An amalgamation of articles: 

Sergeant John Lynch of the Vallejo Police Department received a typewritten card from a "concerned citizen" on August 10th 1969 stating "Dear Sergeant Lynch. I hope the enclosed "key" will prove to be beneficial to you in connection with the cipher letter writer. Working puzzles criptograms and word puzzles is one of my pleasures. Please forgive the absence of my signature or name as I do not wish to have my name in the papers and it could be mentiond by a slip of the tongue. With best wishes. concerned citizen". It also contained a working key to the 408 cipher, which was mailed by the Zodiac Killer in his three "code letters" to the Vallejo Times-Herald, San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco Examiner on July 31st 1969. On October 7th 1969, another concerned citizen, this time describing himself as a "good citizen", mailed another cryptic message to Sergeant John Lynch, stating "On occasion, while thinking of the code letters, the pencil wrote:Go to 56 Beach Street. I get the name Jerry, perhaps he knows people or his name is XXXXXXX". The author by mentioning "code letters" is clearly referring to the trinity of communications mailed on July 31st 1969, to which the August 10th 1969 communication provided a key. Despite both the "concerned citizen" and "good citizen" communications being extremely brief in nature, both utilized the word "name" twice. The author of these two communications can be argued to be the Zodiac Killer, who also mailed the April 20th 1970 letter, teasing us with "my name is". Crucially, the "concerned citizen" card and code key had not been released into the public domain by the arrival of the "good citizen" letter.  

Recently I have been examining the murder of Robert Michael Salem, who was found stabbed in his 745 Stevenson Street, San Francisco apartment on April 19th 1970. The April 20th 1970 Zodiac Killer letter was received at the San Francisco Chronicle the same day the Robert Salem murder was reported in their newspaper. The letter read "This is the Zodiac speaking. By the way have you cracked the last cipher I sent you? My name is", belatedly followed by "I hope you have fun trying to fiygure out who I killed". The Zodiac Killer choose three Christian symbols in his enclosed 13 character code, that mirrored the Christian symbolism written in blood on the apartment wall of Robert Salem. Above the Japanese tatami mat where Robert Salem's body lay, was the drawing of an Egyptian ankh or "crucified man", along with the wording "Satan Saves" and "Zodiac". The murder of Robert Salem and the April 20th 1970 letter so reeked of Christian symbolism, that it was hard to ignore that the two weren't connected, and led me to believe that the wording "Satan Saves" had some biblical meaning with respect to Robert Salem and his homosexual lifestyle. Whether the drawing of the Egyptian ankh or "crucified man" on the wall of Robert Salem were interchangeable in the mind of the killer is unknown, but the San Francisco Chronicle on April 20th 1970 made no mention of the Egyptian ankh - making the appearance of the Christian anchor in Zodiac's 13-Symbol cipher intriguing. Anchor and ankh have the same phonetic root - and when the Zodiac Killer's crude anchor in the code is superimposed over the ankh drawing on Robert Salem's wall - a full and complete Christian anchor is revealed.   .

The ankh (key of life) was commonly held in the hands of ancient Egyptian deities, or being given by them to the pharaoh, to represent their power to sustain life and to revive human souls in the afterlife. The ankh was one of the most common decorative motifs in ancient Egypt and was also used decoratively by neighbouring cultures. Coptic Christians adapted it into the crux ansata, a shape with a circular rather than oval loop (as seen in the image above), and used it as a variant of the Christian cross. The message of "Satan Saves" rather than "Jesus Saves", along with a crucifix style cross, gives the strong impression of a murder with religious connotations, bearing in mind the anti-gay and intolerant Christian attitudes that permeated society in 1970 (and to a lesser extent today). Robert Salem was a gay man, who may have unfortunately attracted somebody with the belief he was a sinner or non-believer - and hence the sarcastic message of "Satan Saves" and the "key of life" being drawn on his stomach. Clearly, the person who drew the symbol and writing, was portraying a message to the viewer (whether a belief sincerely held or not).

The most unusual and notable features inflicted to the body of Robert Salem, were the crucifix style design "drawn" on his stomach and the removal of his left ear. Both of these featured heavily in the crucifixion of Jesus. Simon Peter, a disciple of Jesus, attempted to "save" and protect Jesus from arrest by severing the ear of Malchus, who was a servant of the Jewish High Priest Caiaphas. According to the gospels, Calaphas organized a plot to kill Jesus. The arrest of Jesus was a pivotal event in Christianity recorded in the canonical gospels. It occurred shortly after the Last Supper (during which Jesus gave his final sermon), and immediately after the kiss of Judas, which is traditionally said to have been an act of betrayal since Judas made a deal with the chief priests to arrest Jesus. This event ultimately led, in the Gospel accounts, to the crucifixion of Jesus. Although the right ear of Malchus was severed, as opposed to the left ear of Robert Salem, this was the most viable connection I could find that links the two unusual features discovered by investigators on the body of Robert Salem.​

The immediate murder with a Zodiac connection after the "latent homosexual" suggestion was floated in the San Francisco Chronicle, where the Bay Area murderer's pseudonym was found at the crime scene, was the murder of gay man, Robert Salem on April 15th 1970 in San Francisco. The Zodiac Killer's 13-Symbol cipher is arguably contemporary in nature, with his April 20th 1970 letter being mailed the same day this murder was published in the newspapers. Homosexuality and acceptance has been a continuing struggle for gay activists to this day, but the 1960s and 1970s were arguably more difficult times, with newspaper coverage on this topic less than acceptable. Many religious people were unwilling to accept individual rights, claiming that homosexuality was the mark of the beast, and was an abomination in the eyes of God. The writing in blood on Robert Salem's apartment wall stating "Satan Saves" must have had some meaning to the killer - so was it in any way connected to the sexual preferences of Robert Salem? I couldn't help thinking that the "Satan Saves" element written in blood on the apartment wall had a more important role to play, not only in the fact Robert Salem was homosexual, but in the damage inflicted to his body and the removal of his left ear. So I looked for a bible verse that may have been known to the killer. 

​I also had to be mindful that the bible verse was relevant to perceived "sins of the flesh". In other words, the murderer of Robert Salem had an issue with homosexuality, believing it to be satanic, and wanted to deliver him unto Satan to be saved (see image above). Hence the wording "Satan Saves". 1 Corinthians 5:5 featured Paul, who had commanded the Christians in Corinth to remove from among them a man who was sleeping with his father's wife, a form of sexual immorality that even their own pagan culture condemned. The killer of Robert Salem may have considered his lifestyle the devil's work and a form of sexual immorality, that resulted in "destruction of the flesh" as witnessed by investigators at the crime scene. I also took the "Satan" element from the apartment wall and combined it with the "destruction of the flesh", to create a relevant solution to the 13-Symbol cipher of "Skin A Satanist". Not only did the Zodiac Killer encipher the word "skin" twice in the 148 character cipher in 1971, but it was relevant to the Robert Salem crime scene in April 1970.

Robert Michael Salem was found murdered in his 745 Stevenson Street San Francisco apartment on April 19th 1970, accompanied by the drawing of a religious crux ansata (crucified man) and the words "Satan Saves" scrawled in blood on the wall. This somewhat mirrored the religious characters in the 13 character code mailed by the Zodiac Killer the following day (April 20th 1970), when he posed the question "I hope you have fun trying to fiygure out who I killed". Investigators found no forced entry at Robert Salem's apartment, and little appeared to have been taken from the property, other than possibly some money from an open wallet on a shelf. The crime scene appeared to scream of far more than a simple robbery. This opens up the possibility that Robert Salem was murdered by somebody known to him, or somebody that befriended him with common interests. Robert Salem was a lamp designer, whose products had been exhibited in Japan, England and Russia. His apartment certainly showed an Oriental influence, with a Japanese hurricane lamp hanging from the ceiling, tree trunks prominent in the apartment in the style of Japanese tea houses, and he was discovered murdered wearing Oriental lounging clothes on top of a Japanese tatami mat.

Three months after this crime, the Zodiac Killer mailed the Little List letter on July 26th 1970, paraphrasing two acts from The Mikado, a Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera set in Japan. The first act he paraphrased was entitled A More Humane Mikado, followed by As Some Day It May Happen, in which victims or society offenders must be found, and who would never be missed. His introduction in the communication detailed how he would torture his victims in paradise, stating in one part: "Others I shall skin them alive + let them run around screaming". In the middle of 1971, the Zodiac Killer would again mention the skinning of victims, when he encrypted the following in his 148 character cipher: "If this is not on the front page in a week I will skin 3 little kids and make a suit from the skin", and wrote in accompaniment to the cipher "Next time I will send a patch of human skin". This is why I found the phrase "Skin A Satanist" very interesting, when from a cryptology standpoint, it satisfied the 13 character code on April 20th 1970, arriving the same day the Robert Salem story broke in the San Francisco Chronicle detailing the "Satan Saves" on the apartment wall. Robert Salem was effectively skinned, when his left ear was severed and taken from the crime scene. On January 29th 1974, the Zodiac Killer would again recite a section from The Mikado, using a verse from Tit-Willow. Not only did he paraphrase the Japanese based opera, but he added some Oriental characters at the foot of the letter. One line in this act reminded me of the introduction in the April 20th 1970 (My Name Is letter). It read "Now I feel just as sure as I'm sure that my name Isn't Willow, titwillow, titwillow", 

Robert Salem was a flamboyant character with an interest in the arts, having been the lighting designer for the historic Haslett Warehouse at 680 Beach Street, San Francisco in 1969. Other than the mention of Washington and Maple streets on October 13th 1969, the only other street the Zodiac Killer ever imentioned in his communications (if authentic} was when he mailed a letter to Sergeant John Lynch on October 7th 1969, when he wrote ''Go to 56 Beach Street. I get the name Jerry, perhaps he knows people or his name is XXXXXXX''. So, was the Zodiac Killer in the apartment of Robert Salem in April 1970?​​​

​​Cragle, an excellent Zodiac researcher who contributes to both forums, sent Michael Morford some invaluable information that he knew I would like (and Mike subsequently added some extra findings). It was fantastic news. A letter was possibly mailed by the Zodiac Killer on October 7th 1969, containing the wording ''Go to 56 Beach Street. I get the name Jerry, perhaps he knows people or his name is XXXXXXX'' (and mentioned code letters). This letter can now be inextricably linked to the Concerned Citizen card postmarked August 10th 1969, which gave us a key to the 408 cipher, mailed by the Zodiac Killer within three "code letters" on July 31st 1969. The 56 Beach Street address never existed in 1969, only on street planning maps. Cragle found a Carl John Welz (married to Jerry Hatcher) who were working at 680 Beach Street, San Francisco and living at 2529 Union Street, San Francisco in 1969, He had a Batchelor and Master of Arts, taught in many public and  private schools and was well known in Christian science circles, with a mentioned periodical from him in 1967 (see below).

If this was the "Jerry" a possible Zodiac Killer was referring to, then this is an enormous find, Carl John Welz (and wife) would most likely have been working at 680 Beach Street at the same time as Robert Michael Salem, who was murdered by somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer on April 15th 1970. Throughout 1969, Robert Salem worked as the lighting designer for the historic Haslett Warehouse at 680 Beach Street. Carl John Welz wrote an anti gay article entitled Homosexuality Can Be Healed, so the fact that murdered Robert Salem was a homosexual, with the wording "Satan Saves" and a "crucified man" drawn in blood on his apartment wall, with the pseudonym Zodiac present also, makes this is a significant find. We can now connect the August 10th and October 7th 1969 communications, link the name "Jerry" to the Haslett Warehouse at 680 Beach Street, and to murder victim Robert Salem, who also worked there - and finally - combine the religious overtones from the above article to the apartment wall, and to the Zodiac Killer's 13-Symbol cipher.. 

Cragle, an excellent Zodiac researcher who contributes to both forums, sent Michael Morford some invaluable information that he knew I would like (and Mike subsequently added some extra findings). It was fantastic news. A letter was possibly mailed by the Zodiac Killer on October 7th 1969, containing the wording ''Go to 56 Beach Street. I get the name Jerry, perhaps he knows people or his name is XXXXXXX'' (and mentioned code letters). This letter can now be inextricably linked to the Concerned Citizen card postmarked August 10th 1969, which gave us a key to the 408 cipher, mailed by the Zodiac Killer within three "code letters" on July 31st 1969. The 56 Beach Street address never existed in 1969, only on street planning maps. Cragle found a Carl John Welz (married to Jerry Hatcher) who were working at 680 Beach Street, San Francisco and living at 2529 Union Street, San Francisco in 1969, He had a Batchelor and Master of Arts, taught in many public and  private schools and was well known in Christian science circles, with a mentioned periodical from him in 1967 (see below).

If this was the "Jerry" a possible Zodiac Killer was referring to, then this is an enormous find, Carl John Welz (and wife) would most likely have been working at 680 Beach Street at the same time as Robert Michael Salem, who was murdered by somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer on April 15th 1970. Throughout 1969, Robert Salem worked as the lighting designer for the historic Haslett Warehouse at 680 Beach Street. Carl John Welz wrote an anti gay article entitled Homosexuality Can Be Healed, so the fact that murdered Robert Salem was a homosexual, with the wording "Satan Saves" and a "crucified man" drawn in blood on his apartment wall, with the pseudonym Zodiac present also, makes this is a significant find. We can now connect the August 10th and October 7th 1969 communications, possibly link the name "Jerry" to the Haslett Warehouse at 680 Beach Street and to murder victim Robert Salem, and finally, combine the religious overtones from the article to the apartment wall. 

Thanks to Cragle and Mike.

ASSOCIATED ARTICLES:
ANCHORS AWEIGH
ROBERT SALEM-A ZODIAC MURDER?
A CONTEMPORARY CODE ON APRIL 20TH 1970
THE ZODIAC KILLER-DRIVEN BY DEVIANCY     
A SATANIC MESSAGE IN CODE? 
THE "SKIN MARKINGS" ON ROBERT SALEM 
​DELIVER UNTO SATAN
MURDER THROUGH THEATRE?

Kenneth Mains, cold case detective, private investigator, former undercover FBI operative and best selling author (to name just a few of his credentials), now runs the extremely popular and burgeoning Youtube channel Unsolved No More, currently standing at 58,000 subscribers as of June 22nd 2022. His Youtube channel features an array of different cases, including the Delphi Murders, Sam Sheppard, The Springfield Three, Ted Bundy, The Starved Rock Murders, The Yoghurt Shop Murders, and many more. Most of you may be familiar with Ken Mains, when he partnered with Sal LaBarbera for the five part docudrama entitled The Hunt for the Zodiac Killer in 2017, which featured the Riverside murder of Cheri Jo Bates on October 30th 1966.

Cheri Josephine Bates (18) was brutally murdered in a dirt driveway adjacent to the Riverside City College library annex by a knife-wielding assailant, who has remained unidentified for nearly 56 years. The murder appeared premeditated, with her prized lime green Volkswagen Beetle found disabled about 325 feet from her body, parked just 90 feet east of the library entrance. Ken Mains is about to release another video, re-examining the many facets of this unexplained and intriguing case, in which justice has remained elusive for far too long. To view his latest Youtube video on Cheri Jo Bates (to be released on Thursday, June 23rd 2022) and the many other cases he has delved into, please click here. To visit the website of Detective Kenneth L. Mains, click the image on the left.

​Recently I have been examining the horrific murder of Robert Salem (40), stabbed seven times in his 745 Stevenson Street, San Francisco apartment on April 15th 1970. Robert was a gay man, whose lifestyle may have attracted the attention of the Zodiac Killer or another sick individual, who left many clues at the crime scene to suggest a religious element to the comissmion of this murder. Either that, or the person responsible wanted us to draw this conclusion. The murderer of Robert Salem had written "Satan Saves", "Zodiac", and drawn an Egyptian ankh (or crux ansata/cross surmounted by a loop) in blood on the apartment wall. The same day this story broke in the newspapers, on April 20th 1970, the Zodiac Killer mailed a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle with a short thirteen character code containing a Christian anchor, Celtic cross (a form of Christian cross) and 888 (the number representing Jesus in Christian numerology). Not only did the Christian element span both crime scene and letter, the ear of Robert Salem was also severed and removed from the crime scene by the killer. The murderer had also drawn a crucifix style design on Robert Salem's stomach. 

In a previous article, it was noted that both of these featured heavily in the crucifixion of Jesus. Simon Peter, a disciple of Jesus, attempted to "save" and protect Jesus from arrest by severing the ear of Malchus, who was a servant of the Jewish High Priest Caiaphas. According to the gospels, Calaphas organized a plot to kill Jesus. The arrest of Jesus was a pivotal event in Christianity recorded in the canonical gospels. It occurred shortly after the Last Supper (during which Jesus gave his final sermon), and immediately after the kiss of Judas, which is traditionally said to have been an act of betrayal since Judas made a deal with the chief priests to arrest Jesus. This event ultimately led, in the Gospel accounts, to the crucifixion of Jesus. Although the right ear of Malchus was severed, as opposed to the left ear of Robert Salem, this was the most viable connection I could find that links the two unusual features discovered by investigators on the body of Robert Salem. However, I couldn't help thinking that the "Satan Saves" element written in blood on the apartment wall had a more important role to play, not only in the fact Robert Salem was homosexual, but in the damage inflicted to his body and the removal of his left ear. So I looked for a bible verse that may have been known to the killer.     

I also had to be mindful that the bible verse was relevant to perceived "sins of the flesh". In other words, the murderer of Robert Salem had an issue with homosexuality, believing it to be satanic, and wanted to deliver him unto Satan to be saved (see left image). Hence the wording "Satan Saves".

1 Corinthians 5:5 featured Paul, who had commanded the Christians in Corinth to remove from among them a man who was sleeping with his father's wife, a form of sexual immorality that even their own pagan culture condemned. The killer of Robert Salem may have considered his lifestyle the devil's work and a form of sexual immorality, that resulted in "destruction of the flesh" as witnessed by investigators at the crime scene. 

I also took the "Satan" element from the apartment wall and combined it with the "destruction of the flesh", to create a relevant solution to the 13-Symbol cipher of "Skin A Satanist". Not only did the Zodiac Killer encipher the word "skin" twice in the 148 character cipher in 1971, but it was relevant to the Robert Salem crime scene in April 1970.

ASSOCIATED ARTICLES:
ANCHORS AWEIGH
ROBERT SALEM-A ZODIAC MURDER?
A CONTEMPORARY CODE ON APRIL 20TH 1970
THE ZODIAC KILLER-DRIVEN BY DEVIANCY     
A SATANIC MESSAGE IN CODE? 
THE "SKIN MARKINGS" ON ROBERT SALEM 

Robert Michael Salem was stabbed seven times and murdered in his 745 Stevenson Street, San Francisco apartment on April 15th 1970. His body was discovered by friends from the nearby San Franciscan Hotel on April 19th 1970 when they realized they hadn't seen Robert Salem for several days. Investigators found a gruesome scene, with the blood of Robert Salem having been used to scrawl the words "Satan Saves" and "Zodiac" on the apartment wall, accompanied by a drawing of the ancient Egyptian ankh symbol. The ankh symbol, as detailed in the newspapers, was also "drawn on Salem's stomach". Whether the symbol on Robert Salem's stomach had been carved into his flesh or "drawn" on by a marker pen cannot be ascertained by this wording alone, but clearly this symbol held some significance to the person who perpetrated this murder (or wanted us to believe it did).

The ankh (key of life) was commonly held in the hands of ancient Egyptian deities, or being given by them to the pharaoh, to represent their power to sustain life and to revive human souls in the afterlife. The ankh was one of the most common decorative motifs in ancient Egypt and was also used decoratively by neighbouring cultures. Coptic Christians adapted it into the crux ansata, a shape with a circular rather than oval loop (as seen in the image above), and used it as a variant of the Christian cross. The message of "Satan Saves" rather than "Jesus Saves", along with a crucifix style cross, gives the strong impression of a murder with religious connotations, bearing in mind the anti-gay and intolerant Christian attitudes that permeated society in 1970 (and to a lesser extent today). Robert Salem was a gay man, who may have unfortunately attracted somebody with the belief he was a sinner or non-believer - and hence the sarcastic message of "Satan Saves" and the "key of life" being drawn on his stomach. Clearly, the person who drew the symbol and writing, was portraying a message to the viewer (whether a belief sincerely held or not).

This idea was exacerbated by the Zodiac Killer's use of three circled eights (Jesus in Christian numerology) and the "anchor" symbol  in his April 20th 1970 letter. The word "anchor" has the same phonetic root as the Egyptian "Ankh", and Christians adopted the anchor as a symbol of hope in future existence because the anchor was regarded in ancient times as a symbol of safety. Maybe significant, was the fact the ankh symbol or crux ansata featured twice at the Robert Salem crime scene, which Christians used as a variant for the Christian cross (seen as a representation of the crucifixion of Jesus on a large wooden cross). Bearing in mind the crucifix style design in blood on the wall of Robert Salem, coupled with his unusual injuries, it was important to examine if any correlation between the two existed (no matter how unlikely). 

The most unusual and notable features inflicted to the body of Robert Salem, were the crucifix style design "drawn" on his stomach and the removal of his left ear. Both of these featured heavily in the crucifixion of Jesus. Simon Peter, a disciple of Jesus, attempted to "save" and protect Jesus from arrest by severing the ear of Malchus, who was a servant of the Jewish High Priest Caiaphas. According to the gospels, Calaphas organized a plot to kill Jesus. The arrest of Jesus was a pivotal event in Christianity recorded in the canonical gospels. It occurred shortly after the Last Supper (during which Jesus gave his final sermon), and immediately after the kiss of Judas, which is traditionally said to have been an act of betrayal since Judas made a deal with the chief priests to arrest Jesus. This event ultimately led, in the Gospel accounts, to the crucifixion of Jesus. Although the right ear of Malchus was severed, as opposed to the left ear of Robert Salem, this was the most viable connection I could find that links the two unusual features discovered by investigators on the body of Robert Salem.

ASSOCIATED ARTICLES:
ANCHORS AWEIGH
ROBERT SALEM-A ZODIAC MURDER?
A CONTEMPORARY CODE ON APRIL 20TH 1970
THE ZODIAC KILLER-DRIVEN BY DEVIANCY     
A SATANIC MESSAGE IN CODE? 

Leona Roberts was abducted from her boyfriend's apartment at 749 Tormey Avenue in Rodeo at approximately 6:00pm on December 10th 1969, and her naked body was found on December 28th 1969 by an elderly man collecting driftwood near Bolinas Lagoon. The coroner estimated she had been alive 10 to 14 days after her abduction, with the sheriff's office stating she had been dead about 10 days. This suggests she was murdered (or had died in captivity) sometime between December 18th and December 24th 1969. Authorities said it was impossible the body could have been dumped into the bay on the east side and floated through the Golden Gate Bridge. The man collecting driftwood discovered Leona Roberts body on a beach near Bolinas Lagoon - so the location was possibly the southeastern section of Stinson Beach or Red Rock Beach (which is slightly lower on the map below). However, Red Rock Beach can only be accessed by a very steep trail from Shoreline Highway, making it a very unlikely deposition site in absence of the body being thrown from the clifftop. Stinson Beach has many houses along its shoreline (even in 1969), so it could be argued that somebody disposing of a dead naked woman at this location, would probably have chosen the southeastern edge of Stinson Beach, which was devoid of residences. But why choose this location at all? 

If the killer had traveled westwards to this location and used Shoreline Highway, there are innumerable turnouts, clifftops and wooded areas before you reach Stinson Beach, near Bolinas Lagoon. In fact, there is in excess of 10 miles of winding road before you reach Stinson Beach, where a body could have been secreted quite easily. So why would you pass all these potential dump sites and place Leona Roberts on an open beach, unless you wanted her found and was making a statement? The same argument can be applied to somebody approaching by vehicle on the northern side of Bolinas Lagoon - unless she had been deposited in the water at a different location and the currents carried her to Stinson Beach (or somewhere nearby).  

​If the estimates of her time of death are fairly accurate, then we have a scenario where a woman is kidnapped, kept alive for 8 to 14 days (18th to 24th December), before being found 4 to 10 days later. It is highly unlikely her dead body had been on Stinson Beach, unnoticed for several days. So had it washed up recently, or had the killer dumped the body on the beach shortly before it was found, having stored it for several days?  There are two viable options: either she was deliberately placed on a beach somewhere near Bolinas Lagoon by her killer, or she was thrown into the water at a secondary location and was carried by the currents to the location she was found on December 28th 1969.

Associated articles: A Very Unlikely Zodiac Murder and Did Zodiac Call on January 4th 1970?

Steph 54: On 28 December 1969, a man searching for driftwood on the beach at Bolinas Lagoon in Marin County found the nude body of Leona Roberts. It was later determined that a unique wristwatch was missing from the girl's wrist, but a Napa High School class ring given to her by a neighbor still remained on her finger. The tan dress she wore when last seen, along with two pairs of bell-bottomed pants, a blouse, a black purse and wallet, a key chain with car and house keys were also reported missing. There were marks on the wrists and ankles indicative of binding, but the coroner was unsure whether they occurred before or after death. The cause of death was reported as "due to viral infection of an unidentified species." It was also reported that there was "evidence of choking which could probably be linked to the virus." The coroner estimated that she had been dead 4-7 days (December 21-24) prior to recovery, and he theorized that she had been alive 10-14 days after her abduction. Articles reported the coroner's theory that Leona had been kept bound for a period of time, died as a result of the viral infection, and was disposed of by her abductor(s). Pathological and toxicological tests did not find any drugs or alcohol in her system.

Leona Roberts was abducted on December 10th 1969, in tandem with a communication of pasted words that contained "Zodiac", "Watch" and "Birds Fly South". This communication, eighteen days in advance of her body being discovered, highlighted the word "Watch" in the largest letters, and significant bearing in mind a unique wristwatch was reported missing from the girl's wrist on December 28th 1969. She was also found at Bolinas Lagoon, so the "Birds Fly South" phrase may have some meaning when we consider that Bolinas Lagoon is a major north-south Pacific flyway for migratory birds in America, extending from Alaska to Patagonia. 

​The coroner also noted marks on her wrists and ankles, suggestive of somebody being bound. The two sinister communications on December 10th and 11th - obviously mailed by the same author - were horoscope forecasts, with the second communication possibly a play on words using the name of Leona Roberts. It was entitled  Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo. The fact that this author facilitated the use of forecasts in accompaniment to the word "Leo", when her body took eighteen days to surface, with the coroner estimating her death 10 to 14 days after her abduction, is some forecast. ​

The Zodiac Killer had claimed seven victims on November 9th 1969, but he didn't (assuming it was Zodiac) raise this victim count in the two forecast letters on December 10/11. He also made no change to his victim count in the two Fairfield letters mailed on December 7th and 16th. Yet he did raise his victim count to 8 on December 20th 1969, when he stated "I am afraid I will loose control again and take my nineth & possibly tenth victom". This could imply the Zodiac Killer claimed his eighth victim between December 16th and December 20th 1969 - very close to the estimated time of death of Leona Roberts. The estimation of death with increased time is obviously more difficult to pinpoint, so it's perfectly feasible an error of just one or two days, places her time of death between the period Zodiac's victim count increased to eight. The two forecast letters were never publicly released, making the threatening "Zodiac" phone call to Peggy Trainer (18) on January 4th 1970, who lived behind the apartment where Leona Roberts was abducted, a further uncanny coincidence.   

The Zodiac Killer claimed the Snoozy & Furlong murders in his Dripping Pen card on November 8th 1969, before going on to write a letter to the San Jose Police Department on November 21st 1969, and making a phone call to the San Jose Highway Patrol on December 19th 1969. This was likely done to cement the notion in investigators minds of his involvement in the Snoozy & Furlong murders in San Jose, despite the fact he had no hand in their demise. 

Leona Roberts (16) disappeared from her boyfriend's apartment at 749 Tormey Avenue in Rodeo at around 6:00pm on December 10th 1969. Her disappearance coincided with a pasted communication on the same date from Sacramento, dubbed the Day-By-Day Forecast for Cancer, which contained the pasted word "Zodiac". The following day, on December 11th 1969, a second pasted communication postmarked San Francisco and dubbed the Day-By-Day Forecast for Leo, could have been a play on "Leona" Roberts name and fate, bearing in mind she wasn't murdered for at least 11 to 14 days. Her body was found at Bolinas Lagoon on December 28th 1969.

These two pasted horoscope communications were not publicly released, yet somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer just happened to phone Peggy Trainer (18) and claim she would be his next victim. Peggy Trainer lived directly behind the apartment where Leona Roberts disappeared from.

Therefore, we have two sinister communications on December 10th and 11th containing the pseudonym "Zodiac" and the "Forecast for Leo", along with a potential "Zodiac" phone call to Peggy Trainer on January 4th 1970, who was a neighbor to the apartment where Leona Roberts was last seen alive. Did the person who rang Peggy Trainer claiming to be Zodiac, if different from the author of the December 10/11 communications, just get lucky attaching the pseudonym "Zodiac" close to an abduction site, that coincided with a "Zodiac" communication mailed on Leona Roberts abduction date? Or were the communications and caller the same person, separated by 24 days? 

Thank you to Gavin Fish from True Crime on Youtube for supplying me with this newspaper article from the Contra Costa Times, dated January 7th 1970. 

On October 14th 1969 a letter arrived at the San Francisco Chronicle laying claim to the murder of taxicab driver Paul Stine, in addition to a further ominous threat of "School children make nice targets, I think I shall wipe out a school bus some morning. Just shoot out the front tire + then pick off the kiddies as they come bouncing out". 

​In compliance with the wishes of the San Francisco Police Department, the Chronicle withheld the threat on a school bus when this latest Zodiac letter was published in the newspaper on October 15th 1969. It wasn't until October 17th 1969 that the Chronicle published the threat on a school bus. Therefore, the threat delivered by telephone to Santa Rosa by somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer on October 15th 1969, promising to blow up a school bus, was made before the Zodiac Killer's threat in his letter was ever released in the newspapers. This suggests it was the Zodiac Killer who telephoned the school bus threat in Santa Rosa on October 15th 1969. This is what was reported in the Chronicle on October 21st 1969: "Someone hinting he might be Zodiac has telephoned such a threat in Santa Rosa. The man responsible for the safety of the students who ride the buses is Fred Sowash, the district's transportation director. Since last Wednesday, when he learned of Zodiac's threat, Sowash has been devoting 18 to 20 hours a day to blunt it".  Last Wednesday was October 15th. 

On October 17th 1969, a female school bus driver was traveling southeast towards Yulupa Elementary School in the morning, when she claimed she heard a shot ring out, stating "As I came around this bend I heard a loud shot from the left hand side of the bus. The children heard it too. Now I don't know if anything struck the bus. We can't find anything that struck the bus". Looking at the October 17th 1969 KRON News footage, it appears she may have been traveling along Bennett Valley Road in Santa Rosa, with relatively low density housing dotting the route and the Sanoma Mountains in the distance. This route would have provided the perfect cover for the Zodiac Killer to shoot out the tires of a school bus in relative seclusion. Assuming a shot was fired at the bus and heard by the driver and/or schoolchildren, either he missed, or his intention was merely to create panic on the school bus to ensure the shots were heard and reported - and thus lend credibility to his telephone threat two days earlier. After the shot, the woman driver "hit the foot feed and started going on", realizing there were no other cars in the vicinity she could get the attention of. "So I just kept going fast to the Yulupa School" she added.   

Unfortunately, investigators were skeptical because they could find no evidence of any bullets striking the bus. One would have thought that a Santa Rosa telephone threat from the Zodiac Killer directed at a school bus, followed by a woman driving a school bus in Santa Rosa reporting what she described as "a loud shot", would have stimulated less skepticism  It seemed that Fred Sowash took it seriously, because when he learned of the threat on Wednesday, October 15th 1969, he devoted 18 to 20 hours a day to repel the threat. Yet it appears that no police vehicles were trailing this school bus on October 17th 1969 as it approached Yulupa Elementary School in Santa Rosa, despite the Zodiac threat to shoot out the front tires of a school bus and "pick off the kiddies as they come bouncing out", and the direct threat to Santa Rosa itself.  

On Tuesday, April 21st 1970, the San Francisco Chronicle ran an article entitled The Bloody Satan Murder stating "An autopsy yesterday morning showed Salem was slain sometime last Wednesday", which was April 15th 1970. The introduction to the article highlighted the murder of Robert Michael Salem in his 745 Stevenson Street, San Francisco apartment, describing the "macabre mutilation of the renowned lighting designer" found Sunday evening (April 19th). On Monday, April 20th 1970, the San Francisco Chronicle produced their first article on the murder, stating "A bizarre murder - with the words Satan Saves Zodiac written in blood on the expensively decorated hippie-style pad - was discovered last night at 745 Stevenson Street". The pseudonym "Zodiac" and the drawing of a religious Ankh was also found scrawled in blood on the apartment wall. It is clear, that despite Robert Salem being murdered on April 15th 1970 (or thereabouts), his murder was not discovered until Sunday, April 19th 1970. The story not released publicly until it appeared the following morning in the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper.

If the Zodiac Killer was not the murderer of Robert Salem - and didn't have inside knowledge of the discovery on April 19th - the first time he would have become aware of his pseudonym being found at a murder scene was when he bought his morning newspaper on April 20th 1970. The very same day, a letter arrived at the San Francisco Chronicle stating "PS I hope you have fun trying to fiygure out who I killed" and "I have killed ten people to date". After four months of not writing, was the timing of this letter really a coincidence - falling on the same day his bloody pseudonym was reported on the wall of a murder victim. The Zodiac Killer could easily have just written the victim count once, next to his crosshairs, but specifically added "I have killed ten people to date", suggesting that we should include the month of April into the equation. The Zodiac Killer was seemingly attempting to push us into concluding he was the murderer of Robert Michael Salem. By including a short code of thirteen characters, which included the three number eights (Christ the Redeemer in Christian numerology, and the opposing value of 666, the number of the beast), was the phrase of "I hope you have fun trying to fiygure out who I killed" trying to lead us to "Satan Saves" on the wall of the apartment?                    

What is crucial here, is the timing of this Zodiac communication in relation to the newspaper article reporting the murder of Robert Salem. If the letter was insinuating he was responsible for the 745 Stevenson Street murder, then after reading the San Francisco Chronicle on Monday, April 20th 1970, the Zodiac Killer would have had to access (or buy) his writing paper, envelopes and stamps - create a thirteen character code, recall the Officer Brian McDonnell murder on February 16th 1970, compose the letter and draw his "string of bombs" diagram almost immediately - before mailing the letter in time for it still to be collected, processed and postmarked AM on the morning of Monday, April 20th 1970 (before noon),. Is that a reasonable proposition? If this were the case, it could imply that the 13-Symbol cipher was created with no forethought, was contemporary in nature and possibly related to the murder of Robert Salem (hence the numbers).

The alternative could be that the April 20th 1970 letter was created in advance of the San Francisco Chronicle article reporting the murder of Robert Salem. This could mean that the Zodiac Killer knew of the murder prior to the details being released in the newspaper, because he was the murderer of Robert Salem at 745 Stevenson Street. It just depends on what credence you place on the timing of this letter and the emphasis you place on "I have killed ten people to date" to mean "I have killed ten people to April 20th 1970", thereby highlighting the importance of April to the victim count.

The following are a few extracts from the newspapers regarding the murder of Anthony Vincent Bruno on November 2nd 1975.

According to Police Captain George Stephenson, Bruno and his girlfriend (16 years) had been parked on Monte Cresta Drive, above Barclay Way in an isolated area of western hills when a man opened the driver's side door and apparently without saying anything fired the shotgun. The girl, who was not identified by police, pushed Bruno's body aside and drove the car to her home from where police were notified. She described the assailant as white, 5 feet 5 inches tall, 140 pounds and wearing an Army green parka with hood, according to police. Stephenson said also that a late model brown pick-up truck, possibly a Dodge or Chevrolet, had been seen in the area at about the time of the shooting. The killer then ran south on Monte Cresta from the dark hillside area, past a streetlight 50 yards away, and then possibly to a late model Dodge or Chevrolet pick-up truck.

Belmont police today are attempting to find a man who shotgunned a 17-year-old Carlmont High School student to death in a parked car early Sunday morning. The youth, Anthony Vincent Bruno of 213 Bayview Drive, San Carlos, died instantly, his body sprawled on the seat of the parked car beside his terrified 16-year-old girlfriend. The killer then turned, dropped the sawed-off stock of his weapon on the ground, perhaps by accident, and fled. It was disclosed Wednesday that about an hour and a half before the brutal slaying, a man was seen struggling to drag a box about two feet long and 18 inches wide up a steep rise about 100 feet from the slaying site. A rod, or perhaps a rope, protruded from the box, according to police, and the dragging was being done by a man in mechanic's overalls with longish, dark brown hair. Stephenson also confirmed that police are searching for the driver of a maroon pick-up truck, equipped with blackwall tires and white wheels; a vehicle which they have information to believe may have approached the parked couple 15 minutes before the slaying, stopped a distance away, made a u-turn, and apparently drove off. The girl gave a follow up description "She saw a face but couldn't identify him. She couldn't see whether he was black or white, or anything other than he was 5'5", 140 pounds and wearing a green army-type parka". One has to consider that under the circumstances, this description may be less than reliable.  

"We've never had a case like this before. This is the bloodiest, most brutal killing I've ever seen", Belmont Police Chief William R. Singer said as he surveyed the scene of Belmont's first potential murder case in over two years. "It could be another Zodiac", he added.  Wednesday afternoon, Juvenile Division Detective Gary Sickman drove this reporter to the scene of the slaying and replayed what police have linked together about it so far. "This is a little-known lovers' lane", Sickman said. "Many of the kids I've talked with at Carlmont were unaware of it." Sickman drove the patrol car down a narrow dirt road connecting with Monte Cresta Drive; a chuckhole-pocked stretch traversing a ridge high above Belmont Canyon. At the end of the road, a half-mile from the slaying site, a teenaged couple embraced in a parked car. Sickman checked their identification and jotted their names in his notebook after giving them a little fatherly advice.

The image on the right shows Belmont Police Chief William Singer and Captain George Stephenson examining the scene of the crime. To visit the location, click the image to enter Google maps.  

This crime has similarities to the two attacks at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs, particularly the latter (highlighted above in blue). The couple in this instance were 16 and 17 years of age just like Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday, attacked on what was described as a lovers' lane area. The killer, without uttering a word, fired into the vehicle in similar fashion to the shooting at Blue Rock Springs, this time in the early morning hours of Sunday, November 2nd 1975. The assailant at Monte Cresta Drive may have driven up to the vehicle of the young couple just prior to the murder, driving away and returning a few minutes later, before unleashing his deadly assault. Had the gun not broke apart, we could again have been looking at a repeat of December 20th 1968.

The following day, on November 3rd 1975, it was reported by KGO-TV that a possible Zodiac letter was discovered near to the crime scene in a phone booth. Michael Morford, a researcher at the Zodiac Killer Site forum, also remembered a cassette tape accompanying the letter. The attack happened early Sunday morning, with the newspapers carrying the story on Monday, November 3rd 1975, so when the letter (and possibly tape) were placed in the phone booth is an important factor. If the letter was placed there in the minutes after the crime (or Sunday night) and not discovered until Monday morning, the greater the possibility that the letter was written by the murderer of Anthony Vincent Bruno, who hadn't read or heard any reporting of the crime.

The reporting in the San Mateo Times of a letter alleged to have been written by the Zodiac Killer appears to carry weight, when you consider the wording of Chief William R. Singer, who stated "It could be another Zodiac". If this letter existed, then it is fairly obvious that law enforcement and Chief William R. Singer would have been aware of it.

There are three main possibilities regarding the letter: [1] Somebody read or heard the details of the crime, noted the similarities to the Zodiac attacks, and decided to hoax a letter. [2] The person who murdered Anthony Vincent Bruno prepared a Zodiac-style letter to shift the emphasis away from the fact it was personal attack. [3] The person who committed the murder and wrote the letter was the Zodiac Killer, however unlikely this option may seem. The Zodiac Killer hadn't conclusively been linked to a murder for six years at this point, and hadn't written a confirmed letter for well over a year, which undoubtedly weakens the intent of a person attempting to shift the blame onto the Zodiac Killer. The last widely accepted letter from the Zodiac Killer was the Exorcist letter mailed on January 29th 1974, probably mailed from San Mateo County. If this was "truly" a Zodiac letter, it too would have a San Mateo connection.

Two and a half years later, a cryptic letter was mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle on July 19th 1978, in what can only be described as unintelligent ramblings. With respect to the 1975 letter (and possibly cassette tape) placed in the phone booth near the crime scene, a certain section of text in the July 19th 1978 was of particular interest. It may have no connection whatsoever to the Anthony Vincent Bruno murder, but read "I have my real name on a small metallic tape. You see, while you have it in your possession, I want you to know it belongs to me and you think I may have left it accidentally".  Was this "small metallic tape", a ferric cassette tape, which was deliberately placed in the phone booth and was now in the possession of law enforcement? The murder of Anthony Vincent Bruno in San Mateo on November 2nd 1975 is a difficult crime to connect to the Bay Area murders of the Zodiac Killer without access to this letter (and tape), but the broken stock of the shotgun found ten feet from the murder scene could contain valuable evidence if stored correctly.

Thanks to Zodiac Killer Site forum.

One would presume the only person who knew that Leona Roberts wasn't going to be killed immediately after being abducted was the killer, which is why the two "forecast" letters on December 10th 1969 and December 11th 1969 are extremely interesting. The two pasted horoscope communications entitled Day-By-Day Forecast For Cancer and Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo, bearing in mind the latter could easily be interpreted as Day-By-Day Forecast For Leona Roberts, is extremely perintinent when we consider the timing of the communications and her abduction. The December 10th communication also came with the pasted pseudonym of "ZODIAC" emblazoned across its face. The fact that these communications were a forecast (a prediction of what will happen), coupled with a Zodiac horoscope and the distinct possibility that "Leo" was chosen for purpose, then the discovery of her body eighteen days later at Bolinas Lagoon in Marin County, is rather curious.

The coroner concluded that she had likely been dead "4 to 7 days prior to recovery, and he theorized that she had been alive 10-14 days after her abduction". She was abducted on Wednesday December 10th 1969 and found at Bolinas Lagoon on December 28th 1969, so that places her murder between December 20th 1969 and December 24th 1969, allowing for a small margin of error. The longer between death and discovery, the more difficult it is to make an accurate determination. 

The Zodiac Killer mailed the Fairfield letter on December 16th 1969, but he made no update to his running total of seven victims. In this communication he added a supplemental drawing of a "Bleeding Knife" with seven drops of blood, possibly fashioned to incorporate the two extra victims he was claiming, that of Kathie Snoozy and Debra Furlong murdered in San Jose on August 3rd 1969, by knife. Just four days later, the Melvin Belli letter arrived at the San Francisco Chronicle stating the Zodiac Killer was resisting the temptation to murder his ninth and tenth victim. This appears to indicate that victim number eight was secured between December 16th 1969 and December 20th 1969, which falls around the approximate time the coroner determined that Leona Roberts was murdered. If the above interpretation is correct, we would have three Zodiac communications on December 11th 1969, December 16th 1969 and December 20th 1969, giving us a "forecast for Leo", a failure to update the running victim total five days later, followed by an update to eight victims just four days later, around the time Leona Roberts was killed.         

The phrases on the Cancer and Leo communications are difficult to interpret, but when we consider the random phrase of "BIRDS FLY SOUTH" (pasted between the 18th and 24th) and the location where her body was discovered, on a north to south Pacific Flyway for migratory birds, one can't help thinking that the pasted clues were cryptic in nature. Irrespective of their correct meanings or otherwise, the "forecast" letters and the timing of Leona Roberts abduction should not be overlooked. It is likely only one person knew the day-by-day forecast for Leona Roberts, and his identity remains a mystery to this day. 

A man was seen running into Julius Khan playground shortly after the murder of Paul Stine on October 11th 1969, detailed by author Robert Graysmith, who stated "The detectives heard from neighbors that a stocky figure was seen dashing across Julius Khan playground and into the dense undergrowth of the Presidio. The dog patrol units, seven of the best search dogs in the country, gathered at the front entrance of the Presidio and were deployed one at a time in various directions. Armstrong and Toschi considered the possibilities. Had the killer gone quickly through the dark woods and emerged from the Presidio at Richardson Avenue, and taken Highway 101 past Fort Point onto the Golden Gate Bridge and vanished into Marin County".

It was speculated whether the Zodiac Killer had exited the Presidio Park on its eastern edge to a waiting vehicle, with his escape via the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin County a matter of minutes away, providing separation from the San Francisco area. If the Zodiac Killer worked in San Francisco (near Presidio Heights), but commuted from Vallejo, then he may have used Highway 101 on a regular basis, passing through Marin County. Highway 101 straddles Shoreline Highway by just 724 meters, which we will return to shortly.

Here is an excerpt from Websleuths by Steph54 "On 28 December 1969, a man searching for driftwood on the beach at Bolinas Lagoon in Marin County found the nude body of Leona Roberts. It was later determined that a unique wristwatch was missing from the girl's wrist, but a Napa High School class ring given to her by a neighbor still remained on her finger. The tan dress she wore when last seen, along with two pairs of bell-bottomed pants, a blouse, a black purse and wallet, a key chain with car and house keys were also reported missing. There were marks on the wrists and ankles indicative of binding, but the coroner was unsure whether they occurred before or after death. The cause of death was reported as "due to viral infection of an unidentified species." It was also reported that there was "evidence of choking which could probably be linked to the virus." link. 

Leona LaRell Roberts had been abducted on December 10th 1969 from 749 Tormey Avenue in Rodeo. At about 5:50 pm a neighbor, Susan Clark, heard the sound of a girl screaming, followed by somebody running from the rear of the apartment. A suspicious male was observed many times between the front door and a blue station wagon, before he eventually drove away. The man was described as 25 years old, 5'8", short blond hair and wearing brown trousers and a jacket. A while later her boyfriend arrived home to find a disturbance inside the apartment, scuff marks near the back door and her red Volkswagen parked outside.

The same day, a potential Zodiac correspondence arrived at the Sacramento Bee newspaper containing a horoscope page with pasted wording. This communication entitled Day-By-Day Forecast For Cancer was pasted with the wording ZODIAC, WATCH, FLT 555 and BIRDS FLY SOUTH. The day after the Leona LaRell Roberts abduction, on December 11th 1969, a communication entitled Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo arrived at the San Francisco Newspaper Printing Company at Rincon Annex, again  with many pasted words, including FLT THREE OF A KIND. It was thought that the Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo may have been a sinister play on words for Day-By-Day Forecast For Leona Roberts, considering the date of her abduction and the mailing of this communication the following day.

A day-by-day forecast may have been an appropriate message considering her abduction on December 10th 1969 to the eventual discovery of her body eighteen days later at Bolinas Lagoon in Marin County. This is where Shoreline Highway comes into play, being just 724 meters from Highway 101, and a route that the Zodiac Killer may have commuted to and from work. Shoreline Highway runs alongside Bolinas Bay to Bolinas Lagoon where Leona Robert's body was discovered. When we consider the December 10th 1969 communication containing the words ZODIAC and BIRDS FLY SOUTH, coupled with the December 11th 1969 Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo and her body being discovered at Bolinas Lagoon, the following information may become relevant.

Bolinas Lagoon is a tidal estuary, approximately 1,100 acres in area, located in the West Marin region of Marin County, California, United States, adjacent to the town of Bolinas. The Pacific Flyway is a major north-south flyway for migratory birds in America, extending from Alaska to Patagonia. Every year, migratory birds travel some or all of this distance both in spring and in fall, following food sources, heading to breeding grounds, or travelling to overwintering sites. Along the Pacific Flyway, there are many key rest stops where birds of many species gather, sometimes in the millions, to feed and regain their strength before continuing. Some species may remain in these rest stops for the entire season, but most stay a few days before moving on. Wikipedia.     

Four months later, on April 19th 1970, Pat Tan, a woman of Eurasian descent was discovered hanging by rope and electrical cord from an oak tree near Bootjack Campground on Mount Tamalpais in Marin County. She was identified because of a key found in her pocket by Coroner, Keith Craig, which he traced to a Greyhound bus terminal and the eventual discovery of her address book. The question remains as to whether the death of Pat Tan was suicide or murder.

Bootjack Campground is located 553 meters from the Pantoll Campground along Panoramic Highway, which joins Shoreline Highway at its southern tip, Pat Tan's body was discovered hanging just 2.5 miles from the dump site of Leona Roberts at Bolinas Lagoon. Leona Roberts abduction was paralleled by two communications entitled Day-By-Day Forecast For Cancer and Day-By-Day Forecast For Leo, along with the pasted pseudonym of ZODIAC, as was the untimely death of Pat Tan, when the following day on the April 20th 1970, the Zodiac Killer mailed the 13-Symbol cipher containing THREE OF A KIND. However, this time it would be 888 instead of 555.

Two years later, on April 7th 1972, Isobel Watson (33) had just got off the bus on the evening of April 7th 1972, and was walking home along Pine Hill Road, Tamalpais Valley, Marin County at 9.00 pm, when a light colored vehicle veered towards her, knocking her to the ground. The driver exited his vehicle offering to take her home, but after she had refused his offer of apparent help a second time, the concerned citizen suddenly became enraged, pulling out a knife and stabbing the woman in the neck and shoulder. ​Her screams alerted the neighborhood, forcing the assailant into a hasty retreat from the scene. She was treated at Marin General Hospital and fortunately survived the brutal attack.

Her description of the man alerted investigators to a possible Zodiac connection, that of a man with heavy-rimmed black glasses, around 40 years of age, 5' 9" in height and short brown hair. It was not overlooked by police that the killer had attempted to lure the woman into his vehicle, not dissimilar to the method employed in the Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns. Napa County homicide detective Kenneth Narlow believed in a greater than 50-50 chance of a Zodiac connection, bearing in mind the description given by Isobel Watson. Pine Hill Road, where the attack occurred, joins Shoreline Highway at its southern edge, just 4 miles from the Bootjack Campground and 7 miles from Bolinas Lagoon. Shoreline Highway joins Panoramic Highway only 1 mile from Pine Hill Road. So, had the attacker of Isobel Watson managed to lure her into his vehicle, would we have found her near Bootjack Campground or Bolinas Lagoon, just like Pat Tan and Leona Roberts? Of course, we don't know whether the Zodiac Killer had anything to do with the unfortunate events that befell these three women, but the location of Marin County and the proximity of Pine Hill Road, Bootjack Campground and Bolinas Lagoon is worthy of further investigation.     

During the height of Zodiac activity, sandwiched between the murder of Paul Stine in Presidio Heights on October 11th 1969 and the mailing of the infamous 340 cipher on November 8th 1969, one man stared pensively out of the window in search of a prowler that was stalking his house, equally disturbed by the inevitability that his phone at some point would burst into life, threatening death at the other end. That man was Daniel Williams, a Salesian High School teacher in the city of Richmond, living at 1234 Bush Street in Martinez.

Almost certainly one and the same, this prowler had been calling Daniel Williams' residence from October 23rd 1969 to November 2nd 1969, which culminated in his pursuer lacing his 7-Up soft drink with more than enough arsenic to kill. Police had been summoned to his residence on November 2nd 1969 when he noticed the screen door of his house had been pried open, however, they left shortly thereafter when it was determined nothing had been stolen. A short time later, Daniel Williams went to his refrigerator for some light refreshment and took a swig of 7-Up. Had he swallowed after noticing the metallic tasting drink, he most certainly would have died alone on his kitchen floor. The person who called Daniel Williams on numerous occasions threatening his murder claimed to be none other than the Zodiac Killer. Somebody pretending to be the Zodiac Killer by phone or mail is one thing, but this person had intended to kill.

Daniel Williams was a 24-year-old school teacher at the very beginning of his life, so one can only wonder how it came to pass that somebody felt the persistent need to target this man over a period of thirteen days, when finally, on November 5th 1969, somebody rang the Martinez Police Department at 12:30 am stating "There's going to be a shooting at 1234 Bush Street", before immediately hanging the receiver up.

If Daniel Williams had a hidden enemy with a grudge, not only was he apparently unaware of this animosity toward him, but why would this person telegraph his intent over a two week period by way of malicious phone calls. The notion of somebody attempting to kill the school teacher, while passing it off as a Zodiac crime over a prolonged period, appears a rather convoluted approach, when the perpetrator could simply have killed Daniel Williams and then made a phone call or mailed a letter taking responsibility as the Zodiac Killer. Ringing a police department and making threats to kill, in advance of comitting the act, seems to negate the opportunity of surprise and allows the intended victim to take preparatory steps. When we consider the contents of the November 8th and 9th communications by the Zodiac Killer, only three days after the phone call to the Martinez Police Department on November 5th 1969, another possibility begins to materialize.    

The person behind the phone calls to Daniel Williams' house and the Martinez Police Department, along with the prowling incidents, had also made threats toward a Martinez school. When he rang the school teacher, the caller stated he "had gone to a Martinez school in search of victims but left when he found police there". In light of the Zodiac Killer's desire to murder schoolchildren during the month of October, the claim of searching for victims at a nearby school should have raised significant alarm bells.

The persistence of this stalker may not have stopped on November 5th 1969, when the Zodiac Killer's Dripping Pen card arrived at the San Francisco Chronicle, stating "I though you would nead a good laugh before you hear the bad news. You won't get the news for a while yet". This phrase had all the hallmarks of activity ongoing, which had yet to reach its conclusion, backed up by the letter which arrived at the Chronicle the following day. In the Bus Bomb letter mailed on November 9th 1969, the Zodiac Killer made obvious that his victim count was only totalled "up to the end of Oct", suggestive of ongoing action between October 31st 1969 and the current mailing date. This apparent desire to add an eighth victim to his total, in light of a man claiming to be the Zodiac Killer and ringing the Martinez Police Department on November 5th 1969 with the threat of murder, appeared to indicate he was not finished yet. Or at the very least, this is what he wanted us to believe.

The nature of the attack on Daniel Williams by way of arsenic poisoning, seemed to fit with the opening paragraph of the November 9th 1969 letter, in which the Zodiac Killer vented his frustration and promised to alter his approach to murder. He directly addressed law enforcement, remarking that "I have grown rather angry with the police for their telling lies about me. So I shall change the way the collecting of slaves. I shall no longer announce to anyone. When I committ my murders, they shall look like routine robberies, killings of anger, + a few fake accidents, etc". However, it's what he said next that may link the Zodiac Killer to the malicious phone calls perpetrated on Daniel Williams. The caller to 1234 Bush Street claimed he was thwarted by police outside a Martinez school during his search for victims, but they wouldn't catch him because, as he stated “I’m too smart for them". The next line of the Bus Bomb letter, after promising to change his way of collecting slaves, was to ridicule police by asserting that "The police shall never catch me, because I have been too clever for them". This could be argued as the Zodiac Killer reading the newspapers and mimicking the wording in the written text to plant a seed of his involvement in the Daniel Williams stalking. If this was his intention, it was so subtle, it went ignored for 51 years. The police probably believed this prolonged attack on Daniel Williams was just another successor in a long line of Zodiac hoaxers, but this supposed hoaxer was not only determined, he was prepared to kill to imitate the Zodiac Killer.      

Daniel Williams (24), a Salesian High School teacher, started to receive malicious phone calls to his 1234 Bush Street, Martinez residence on October 23rd 1969. These calls continued for ten days and culminated with somebody breaking into his residence on November 2nd 1969 and lacing his 7-Up soft drink with enough arsenic to kill. The caller, claiming to be the Zodiac Killer, told Daniel Williams over the phone that he "had gone to a Martinez school in search of victims but left when he found police there", mocking law enforcement by stating “I’m too smart for them". This was considered particularly relevant because of the language Zodiac adopted on November 9th 1969 in the Bus Bomb letter mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle of "The police shall never catch me, because I have been too clever for them".

The Zodiac Killer's wording was also considered suspicious in the Dripping Pen card, when on November 8th 1969 he stated "This is the Zodiac speaking. I though you would nead a good laugh before you hear the bad news. You won't get the news for a while yet". The wording smacked of unfinished business, especially when you consider that he wrote "up to the end of Oct I have killed 7 people" in the following communication. It was now November 9th 1969, but he made a point of claiming seven victims only up to the end of October. These sections of text highly suggestive he was in the process of acquiring victim number eight. That victim could very well have entailed the ongoing pursuit of the Richmond High School teacher, Daniel Williams, to which this number had been reserved. These ideas may be speculative, but the story doesn't end there.

After the November 2nd 1969 attempted poisoning, Daniel Williams reported to police that the prowlings he had experienced around his residence during the time of the sadistic phone calls, continued after the break-in and failed poisoning. The persistent threats on the life of Daniel Williams would also fail to cease.

On Wednesday, November 5th 1969, somebody rang the Martinez Police Department at 12:30 am stating "There's going to be a shooting at 1234 Bush Street", before immediately hanging up. The threat to find victims at a Martinez school, coupled with the menacing phone calls were not dissimilar to recent Zodiac activity during the month of October. After the threat to shoot Daniel Williams at his residence, police instigated surveillance in the immediate area of Bush Street for the remainder of that morning, but no suspicious activity was detected. The next Zodiac Killer communications would be postmarked just two and three days later, with the promise of more bad news and a victim count left dangling at the end of October. If the perpetrator of the crimes inflicted upon Daniel Williams wasn't the Zodiac Killer, then it was a pretty determined hoaxer claiming to be him.

In the sadistic phone calls to Daniel Williams the caller also promised to "kill the lady in the blue house". On November 21st 1969, San Jose Police had to provide 24-hour surveillance for a woman, after somebody claiming to be the Zodiac Killer mailed a threatening letter identifying her as the target. The letter was accompanied by the wording "There's no doubt I will do my Thing!" reminiscent of the Dripping Pen card of "I could do my Thing". Of course, we don't know whether the threats in Martinez and San Jose were the infamous Zodiac Killer, but they certainly could have been.