attributed a specific name, to attribute a value to. So the 6 geometric shapes are only omitted for this reason, but everything that can be attributed a numeric value, has been. When totaled up, this cipher also equals 444.

Two unsolved ciphers totaling 444. And we know 444+444=888. But can we take this any further.
The 13 Hole Postcard conforms to this gematric code also.
When the phrases on the card are applied into the code the sum total of the card equals 888. It can be noticed that it leaves the name Jesus squarely alongside the name Zodiac on the postcard, declaring he was indeed the savior of souls. As with the symbols, the number 1 and 3 has been converted to text to attain a gematric value. This is not done for convenience, it is following the same principle throughout (See below). 
He even placed a red crucifix on the card to point us in the right direction. Also take a careful look at the very measured third line with the number 13 conveniently sandwiched in between- but this time leave the number as 13. The third line would now add up to 217+13+130, which equals 360. There are 360 degrees in a circle and the Zodiac did indeed punch 13 holes into the fabric of this card.

The Halloween Card and Pines Card could possibly have had a strong connection. The Zodiac gave us patterns of words on both. On the Halloween Card he gave us a form of cipher or cryptic message, by placing the words PARADICE and SLAVES in the form of a cross or crucifix.
It was previously noted that it was comprised of 37 letters, with 24 letters in the four quadrants. The Pines Card was comprised of 74 letters, exactly double that of the Halloween Card configuration, but we were left with the number 12 on the Pines Card, which conversely was exactly half of 24. However: 37 X 24 and 74 X 12 both equaled 888 once again.
To view the Halloween Cipher in greater detail click here.
One more curiosity was the envelope or address side of the Halloween Card, in which he misspells Paul Avery to Paul Averly and underlines it. Why did he do this?
The idea that the Zodiac Killer designed his Halloween Card based on the Rota Fortunae or Wheel of Fortune, was inspired after reading a thread on the ZodiacKillerSite forum. The discovery was made by Tahoe27, when she noticed that a comic strip publication bore striking similarities to the October 27th 1970 offering from the northern California killer.
The Red Ryder comic strip was created by Stephen Slesinger and Fred Harman in 1938, and there was one particular publication entitled 'Tim Holt: The Death Wheel' that caught her attention.
The Death Wheel contained the four methods of death, the same as the Zodiac Killer had placed around his cross of Paradice and Slaves- By Gun, By Rope, By Knife and By Fire. Moreover, the word 'By' was styled in near identical fashion. The Death Wheel in its entirety, showing the 12 methods of death, places the four Zodiac methods of murder in exactly the same order as we travel around the wheel, and the use of the wording 'Lady Doom' reminds us of the wording around the knothole of the tree on the Halloween Card, where the Zodiac Killer places the phrase 'Peek-a-boo you are doomed'. Not only that, he designs it in a circular fashion.
Furthermore Fred Harman owned a ranch in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, where a particular style of cattle branding would elevate this finding to the next level, when the branding itself was compared to the strange symbol the Zodiac Killer placed on the Halloween Card envelope and the foot of the card once opened. Apart from the four dots, it is strikingly similar.

But after all is said and done, can we verify that this gematric code has any basis in fact, or could it all be coincidence. The Zodiac Killer yet again gives us the misspelled name of Paul Avery on the address side of the Pines Card, exactly like he did on the Halloween Card. But this time he writes att.Paul averly = Chronicle- meaning attention. Paul Averly = Chronicle.
​ But what does he mean and what is he saying. It is a curious phrase, that is, until you place it in the gematric code once again. It now makes perfect sense, and is just another clue, in a long list of clues the Zodiac Killer was pushing in our direction. 

PAUL AVERLY = 3+1+6+2+1+5+5+5+2+2 = 32
CHRONICLE = 3+6+5+2+1+5+3+2+5 = 32
And 32 does indeed equal 32.
This is why the Pines Card was the most important card of all, it tried to point us towards the number 315, that was integral to all the unsolved ciphers- and the address side was the final stamp of approval.

On the 22nd March 1971, a postcard landed at the offices of the San Francisco Chronicle, that has become widely known as the 'Pines' card. It was this correspondence in particular that caught the eye of police officer Harvey Hines, who after extensive investigative work became utterly convinced Lawrence Kane was the most likely candidate for the five Zodiac murders, committed from December 20th 1968 to October 11th 1969. Although the Zodiac Killer's reign of terror appeared brief, Harvey Hines was convinced that it may have been a lot longer, in that, where Lawrence Kane moved, murder would soon follow. He noticed certain locations and timelines that spiked his interest, placing Lawrence Kane to the forefront of his focus and started nigh on three decades of dedication to unearthing the truth. He provided a intriguing case against his suspect permeated by a solid case history, although it appears that much of it fell on deaf ears as Lawrence Kane was relegated to the fringe of the Zodiac suspect list.   

The murderer of Paul Stine, based on the taxicab meter reading, was believed to have flagged down the taxi in the theater district, near the corner of Mason and Geary Street, an area situated less than a quarter of a mile from the Lawrence Kane residence at 217 Eddy Street. For all these relevant locations, click here for Google Maps. 

may be about to change, due to the persistent work of Zodiac enthusiast Alex Lewis (Welsh Chappie), an avid member of the ZodiacKillerSite forum. 
On Monday April 7th 2014 after multiple Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, he finally received the information he had been searching for. The United States Department of Justice sent him some valuable information regarding his prime suspect Lawrence Kane, including a full and complete arrest sheet, with a lot more besides. (See foot of page for two examples). 
Alex Lewis, as well as contributing to the popular ZodiacKillerSite forum, has dedicated many hours compiling extensive information on his favorite suspect Lawrence Kane. His comprehensive Wordpress site can be viewed here. 
These interesting findings have also generated a discussion thread on the ZodiacKillerSite forum; so to contribute your thoughts please visit the topic here.  htttp://www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=1536.
Harvey Hines remained undeterred, when many others had given up hope, and even though the search for Donna Lass has hit many dead ends in the intervening years, the hope that was held by Harvey Hines still lives on.   

Much controversy has surrounded the Pines Card since it was mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on March 22nd 1971, received exactly one year after the abduction of Kathleen Johns on March 22nd 1970. Kathleen Johns recounted her terrifying ordeal at the hands of the Zodiac Killer, whereby the stranger had disabled her car, tampering with the wheel nuts, in the pretense of offering her his assistance.
The Pines Card has always been controversial, in particular, that it 'sought victim 12', out of sequence with the attributed numbers on other Zodiac correspondence, but here we will show that the apparent random phrases on the card, could very well have contained a hidden message and indeed the number 12 was integral to the structure of the card.
On the card the author added five lines of text, 'Sierra Club', 'around in the snow', 'sought victim 12', 'peek through the pines' and 'pass Lake Tahoe areas'. This array of text has often been linked to Donna Lass, who disappeared after finishing her shift at the Sahara Tahoe Hotel, Nevada on September 6th 1970.
In a previous article it has been demonstrated that the Zodiac suspect Larry Kane can be found in the My Name is...Cipher, using a technique involving English gematria and the seven days of creation. VISIT HERE for explanation.
The Zodiac Killer chose his crossed circle for a reason and uses it throughout his many letters, cards and ciphers. In later cards, such as the 13 Hole Postcard and the Pines Card, he goes one step further, actually punching circles into the fabric of the card, while still including his trademark crossed circle within the design and this is where the thought of pi has originated down the years. Indeed, the Zodiac Killer incorporated the idea of radians into several of his letters.   

Jesus Christ and the astrological Zodiac have many parallels, in fact Jesus, the Sun and the planets can be shown together throughout history. 
The 12 disciples of Jesus Christ (59), after the betrayal, were Matthew (31), James (17), Thomas (23), Bartholomew (37), Philip (24), John (13), Andrew (20), James (17), Simon (15), Peter (25), Judas (21) and Matthias (34). Next we work out the gematric values of the 12 disciples and Christ, using the seven days of creation code above. (eg; Matthias is 1+1+7+7+6+5+1+6=34).
Then we add up the values of all of them, shown in brackets above, to arrive at a grand total of 336.
The 12 signs of the Zodiac are Aquarius (34), Capricorn (28), Sagittarius (56), Scorpio (26), Libra (15), Virgo (24), Leo (9), Cancer (18), Gemini (24), Taurus (31), Aries (22) and Pisces (28). These total up to 315. For the full explanation visit this video on Youtube by Marty Leeds. 
Now lets examine the Pines Card, the wording on the card (excluding the number 12 after 'Sought Victim') and their numerical values in the gematric code above.
SIERRA CLUB = 40
PEEK THROUGH THE PINES = 93
AROUND IN THE SNOW =56
PASS LAKE TAHOE AREAS = 66
SOUGHT VICTIM 12 = 60
The sum of the totals equal 315, exactly the same as the 12 signs of the Zodiac.
This leaves one thing left to do, that is add in the number 12, written in text form as ONE TWO, exactly like the rest of the card. This has a gematric value of 2+1+5+7+4+2 = 21. Now add the 21 to the 315 to arrive at 336 and the twelve disciples of Christ once more.
In another article http://www.zodiacciphers.com/1/post/2014/02/the-name-on-the-13-hole-postcard.html, it is shown the possible reasoning behind the upside down text on the 13 Hole Postcard, in that it may reveal a name.
The Pines Card also contains one line of upside down text. In this instance he pastes the words 'Around in the snow', but is there an explanation for this also.
This card as explained earlier, has primarily been associated with the disappearance of Donna Ann Lass from Stateline, Nevada on September 6th 1970 and the card was possibly a clue to where her body could be discovered. The words 'Around in the snow', placed upside down, had overtones of a likely burial site, so it seemed only logical to examine this phrase as having greater significance and see if we can narrow down a possible area of interest.
The Pines Card depicted an advertisement for the Forest Pines condominiums and the Sierra Club. An excavation took place at what appeared to be a grave site near Clair Tappaan Lodge, Norden, California on Sierra Club property, by Harvey Hines, a law officer who retired from the California Police Department in 1992, along with Zodiac researcher Dave Peterson. The punch hole in the top right of the card in the woods suggested an area of great interest. Upon inspection a circle of logs 16 feet in diameter were discovered, inside this was a square and a circle, along with a 13 stone cross, but after a thorough examination of this site no body was found. But there may be another likely burial site.
The Zodiac Killer possibly believed the logical assumption by authorities and police after receiving the Pines Card, was to enter the Sierra Club site to examine the 'punch hole' area, but being the master of misdirection, the hole in the card was actually pointing away to a second site and once the card was aligned from this 'fake' grave site, the real location point would be unearthed.   
Firstly lets examine 'Around in the snow', using the gematric code above. This phrase adds up to 56, but it is upside down.
If we flip the number 56, we get 95. 

being beyond the area of Stateline, Nevada. 
'Peek through the pines' may suggest a wooded area and all within ease of access off the US Route 95 in a direct route away from the Sahara Tahoe Hotel where Donna Lass was last seen.