This correspondence dated December 15th 1971 was mailed from Scottsville, New York and addressed to Mr J Edgar Hoover, first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
​In respect to the Zodiac timeline, it was sent 15 months after the disappearance of Donna Lass from Stateline, Nevada on September 6th 1970.
The communication claims to have evidence that with proper investigation would disclose the name and identity of the infamous 'Zodiac Killer of California.' 
The author of this letter would receive a reply dated December 23rd 1971, informing him that the matter was not within the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI and he should advise the San Francisco, California Police Department of any information which pertains to the Zodiac Killer. Signed by Director, John Edgar Hoover. 
The identity or signature of this individual is redacted, with a return address of some description- therefore determining its sincerity or otherwise is difficult to determine. One would like to think this was an extremely concerned citizen or somebody from an official agency, frustrated enough to mail a letter to the FBI offices (handwritten letter below). 

Tracers wrote this on the Zodiac Killer Tapatalk forum: "I did find this old reference to a letter: In a letter from J.Edgar Hoover dated 11/30/70 to Senator Karl E. Mundt concerning his interest in finding Donna A. Lass, he says, "In an effort to be of assistance, a search of our Identification Division files was conducted but I regret to tell you no indication of the whereabouts was disclosed. A missing person notice was previously placed in file in behalf of Senator George McGovern. In view of your interest I am having a notification added to the effect that any information we may receive will also be forwarded to you. We do not, of course, have the authority to conduct an active investigation in the absence of a violation of a federal statute within our jurisdiction."
​
Senator George Stanley McGovern was a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator born in Avon, South Dakota, approximately 100 miles from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, which may reflect his interest in the case. 
 
Another communication in the form of a Christmas card was mailed to the sister of Donna Lass, Mary Pilker, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on December 27th 1974. The Christmas card read 'Holiday Greetings and Best Wishes for a Happy New Year', followed by the handwriting "Best Wishes, St Donna & Guardian of the Pines." 
It is unknown whether this card had sinister connotations in respect to where Donna Lass may be buried (somewhere in between the pines), or whether it is just misguided support. There are, however, some similarities in the handwriting of the John Edgar Hoover letter and the Christmas card mailed to Mary Pilker (shown below).
Handwriting comparisons in the Zodiac case are the topic of much debate, as they are extremely subjective, and should always be used in conjunction with other evidence. 

John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American detective and the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States. He was appointed as the director of the Bureau of Investigation — the FBI's predecessor — in 1924 and was instrumental in founding the FBI in 1935, where he remained director until his death in 1972 at the age of 77. Hoover has been credited with building the FBI into a larger crime-fighting agency than it was at its inception and with instituting a number of modernizations to police technology, such as a centralized fingerprint file and forensic laboratories.
Wikipedia.

On November 21st 1969 a suspected Zodiac letter was received.
The FBI file read: 'Re Butte tel to Bureau 11/21/69.
Enclosed herewith for the FBI laboratory are two copies of the letter received by (redacted) San Jose PD, San Jose, California on this date.
As noted, the message reads (redacted). 
The laboratory is requested to have the Cryptogram Section attempt to immediately decipher the message and furnish the results to the San Francisco Office.
For the information of the Bureau and Sacramento, after a cursory analysis, officers of the San Jose, California PD, believe widow in message may be Mrs (redacted), San Jose, California. San Jose PD instituting 24 hour surveillance on Mrs (redacted).'
A further page read:
11/24/69 - 'Copy of handprinted note beginning "There's no doubt I will do my Thing!" and ending with the symbol (drawn crosshairs). Results of examination:
The ciphertext portion of Qc33 is not readable using previously recovered key. Its brevity precludes further cryptanalytic examination at this time. The furnished interpretation of  "- + 62 + -" as representing "1620" can be neither proved nor disproved analytically. The = between "November" and "8" could represent the number "2". Such interpretation would be based on inferences drawn from the date of the postmark, not from cryptanalytic examination.'  (see below for FBI files).​ 

The FBI files ponder the idea of "November" and "8" being bridged by the number 2, possibly giving us November 28th, and therefore tying in with a presumed threat on a widow from San Jose. Here are some thoughts on Zodiac Killer Site forum. 
However, there may be a much simpler explanation, bearing in mind the Zodiac Killer's last two communications on November 8th and 9th of 1969- in particular the 'Dripping Pen' card.

That "November = 8" means exactly what it states- that the author or Zodiac is threatening, or has already claimed victim number 8 sometime in November.
​Bearing in mind the 'Bus Bomb' letter mailed on November 9th 1969 claiming 7 kills, then had an 8th victim already been claimed (presumably a male victim, if the mention of a widow was relevant), we would be looking for a victim between November 9th and November 21st. A future victim in November would likely have been murdered between November 21st and November 30th (the claimed target possibly being the woman in San Jose).
The phrase "There's no doubt I will do my Thing!" seemed to suggest an impending threat- hence the urgency of 24 hour surveillance on the woman. Thereby, the use of the term "widow" in the FBI file may likely not carry a sinister connotation of a prior murder.  
The Zodiac Killer was certainly looking for a ninth and tenth victim on December 20th 1969, when he mailed a further correspondence to Melvin Belli's residence.
​The reference to "- + 62 + -" appears to represent six characters rather than four, so is open to interpretation. 
Here is an aerial view of 2162 Ringwood Avenue, San Jose, Ca.  A code such as 2162SJ, coupled with a specific name would be enough. This is just a crude example, so any suggestions would be welcome.   

In 1975, an FBI document detailed a possible Zodiac correspondence, which has become known as the 'Equinox' letter.
The slip of paper was yellow in color and the message was largely handwritten in blue felt tip pen. The style of the writing has more in common with the Zodiac 'Red Phantom' letter rather than his copious other earlier communications, nevertheless it is interesting for a number of reasons, other than the obvious astrology connection.
A man from Fresno, California, handed it in to law enforcement and stated that 'over the July 4th 1975 weekend he had visited his brother-in-law at his residence in Oakland, California. During the visit his brother-in-law had showed him a 1968 Datsun 1600 sports car bearing California license plates, which he said had been given to him a week before by a co-employee. The car had not been driven for some time and had no 1975 registration tags. In the front floorboard of the vehicle he found the enclosed note among some newspapers and other discarded papers. He said he read a good deal about the Zodiac murder case and feels this note may have been written by Zodiac. He advised he further suspects that his brother-in-law may be involved because of his hippy-type life style and because his brother-in-law once told him he was at the scene of the taxicab driver murder in San Francisco the night it occurred and made very discouraging remarks about the police investigation into the matter. He advised he reported this to the Fresno Police Department but did not feel that anything was done with the information, and he, therefore, contacted the FBI with his present information.'       

The note began with EQUINOX 3:33 pm.
The note appeared to be almost three years old, based on the date September 22nd 1972, offered on the next line.
A quick check of the September 22nd Equinox in 1972 for Oakland, gives us a Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) of 15:32 or 3:32 pm, almost the exact time displayed on the 'Equinox' letter.
At the foot of the note the author has highlighted in bold capitals 'FULL ARIES MOON.' September 22nd 1972 was a full moon. September 22nd is the final day of Virgo in the horoscope calendar. 
The 14th April (4/14/41) falls under the ARIES sign, but there was no full moon in 1941 for this date. It was a full moon on April 11th 1941 in Aries.
It was a new moon on October 11th 1969 when Paul Stine was murdered in San Francisco. 
Seemingly Phil G was an Aries and September 22nd 1972 was a full moon.
The note began with "Equinox 3:33 pm. Can't make it Sat. Nite but the spell is broken & I hope I'll see you more than ever?"
Just under three months prior to this letter Edward J Salmina, sports editor of the Novato Advance received a hand-printed 'death note' signed Zodiac. The newspaper article of June 30th 1972 read 'The hand-printed letter said: "If you leave your house past 3:13:47 on the next ten Saturdays, you will be killed." In the lower left corner under the heading "message" were a series of symbols. Salmina of 25 Crescent Lane told police he didn't know who or why anyone would send him such a letter.'  Crescent Lane is situated in Novato, Marin County, approximately thirty miles from Oakland (where the brother-in-law lived).
The two similarities between the 'Equinox' note and the 'Death' note sent to Edward J Salmina were firstly, the time presented on each correspondence. The first note, sent just prior to June 30th 1972 stated a time of 3:13:47, the second note on September 22nd 1972, a time of 3:33 pm. only 19 minutes difference. The second similarity was the mention of Saturday in both notes. Incidentally, ten Saturdays from the date of the 'Death' note would have been September 2nd 1972, twenty days before the 'Equinox' note. 

The third event in this 30 mile radius was the attempted murder of Isobel Watson. 
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. [view on google maps]. 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, in his early 40's, 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. 
These are three unlikely Zodiac connections, however all three occurred in relatively close proximity to one another within a six month period. 

www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=169
http://www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=1969
http://www.historyofnovato.com/s-vips

Two letters were mailed from Stamford, Connecticut. One on April 13th 1988, followed by another on April 21st 1988. A cryptogram was contained in each,  believed to be from the same author. The first letter contained six pages in total, laden with text. The date of April 13th 1988 is the seventeen year anniversary of the disappearance of Denise Kathleen Anderson (22), from Sacramento, California, who may have been the subject of a possible Zodiac correspondence, the 'Monticello' card, mailed on July 13th 1971. http://www.zodiacciphers.com/zodiac-news/in-the-woods-dies-april. Page three of the first 1988 letter began with the wording "Eat pepper-mint and puff it in your face". Page five began with "You the other night"  Here is a section from the  Mikado Act One Part 5a  'As Some Day it May Happen', performed by Ko-Ko: "And the people who eat peppermint and puff it in your face. They never would be missed — they never would be missed". The two pages that contained cryptograms used familiar Zodiac characters, 54 in total. Both cryptograms contained 13 characters per row, however one didn't form a complete rectangle, the last line consisting of only three characters.
94 CHARACTER CIPHER: (REDACTED) MUST DIE FOR HER FIFTY MEGAHERTZ SCREECH AND HER FLIRTATIOUSNESS. SHE IS SO IMPOSSIBLY SHALLOW AND STUCK UP. 
Assuming the redacted section is a name, the deciphered text is reminiscent of the 'Confession' letter and 'Bates Had to Die' letters, mailed after the murder of Cheri Jo Bates in Riverside on October 30th 1966. This cipher has the three character line.
It contains 89 visible characters. Seven rows of 13 characters = 91. Adding the 3 characters over = 94. Therefore the redacted text it would seem, should contain 5 letters, although 'megahertz screech' is written as 'megahertscreech' by the author, to allow the redacted name to become 6 letters in length. The redacted name is SHAUNA. (see forum thread below).
169 CHARACTER CIPHER: (REDACTED) IF YOU WISH TO KNOW MY IDENTITY, YOU WILL HAVE TO PUT SOME EFFORT INTO IT, NOT FIDDLE AND FART AROUND. HERE IS A CLUE AS MISSUS (REDACTED) IF SHE REMEMBERS WHO DRAWS THE SYMBOL. THEN YOU WILL HAVE ME. GOOD LUCK. 
This cipher draws from much of the known Zodiac correspondence, and has no incomplete lines. 
It contains 154 visible characters. Thirteen rows of 13 characters = 169. Therefore the redacted text should be 15 letters in total.
However, the author again makes errors in the cipher composition and the redacted text is only 12 letters. The redacted text is SHAUNA and TAYLOR (see forum thread below). 
We have a 263 character cipher in total (20 rows of 13 characters, and three over), from either Zodiac or a hoaxer.
The author began with Dear (redacted). "This is the Zodiac Speaking". One sheet of paper was the brand 'Conqueror' from the Sloan Paper Company, Doraville, Georgia. Four sheets of paper bore the watermark of Sheaffer Eaton, Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The remaining sheet contained no watermark.  
http://www.zodiacciphers.com/uploads/4/9/7/1/4971630/zodiac5  Page 5 onwards. 

Cryptogram images below courtesy of Zodiac Killer Site Forum.
​To view the six pages of text and the forum thread visit ​http://zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=78&t=2326

The Albany letter decoding from the FBI files and Dave Oranchak.
http://www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?p=52742#p52748 

On April 30th 1967 the supposed killer of Cheri Jo Bates mailed three handwritten letters to Joseph Bates, the Riverside Press-Enterprise and the Riverside Police Department. All effectively carried the same message "Bates had to die there will be more." These letters bore resemblance to the Zodiac Killer's first three letters, mailed to the San Francisco Chronicle, Vallejo Times-Herald and San Francisco Examiner.on July 31st 1969. Not only did both sets contain three constituent parts, they exhibited double postage and both carried the threat of more victims. In the July 31st 1969 mailings, the threat was to "cruse around all weekend killing lone people in the night then move on to kill again, until I end up with a dozen people over the weekend." 
The two sets of letters were also accompanied by a symbol at the foot of the correspondence. The crosshairs of the Zodiac Killer are all too familiar, but what were the strange symbols at the foot of the Riverside Police Department and Riverside Press-Enterprise correspondence. They do not appear to be a regular letter Z, as both have an elaborate tail off the left side, as shown in the above image.  
The Zodiac Killer was not averse to placing his running total of victims at the foot of each letter, and this may be the case in the Bates letters. In one of Zodiac's mailings he sent us the 'Halloween' card addressed to Paul Avery, but possibly replaced the victim count with an elaborate symbol on the inside of the card. We know he was inferring 14 victims over the entire card, so why should the symbol be any different. Below is a depiction of one possible interpretation.         

The four dots are harder to interpret, but by joining three alphabetical letters together 'Zodiac Victims Fourteen' is realized. Was this a 'modern' twist on his earlier, yet more rudimentary version on the Bates letters.
On first glance the Bates symbol could be interpreted as a joined 3 and V, indicating three victims. After all, the murderer of Cheri Jo Bates was claiming previous victims, apparent in the 'Confession' letter he mailed one month after her murder. It stated "She is not the first and she will not be the last. I lay awake at night thinking about my next victim." The question is, were his next victims that of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen on December 20th 1968, just two years later.
The Zodiac Killer first gave us a running total of seven on the 'Dripping Pen' card, mailed on November 8th 1969. The Zodiac claimed "Des, July, Aug, Sept, Oct = 7" at the foot of the card. At this point in time we knew of five Zodiac murders, that included David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen in December, Darlene Ferrin in July, Cecelia Shepard in September, and Paul Stine in October. We were missing two.
If we also included Cheri Jo Bates into October, then we would be missing only one victim in August. If the Zodiac Killer was the murderer of Cheri Jo Bates, then was his first victim just two months earlier in August 1966 and Cheri was "not the first and was not to be the last." This would give us the total of seven victims the Zodiac was referring to in the 'Dripping Pen' card. Is it possible the Zodiac Killer had already adopted his pseudonym as early as 1967, bearing in mind the symbol on the Bates letters does not conform fully. 
One interpretation of the Bates symbols could have inspired his design on the 'Halloween' card, shown below. The number 2 (or possibly 3) tagged onto the left side of the arrangement, as opposed to 'fourteen' on the 'Halloween' card, tagged onto the right side.  However it may be a little convoluted, and would presuppose his use of the pseudonym Zodiac in 1967, which could not be backed up with anything tangible.          

​Assuming the Bay Area and Riverside killer are the same person, it is conceivable that the murder of Cheri Jo Bates was one of his earliest crimes, possibly the second. The 'Confession' letter stated "She is not the first and she will not be the last," and the 'Dripping Pen' card total, if to be believed, left only one victim in August.

Had the murderer of Cheri Jo Bates killed a second victim, only two months earlier in August. His murders may have displayed much less organization back in 1966, exemplified by the brutal stabbing in the grounds of the Riverside City College, only yards from the library annex. His letter writing may equally have looked amateurish, after all, he was in the infancy of his terror.
On the right may be an early example of the Zodiac Killer's running victim total, inferring '2 victims' (or possibly '3 victims').
However, we were two murders short on the 'Dripping Pen' card, so this coupled with the five murders in the Bay Area brings us to the correct total of seven, by November 8th 1969. The total on the 'Dripping Pen' card may only be crimes under the Zodiac umbrella, which he adopted in 1969, which do not include any of the Riverside attacks. Nevertheless, the Bates symbols may still be an early example of a running victim count, which he refreshed when he became Zodiac. If this is the case, then the hunt for victims six and seven will have to start again, maybe somewhere other than Riverside. 

Many crimes have been suggested as possible Zodiac attacks, too numerous to mention, so sometimes the only course of action is to analyze murders and disappearances with commonalities, employing geographical profiling and possible routes or thoroughfares used by the killer. In a previous article we noticed several such events that occurred along two main travel routes, extending all the way from the Highway 132 abduction of Kathleen Johns on March 22nd 1970 to the disappearance of Donna Lass from South Lake Tahoe on September 6th 1970. One direct route encompassing Interstate 5 and Interstate 80 passes Sacramento, the scene of three murders in 1970, often mentioned in Zodiac circles.

Judith Hakari was a nurse at Sutter Hospital, who disappeared heading back to the Markston Apartments on March 7th 1970, her body eventually discovered just off Interstate 80. Nancy Bennallack was murdered on October 25th 1970 in her apartment, a residence close to Interstate 80. Carol Beth Hilburn was murdered on November 14th 1970, again extremely close to Interstate 80. This thoroughfare has strong connections with the Bay Area, passing straight through the heart of Vallejo.
To examine these connections in greater detail visit: 
​http://www.zodiacciphers.com/zodiac-news/cruising-the-interstate.

Two years ago, a link was forged between the 30 year old murder case of Koy Ien Saechao (48) and Choy Fow Salee (40) and the possible 1986 Zodiac letter, and here we will attempt to do the same with another suspected Zodiac correspondence, regarding the case of missing Denise Kathleen Anderson, although unfortunately here we have very little information to work with.
Denise Kathleen Anderson (22), who resided in Sacramento, was last seen on April 13th 1971 by her roommates at approximately 05.30 am- and as of writing her disappearance still remains a mystery- although foul play is suspected. Bearing in mind the Interstate 80 route from Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe, we have disappearances and murders on March 7th 1970, September 6th 1970, October 25th 1970 and November 14th 1970, of Hakari, Lass, Bennallack and Hilburn respectively. Three of which occurred very close to their apartments. What occurred with Denise Kathleen Anderson after last being seen by her roommates is unknown, but her disappearance (and possible murder) again took place in Sacramento, near Interstate 80, only five months after the murder of Carol Beth Hilburn and exactly one month after the Zodiac 'Los Angeles' letter mailed on March 13th 1971, claiming 17+ victims. In this correspondence Zodiac stated "If the Blue Meannies are evere going to catch me, they had best get off their fat asses + do something. Because the longer they fiddle + fart around, the more slaves I will collect for my after life."
The question is, was Denise Kathleen Anderson one of them. With so little to go on, we may never know, but exactly three months later on July 13th 1971 a potential Zodiac correspondence, listed in the FBI files, was received by the San Francisco Chronicle, described as a picture with pasted letters. The wording read: 
'Near Monticello Shought Victims 21 ...... In The Woods Dies April'
The first thing that needed answering was whether April was the name of the victim or the month of the murder.
Using the age range Zodiac was known to have targeted, no woman bearing the name April could be unearthed and the April 11th 1971 murder of Kathy Bilek was attributed to Karl Francis Werner, who was responsible for the double murder of Kathy Snoozy and Deborah Furlong. However the disappearance of Denise Kathleen Anderson has yet to be resolved.

The next thing to determine was 'near Monticello'.
The southern section of Monticello Road is only 16 miles from Vallejo and 2.4 miles from the Main Street payphone, where the Zodiac Killer placed his second phone call to police after the double stabbing and murder at Lake Berryessa. Interstate 80 travels from Sacramento towards Vallejo, and skirts past Monticello Road only 13 miles to the southeast.  
Had the Zodiac headed from Sacramento to Vallejo after abducting Denise Kathleen Anderson and exited Interstate 80 at the closest point to Monticello Road, it would be a mere 6 miles to a notable section of Wooden Valley Road. This area is surrounded by dense woods, the perfect attack/disposal site for a serial killer, and being only 7 miles shy of Monticello Road would certainly fit the criteria of being  'near Monticello'.  
Monticello Road heads northwards to Lake Berryessa, now covering the land mass once known as the town of Monticello, flooded over by the damming of Putah Creek in 1957. Any reference to Monticello by the Zodiac Killer would not be surprising, based on his previous historical references within his correspondence, namely The Mikado, and bearing in mind his third attack on Cecelia Shepard and Bryan Hartnell at Lake Berryessa.   
This connection may not be as strong as the Sacramento double murder of Koy Ien Saechao and Choy Fow Salee on April 22nd 1986 and the 1986 Zodiac correspondence, however we have a dense wooded area just off Interstate 80, en route from Sacramento to Vallejo, near Monticello, and a woman's disappearance in April, in accordance with the noted timeline of three previous murders in 1970.
Regardless of whether this is a Zodiac crime, it is another tragedy for the family and friends of Denise Kathleen Anderson, who badly need answers in this long overdue cold case. If you can help please contact the Sacramento Police Department.

​http://www.nampn.org/cases/anderson_denise.html 
​http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/a/anderson_denise.html
​http://zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=69&t=1353  

I have recently contacted the Sacramento cold cases department regarding the 30 year old murder case of Koy Ien Saechao (48) and Choy Fow Salee (40), a Laotian couple brutality gunned down on the hard shoulder of a Sacramento highway on April 22nd 1986. This has been covered twice before, but I am attempting to find more information on this crime, including any police reports, as the information on the internet is scant to say the least. The crime was originally linked to Devon Stuart Olson, however Sergeant James Lewis in 2001 reiterated that none of Olson's statements matched to any of the crimes he claimed and he wasn't charged in these murders. 
Rewinding the clock back fifteen years, the Donna Lass case entered the Zodiac sphere with the mailing of the Pines Card on March 22nd 1971 inferring he may be the killer. Donna Lass disappeared from a South Lake Tahoe casino in the early hours of September 6th 1970 and has never been heard or seen of since.
Gian Quaser of the Quester Files ran a story indicating a possible link between Donna Lass, Judith Hakari, Nancy Bennalack and Carol Hilburn, the latter three of which were all murdered in Sacramento in 1970. A straight line from the Vallejo and San Francisco region to South Lake Tahoe takes you directly through Sacramento. The slaying of Koy Ien Saechao and Choy Fow Salee, although sixteen years later, took place within 10 miles of the murdered women in Sacramento, and furthermore the Zodiac Killer would possibly claim these murders in a 1986 letter.. What is most important, is what the Zodiac meant in the 1986 letter by "The Blue Meannies almost caught me." Is he talking about his interaction with the Highway Patrol officer in the article. 

The murders of Koy Ien Saechao and Choy Fow Salee had all the hallmarks of Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs Park, a couple fired upon while inside their vehicle, just like Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau. The Laotian couple were shot multiple times from close range. Both front side windows were blown out, with 15 shell casings strewn around the vehicle. This was a merciless assault on the side of the highway. Koy Ien Saechao and Choy Fow Salee were traveling back on the two and a half journey to their residence in Dorman Road, Yuba City after visiting their son in a Merced CA hospital, situated in the area of the San Joaquin Valley of Northern California.
They were only 45 minutes from home when it was believed they had opted to take a rest on the roadside edge, near the interchange of Highway 99 and I-5 Sacramento and unfortunately for them, a merciless killer was in the vicinity. However without knowing the exact dynamics of the crime, it is equally plausible they were ushered to the side of the highway on a ruse, similar to the Modesto abduction of Kathleen Johns.
The 1986 letter claimed to be from the Bay Area killer, but what catches the eye, is how close this letter is to the Koy Ien Saechao and Choy Fow Salee murders.
​[1] The letter was postmarked 6th May 1986. The letter writer stated his victims were collected "about two weeks ago." Exactly 14 days prior to May 6th was April 22nd, the day the couple were murdered.
[2] The letter writer stated "up by Sacramento."  They were murdered close to the center of Sacramento.
[3] The letter writer stated "They were killed by a freeway" and "I want you to know about my latest slaves." Both statements indicative of more than one victim. The couple were also murdered right next to a two lane freeway. (Highway 99).
This Highway serves Modesto and was traveled by Kathleen Johns in March 1970. Wikipedia: 'From SR 99 to south of Tracy, I-5 skirts along the far more remote western edge of the great Central Valley, and thus here is removed from population centers such as Bakersfield and Fresno; other state highways provide these connections. I-580 splits from I-5 at a point south of Tracy, providing a loop-route connection to the San Francisco Bay Area. After passing Tracy, I-5 heads north through Stockton and Sacramento before turning west to Woodland.'
[4] The letter writer stated "The Blue Meannies almost caught me," indicating that he saw police that night, likely close to the scene. The mystery hitchhiker directed police to the scene, reminiscent of his two phone calls, but subsequently was never traced. Was this the Zodiac playing games with the police and hence his reference to "The Blue Meannies almost caught me." The hitchhiker flagged down a California Highway Patrol Officer in East Nicolaus and informed him of an automobile accident at the precise location the couple were eventually discovered.
The Zodiac could again be claiming murders for which he had no hand in, so it is imperative to find more detailed information on this crime and possibly elaborate on his claim of a near miss with police. It would also be interesting to discover the weapon used in this crime and compare the shell casings to ones retrieved in the Zodiac case.

This website contains no advertisements. To help keep it running, any donations, however small, would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Richard.

The murder of Cheri Jo Bates outside the Riverside City College Library on October 30th 1966, may have been the day the Zodiac Killer under this moniker, started his campaign of terror. Although it would be at least one month before his typed 'Confession' letter surfaced with the threat of more to come. Five months later, on April 30th 1967, a further three letters sent to the Riverside Police, Riverside Press Enterprise and more chillingly Cheri Jo Bates father, suggested that this killer was not going to stop anytime soon.
His letters were signed off with what looked like a Z symbol, but as yet authorities were a long way from finding out, this may have been the very inception of the Zodiac, the 'calm' before the storm of Lake Herman Road and beyond.
What, if anything, lies within the Confession Letter to suggest this declaration of murder was in any way related to the other crimes that began on December 20th 1968, just over two years later.
It has been previously pointed out that the author of the 'Confession' letter used the wording "She squirmed and shook as I choaked her. And her lips twiched". This having striking similarities to the 'Little List' letter the Zodiac Killer mailed on July 26th 1970, in which he stated "Some I shall tie over ant hills and watch them scream + twich and squirm."
But more apparent is the egocentric nature displayed in the 'Confession' letter, that he maintains throughout his correspondence to the authorities, right through to the Exorcist Letter mailed on January 29th 1974, revealing character patterns of his own unique writing style. His extreme use of the word 'I' appears no less than 19 times, along with his use of 'me', 'my' or 'mine', a further 12 times in this short letter comprising of 423 words. So in total, a reference to himself appears 31 times. That is 7.33% or once every 14 words, and something we were going to get accustomed to over the following eight years.
The 'Bus Bomb' letter, 'Little List' letter and 'Melvin Belli' letter are further examples of the Zodiac Killer's compunction to constantly refer to himself as the focus of attention within his writings. In the Melvin Belli Letter this occurs 16 times, within the body of text containing 134 words, that is 11.94%. The Little List Letter contains 12 in 178 words, at 10.07% and the Bus Bomb Letter is equally high in frequency.   

In a previous article http://www.zodiacciphers.com/1/post/2013/10/the-phantom-murders.html , it was suggested that if the diagram at the foot of the Bus Bomb Letter, received one day after the Dripping Pen Card on November 9th 1969 was indicating murder sites. then by elimination there must have been two individual murders in August along the remaining lines shown  If so, then the Zodiac Killer was not claiming the Riverside attack on Cheri Jo Bates on October 30th 1966, despite part indicating its inclusion under the Zodiac banner, by signing off his Bates Letters on April 30th 1967 with a Z.  
However, if the Bus Bomb diagram was not referring to murder zones, then that leaves us another option for the months of December, July, August, September and October, indicated on the Dripping Pen Card.
The murders of Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday in December, Darlene Ferrin in July, Cecelia Shepard in September and the murders of Paul Stine and Cheri Jo Bates, both in October, would now leave six murders of the seven accounted for and cementing the Riverside attack as a Zodiac crime. The seventh victim would still be, as yet undetermined. The Hood and Garcia murders would still remain a possibility, since they occurred on February 21st 1970, with the Domingos and Edwards murders on June 4th 1963 falling into the 'Pre-Zodiac' timeline, but not completely ruled out on this basis.
The Zodiac Killer in the 'Los Angeles' letter on March 13th 1971 claimed "I do have to give them credit for stumbling across my riverside activity, but they are only finding the easy ones, there are a hell of a lot more down there."
This may or may not be the case, but the murder of Cheri Jo Bates on October 30th 1966 is one crime, that in many respects has the hallmark of the Zodiac Killer stamped all over it.

the foot of the letter to reveal the following: 'ALBANY MEDICAL CENTER. THIS ONLY THE BEGINNING.' The targeting of a nurse at the end of her shift would seem eerily similar to the disappearance of Donna Lass from the Sahara Tahoe Hotel on September 6th 1970.
This is a debatable Zodiac letter, in which the author failed to follow through on his threat of murder.
Rumblings of a Richard Gaikowski connection surfaced, due to his familiarity with Albany, having worked for the Knickerbocker News from 1966 to the latter part of 1968, before traveling to Europe and then returning to America, relocating in Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco.
There were however notable crimes in the months and years surrounding the August 10th 1973 timeline, relative to the Albany Medical Center.
The first was the murder of prostitute Gloria South (18), shot once behind her left ear with a .25 caliber pistol. Her body was found close to Morris and Lark Street, behind the Veterans Hospital. However, this murder was committed approximately two years prior to the Albany letter, on June 29th 1971, despite the location being very close to the Albany Medical Center. Investigators had a prime suspect in this case, but without any solid evidence tying him to the crime, they were unable to make good on their suspicions.
The second was a lot closer to the timeline, occurring four and a half months after the said date of August 10th 1973, on December 27th 1973, when Barbara Smith (24) of Hamilton Street, was murdered close to the St Philips Day Care Center on Road Street. The perpetrator had shot the young woman in the head, although it had failed to penetrate her skull. He had then used a rock to inflict the severe injuries noted at autopsy. This location was also close to the other murder, along with the Albany Medical Center.
On November 2nd 1974 Kathleen Kolodziej vanished after leaving the Vault Bar in Cobleskill, having turned down the chance to return to her dormitory with a roommate- last seen heading along Main Street. The village of Coblekill lies approximately 40 miles west of Albany. Although not a confirmed sighting, she was last seen getting into a yellow Volkswagen Beetle just before 2.00 am. Twenty six days later on November 28th 1974 she was discovered on MacDonald Road, Richmondville, lying on a stone wall. She was partially clothed, having been brutally stabbed in the back and shoulders numerous times. Kathleen Kolodziej's autopsy was carried out at the Albany Medical Center.
These murders occurred from June 1971 to November 1974. The Zodiac's hiatus in confirmed correspondence occurred between the March 13th 1971 'Los Angeles' letter or questionable March 22nd 1971 'Pines' card, and January 29th 1974, with his last confirmed mailing to the San Francisco Chronicle newspaper, in the form of an 'Exorcist' letter.
Is it possible the Zodiac switched from one location to another during this timeline, or is it more likely that the Zodiac Killer is simply being credited for crimes far and wide, with little other than letters as evidence.
Many researchers question the nature of certain crimes having been committed by the Zodiac Killer, despite the fact he did once claim in the November 9th 1969 'Bus Bomb' letter that he would "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." 
The murders of Doreen Gaul (19) and James Sharp (15) provided another link, in that the Gaul residence was located on Myrtle Avenue, Albany, within touching distance of the Albany Medical Center.
Doreen Gaul and James Sharp had been brutally murdered and disfigured- their bodies found on November 21st 1969 in a Los Angeles alleyway, between Arapahoe Street and Magnolia Avenue- although it was thought they had been killed at a secondary location. They had been stabbed over 50 times and their eyes were slashed. 
Doreen Gaul had been resident at the Scientology Thetan Manor hippie commune, having graduated one year earlier from high school in Albany. 
A note found in her room was claimed to have been authored by the Zodiac Killer.  

Was the Zodiac a resident of Albany at some point, or had close ties with Albany, having known, or known of Doreen Gaul. The Zodiac link to Albany can be argued through both letters, but whether the Zodiac Killer ever set his Wing Walkers down in the streets of Albany, we may never know.