THE TAPESTRY OF MURDER

7/31/2018

THE 340 CIPHER WAS CRACKED ON DECEMBER 3RD 2020 BY DAVE ORANCHAK, SAM BLAKE AND JARL VAN EYCKE, SO THIS EARLIER ARTICLE SHOULD BE VIEWED IN RESPECT TO RECENT DEVELOPMENTS.

There is no definitive evidence to totally negate the idea that the 340 cipher contains a viable solution - with the mystery and allure of the Zodiac Killer code the driving force behind people wishing it were genuine. This, of course, exempts the 500+ people who have already solved the 340 cipher, in solutions now extending longer than the Bayeux Tapestry. Obviously, Zodiac researchers who specialize in the ciphers rather than the crimes themselves, have a vested interest in wishing the cipher to be a hidden message. This is the belief that keeps the dream alive. But did the Zodiac Killer really have the ability to create a more difficult cipher than the 408, with a reasonable expectation of a solution? Placing 29 unique characters into a 32 symbol cipher, and creating a 13 symbol code would suggest not.

The October 22nd 1969 Examiner newspaper article by Will Stevens laid down a challenge to the Zodiac Killer from the president of the American Cryptogram Association (ACA), Professor D.C.B. Marsh, to reveal his name. This may be the article that inspired the 340 cipher, and by association, the 'Halloween' card mailed approximately one year later. Dr Marsh told the Examiner today: "The killer wouldn't dare, as he claimed in letters to the newspapers, to reveal his name in the cipher to established cryptogram experts. He knows, to quote Edgar Allen Poe, that any cipher created by man can be solved by man. Zodiac has not told the truth in his cipher messages to the Examiner, the Chronicle and the Vallejo Times-Herald. Zodiac has not done this, because to tell the complete truth in relation to his name-in cipher code-would lead to his capture. I invite Zodiac to send The American Cryptogram Association a cipher code, which will truly and honestly include his name".

This contention is probably true - that the Zodiac Killer wouldn't reveal his name in any cipher (other than his pseudonym), and additionally, he likely used the fact "that any cipher created by man can be solved by man" as a springboard to create something extra special, other than a cipher. If we contend that the Zodiac Killer wrote his final letters in 1974, then is it likely that a killer touted as an attention seeker, could resist dropping us clues to the 340 cipher in his subsequent letters, spanning in excess of four years? Each and every one of his final three communications in late 1970 and early 1971 effectively told us he was crackproof. The upside down text on the October 5th 1970 'Pace' card stated "Fk I'm crackproof". The October 27th 1970 'Halloween' card proclaimed "sorry no cipher". The March 13th 1971 'Los Angeles' letter boasted "Like I have allways said, I am crack proof". But the Zodiac Killer hadn't always said he was crackproof- only in the two communications either side of the 'Halloween' card announcing "sorry no cipher". The suggestion he was crackproof, thereby not arising from his perceived ability to evade police, but from his smugness in knowing he created three ciphers he knew would never be solved.

Click to enlarge

The Tim Holt comic find by Tahoe27 in 2013, and the recent assertion of a close alliance, not only with the 'Halloween' card, but the 340 cipher, has been covered here to reject the 340 cipher as containing a viable and coherent message.

In view of the "by knife" attribution on Bryan Hartnell's car door, it is arguable that the Zodiac Killer had the Tim Holt comic book or Rota Fortunae (Wheel of Death) in mind as he wrote on the car door. In other words, the concept predated the September 27th 1969 Lake Berryessa stabbings, rather than just the 'Halloween' card. The Lake Berryessa "by knife" attribution becoming the part inspiration for the complex puzzle of the 340 cipher. The "by knife" method of death (on the right) is clearly the only one falling within its quadrant, as opposed to the others, which are all connecting with the central column.

This method of death was certainly prioritized by the Zodiac Killer, having placed it on Bryan Hartnell's vehicle (despite the fact the crime was obviously committed with a knife). The feasible presence of "by knife" within the 340 cipher. The possibility of a crude 'Halloween' card design in the December 16th 1969 'Fairfield' letter featuring "death by knife", along with the "Bleeding Knife of Zodiac" drawing. And finally, the 'October 27th 1970 'Halloween' card design and comic book, both containing "by knife" and mirroring the 340 cipher and 'Fairfield' letter.

Below are the speculative beginnings, attempting to interweave the '13 Hole' postcard into the emerging design.

shawn

7/31/2018 06:53:01 pm

There are 13 holes punched out. 13 Symbols are in the my name cipher

It appears the 3 holes to the left would represent the three circled 8's as they are in the right place but out to the left of the other 10 holes representing other remaining 10 symbols in the 13 symbol cipher.

888 represents the God Number and on the other side of the card is the Apollo 8 stamp with the phrase "In the beginning God"

Sigmund

8/2/2018 04:52:56 pm

I think he was just toying with us as usual. Perhaps all he was saying by all of this is: "I am better than all of you. I am like God. I will torment those who want to know my identity with endless riddles. I am the one who holds the magnifying glass and you are my ants. I can do whatever I want and get away with it."

8/15/2018 02:07:43 pm

"three-dot journalism."
the term "hippie" - these were just a few of things invented by
Herb Caen - a guy who had a considerable influence on the time.
He had a better understanding of the city he called Baghdad by the Bay - San Francisco - than anyone - ever.
He also authored greeting cards. But, he was not in the least bit curious over this Zodiac business. His name is the first thing in the z340. Could the three circled eights represent his style of journalism? "three-dot journalism."
Herb Caen - Wikipedia
Could Caen have invented the Zodiac?

Sigmund

8/15/2018 04:29:32 pm

Snopes!

Herb Caen are the first words in the z340? Only according to some. The 340 has in fact never been solved.

Herb Caen invented the word "hippy"? Wrong again! Herb Caen merely re-hashed the term and helped to make it popular. The term was used a LONG time before Herb Caen came on to the scene.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etymology_of_hippie

Did Herb Caen invent Zodiac? No.

Judith

7/31/2018 07:41:17 pm

My sense is that the 340 does have a message I also believe that it must be anagrammed this is why no one can solve it they refused the idea of the anagramming it is one more layer one more trick but he did not waste his time with a useless message

Tom

8/2/2018 06:45:26 am

Very good point. If the purpose of a cipher is to deliver a coded message, then what is the point of creating one that is not solvable? So was he just teasing everybody in order to amuse himself? Randall Clemons has done extensive research on Mr. Z’s ciphers. Is he crackproof because he did not provide anyone else with the key to the puzzles?

Sigmund

8/2/2018 04:32:35 pm

If it is an anagram, it will never be solved. Far too much variability. Basically, people could make it say whatever they want it to... For that matter, a great many people already have! And of course only their solution is the "right" one!

Judith

8/2/2018 08:13:13 am

Entertain me for a moment. What was the code or key used for Graysmith's solution to the 340?

Sigmund

8/3/2018 04:56:05 pm

The big problem for me is that I don't like Graysmith's proposed solution to the 340. I think he fell into the trap of so many other amateur "cipher solvers". He forced his substitutions in order to create a partially legible solution that was based on a preexisting set of ideas he had about the case. So it goes without saying, if Graysmith got it wrong, then any solution that is forcibly obtained from other ciphers, using the same substitutions, must also be treated with suspicion.

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 09:41:27 am

What he may or may not have wrote in the 340 Rich, I am with you on the study of cracking this being redundant especially now that we have other avenues to focus on.

This one here is stunning forensic science! It is a breakthrough of epic importance & available on our 21st century crime solving tools. This is an absolutely fantastic technological advancement for Law Enforcement to use, especially to apply to cold cases. . .

This is where this case need go. . .

https://youtu.be/E9cWEyNZ2cU?t=38m32s

8/2/2018 12:25:20 pm

Mr. Lewis

When I did the copy - paste and go - for the https://youtu.be/E9cWEyNZ2cU?t=38m32s
It said that for people in the USA their is a
copyright issue and they wont let us see it.

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 01:12:02 pm

BB: It's a recently aired episode of 'On the Case With Paula Zahn' that details the abduction and murder of April TiI

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 02:36:52 pm

BB -

Try this link below. Refers to same case and technology used:

https://youtu.be/qdSH00I-P90

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 01:26:08 pm

April Tinsley I meant, sorry. Anyway, toward the end of the Ep. there's a Lab technician that speaks about how they used suspects DNA to determine the offender will have brown hair, very light skin tone and hi s eye Color will be, to a 94.7% degree of certainty, be hazel.

Then a facial composite was created by a computer Program that is able to take DNA specific markers & translate a genetic code into a facial composite.

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 01:50:17 pm

Oh yeah, forgot to mention:

Suspects ethnicity or family Heritage.

In this suspects case they knew the offender would be from either Britain or Germany.

To say this kinda forensic science can narrow a list of suspects is an understatement!

Also, the computer composite is a rough guide and cant tell u what length of brown hair a suspect had or worn in what style etc, but it would be lnteresting to see What the computerised composite looked like none the less

8/2/2018 04:37:24 pm

got it - thanx

Sigmund

8/2/2018 04:45:53 pm

Agreed Alex. People so often focus on the trivialities, as if cracking that cipher will be the key to everything. It never will. Similarly, forcing a match between a photo of a suspect and a composite proves nothing in reality.

As with any case, this case will only be solved (if it ever is solved) by matching up the fundamental evidence: DNA, fingerprints, and to a far lesser extent, matching the handwriting. Handwriting is generally only used in courts today to complement other evidence, never as a "stand-alone" as far as evidence goes. Handwriting analysis has never been an exact science.

So many internet sleuths think all they have to do is place a person in California at the time, find a photo that looks vaguely similar to one of the sketches, and find a few matches with handwriting. Tick all three and they claim to "have" the one and only Zodiac! In reality, their focus has been on the mere trivialities. In reality their cases are flimsy and would not stand up to the slightest bit of scrutiny in a court of law.

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 09:53:18 am

I've said before, this can't tell you who Zodiac certainly is or was, no. However, it will tell us who Zodiac certainly was not!

Imagine if the DNA Lab tells us Zodiac will have, with a higher than 94% certainty blue eyes sandy blonde hair? Well we wean the suspect right down from this alone simply by eliminating those who have brown eyes & hair.

Alex Lewis

8/2/2018 10:15:17 am

As someday it must happen
A New Science will be found
We have you on a list,
A genetic Lab's short list
This will smash all crack-proof
Claims like yours straight in to half,
For we will be the ones
That have the last laugh
And so it really doesn't matter
Who else is on this list
They will fall as you remain
The last one on that list!

Judith

8/3/2018 06:22:07 am

Before any physical descriptions can be supplied we must have a definitive DNA profile. I have not heard yet if law enforcement has obtained any DNA profiles from the recent submission from Vallejo. My guess is that there are several profiles. Whomever may have touched those envelopes.
From there they must boil down the various profiles, cross reference different DNA genetic databases including CODIS and then try to determine which one is the Killer, if any.

Judith

8/3/2018 06:57:37 am

If I understand correctly very few of the stamps or envelopes were licked
During the lake Herman Road murders, Peter was studying Criminal Justice at San Jose State. He would have been home on Christmas vacation at his mother and father's house in El Sobrante about 20 minutes from Lake Herman Road. Peter's mother had a little round glass dish with a round sponge with water sitting on her desk which was used for stamps and envelopes. During that summer he moved two doors up from his parents house and would have gone back down there to handle any business as his mother was still handling his bills and business for him when I married him in 1978. I sure hope law enforcement does not disregard any female DNA picked up off the envelopes...

Sigmund

8/3/2018 04:41:21 pm

They won't discount female DNA Judith, because it could be familial. It has long been a scenario that the Zodiac got someone else to lick the stamps for him. This "someone" may or may not have been a family member, and may or may not have been under duress at the time. It is possible that the person who licked the stamps could have been an unwitting accomplice. In other words, the Zodiac may have got someone else to pre-stamp his letters on the pretext that he intended to address them later on in order to pay bills. Some family member who was "just being helpful" may in fact have been unknowingly aiding and abetting the Zodiac. One would hope that the authorities rule nothing out when it comes to DNA.

Judith

8/3/2018 07:02:04 am

I was recently reflecting on my life with Peter and remembered arguing with him probably because things were not sitting right with me expressing to him but I was not happy I don't in particular remember that he was drunk that night but he was always drinking I remember walking away but also being down low towards the floor and he standing over me angry and he says "tit Willow, tit Willow, tit Willow b****

Sigmund

8/3/2018 04:47:25 pm

Very interesting, and I wonder, what would be the chances of two or more men repeating this line from a popular play in a similarly violent context during that era? Seems very uncanny to me.

Of course Judith, as you realize it comes down to being your word in which we must trust. This causes me to ask, Did anybody else ever hear him repeat that same line?

I can only trust that someone in authority is working closely with you on this line of inquiry?

Judith

8/3/2018 07:06:08 am

Also with regards to the hair found under the stamp which was described as reddish brown in color Peter's mother had auburn hair as well as Peter

Judith

8/3/2018 07:12:07 am

With regards to the Z340 I solved the my name is cipher with the exact letters of Peter's name using the raw solution for the 340 from GraySmith. What are the odds? Doranchak ran the stats and was able to come up with 6 annagramed names, four were female, one was Peter S Plante and the last one was Peter Pleasant. PS PS PS PS PS

Sigmund

8/3/2018 04:31:20 pm

Any such narrowing in the variability of a proposed solution cannot and should not be discounted lightly Judith.

Can you give me your full solution Judith and how each letter was substituted, as you see it? I did one day have a fiddle around with the letters in Peter S Plante but could not make it fit, no matter how hard I tried. I could of course have missed something. There are 13 characters, and I note that Peter S Plante only has 12, so that seems to cause problems from the outset. Of course nobody knows if the target sight symbol is actually part of the cipher, or just the Zodiac putting his trademark stamp into it!

8/3/2018 05:43:06 pm

Was he killing for monetary gain? or
Was he killing for sexual gratification?
Was he killing for vengeful reasons?

By the way - happy birthday Zodiac -

https://www.zodiacciphers.com/zodiac-news/zodiac-born-on-august-3rd

Sigmund

8/4/2018 04:08:47 pm

For some killers it is like a hunting sport, taken to its ultimate extreme. They kill for the thrill. And not getting caught becomes a part of that thrill. Otherwise, sick people kill for no reason really but for the sake of feeling obliged to do so. Basically, they kill because they are sick in the head. Goes without saying that those who kill other people for a thrill are also "sick in the head".

Judith

8/4/2018 06:41:58 pm

Here is a version of the Z340 solution by Graysmith:

HERB CAEN I GIVE THEM HELL TOO
BLAST THESE LIES, SLEUTH
SHOULD SEE A NAME BELOW
KILLEERS FILM. A PILLS GAME
PARDON ME AGCEPT TO BLAST
ME BULLSHIT THESE FOOLS SHALL
MEET KILLER
PLEAS ASK LUNBLAD
SOEL AT H LSD UL
CLEAR LAKE SO STARE I
EAT A PILL ASSHOLE I
PLANT MR A H PHONE LAKE B
ALL SSLAVES BECAUSE LSD
WILL STOLEN EITHER SLAVE
SHALL I HELL SLASH TOSCHI
THE PIG STALLS DEALS OF
EIGHT SOEL SLAIN

Slueth should see a name below

I Plant Mr
I Plant Mr

This one holds true to me Like someone on LSD wrote this
Herb Caen Clear Lake which is right above Berryessa
Drugs Lunblad Herb Caen

8/4/2018 07:46:19 pm

Wow Judith - That is profound. I am impressed. People need to give this I PLANT MR a good serious consideration. I think it looks like it could be the real thing. What does every body else think?

Sigmund

8/5/2018 04:14:16 pm

I don't know what other people think, but I was kind of hoping for something a bit more illuminating than "I Plant Mr".

It is worthwhile testing any proposed "solution" like Graysmith's in Webtoy. Type in the first line and then try to type in the next, and so on. Only takes a few minutes and is very revealing! ;-)

http://www.oranchak.com/zodiac/webtoy/

As logic dictates, if the initial idea is based on shaky premises, then all ideas that follow from it must be treated with suspicion.

Alex Lewis

8/4/2018 08:23:25 am

This case & the Myth like status that has come to completely engulf the persona of
'Zodiac' that this case is not solvable to a certain point because people have too much invested in The case whether it be financially, emotionally, or both.

Tomorrow the DNA testing could see an announcement made that a match was found, an arrest made with suspect making full confession with one last piece of Paul's bloodoed shirt found in aspect garage aa evidence he's Zodiac and if this suspect does not fit the mental image many have formed of who Z will be. . .

Quite Obviously. . .

Confession is false and/or coaxed!

The DNA was not Zodiacs on the letter

SFPD planted that piece of Paul's shirt

Motive is a cover-up by the set up! Setting up of the poor & innocent: Mr nobody!

Clearly, what we have here is a conspiracy, one involving the SFPD Homicide Dpt., The FBI crime Lab and tghe D.A's office!

Sigmund

8/4/2018 04:02:33 pm

Yes indeed Alex. For many people, the Zodiac case has become one of "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story". Even when (or if) faced with the truth, many will still prefer the old myths and refuse to let go of them. Such people will simply re-invent their old stories in order to accommodate the new reality. Others will deny the new reality and try to pick holes in it. You give some very good examples of exactly the kind of ways people will try to manipulate the truth in order to continue their mythologies. Often the truth can be too dull and boring for many people to accept.

If the Zodiac turns out to be an elderly 94 year old with advanced Alzheimer's Disease, leaning on a walking aid due to chronic osteoporosis and arthritis, unable to speak and drooling into his soup, there will be many who will refuse to believe he was the culprit. Similarly if he, for instance, had been employed in a lowly occupation in a car wash or as a janitor in a school during the time of the killings, even fewer will want to believe it.

Alex Lewis link

8/5/2018 04:39:38 am

Sigmumd: "8/4/2018 04:02:33 pm
Yes indeed Alex. For many people, the Zodiac case has become one of "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story"

Think you hit the nail on its proverbial head there.

Truth is usually much more mundane and unimpressive that embellished stories. One example that comes to mind is Steve Balidino, a former Vallejo Cop who, on the record and on camera, confirmed the whispers of an alleged tape of Zodiac's call to Vallejo PD to report the Blue Rock incident did in fact exist and he knows this because, quote:

" Well, I have no idea what happened to it. But. . . I do know such a recording does exist because I was played the recording of it."

This was before Tom had gone and tracked down Nancy Slover. When He did locate her, She was asked about this tape & told that Steve Balidino had confirmed it did exist & he himself had heard it, Slover replied:

"I don't know why he is saying that. Not only was no such recording made, it wasn't possible! We did not have the capability to record the calls then as this technology only came in in the early 1970's. Steve was a cop , He should know that."

After Slover said that, Steve Balidino admitted He had not heard the recording of Zodiac on tape & that he made it up after he had heard rumours of said tape being a reality & admitted He was simply lying.

The idea that somewhere out there exists the voice of the Zodiac, the phantom mystery man who nobody had bar a select few ever got to hear the mythical like status of Zodiac actually hear His very real Voice.

Sound far more exciting to believe that somewhere out there, buried in a box marked 'Classified' is a tape that if we can only discover would literally allow us to state as we press 'Play' . . .

"Ladies & Gentlemen. . . This IS the Zodiac Speaking!!"

Tom

8/5/2018 06:23:27 am

Excellent point, Alex and Sigmund. Almost all conspiracy theories are spawned by inaccurate initial news reports and are then crafted to fit the political agenda of those who craft their respective theory.

Alex Lewis

8/4/2018 04:54:48 pm

I have said it before & it still something I have never undestood when I see people get so personal as to who Zodiac is or was.

I don't get that at all

This is the way I see it & feel regarding the Zodiacs true identity, if Z is not Kane. . .

It will make no difference to me & my life whatsoever.

Indeed, if I had a say in the identification of Zodiac but it would mean I have to l discover every theory I ever put stock in had to be proven way off, every assumption I made shown to be incorrect and if I develop an opinion, it will be wrong and proven so in 99.9% of time?

I would happily aand without a second thought concede to these conditions and i woyld do this in a heartbeat because it's not about Me, nor proving I am correct at any cost above someone else's.

If Betty-Lou's family get to have answers, a sense of peace that they can truly now begin to let Her go by grieving her loss. . .

If I'm proven to be a total idiot in the meantime? With pleasure, go for it!

That is more than a acceptable price I willing to pay!!

Sigmund

8/4/2018 04:33:42 pm

Getting back to the 340 cipher and the question of its legitimacy as a genuine cipher, I would like to pose this simple question.

What was more important for the Zodiac?

1) Creating a sophisticated and intelligent cipher that had a legitimate solution?

2) Being "crack proof" at any cost?

I think I already know the answer.

Alex Lewis

8/5/2018 05:05:59 am

When it comes to the ciphers, I leave that to others who know much more about cryptography than I do, or will ever do.

I mean, fact is we only have one of His codes that is accepted by all as 'cracked.' And what a treasure trove of valuable information the 408s deciphered message was.

Ranting to inform us "I like
Killing because I'm f*@*&# nuts! I have collected slaves, mine!!! Its place of paradise blah blah blah....'

Why should we think or expect the 340, if deciphered, be of any difference in terms of how important & usable it's message will be?

Sigmund

8/5/2018 03:42:42 pm

I agree with you on that point. Even if it is a legitimate cipher, the solution will in all likelihood reveal nothing more than another insane rant.

Judith

8/4/2018 07:01:59 pm

I suggest you go to Zodiackiller.com Go to General Discussion Go To ETC. Got to my thread Tit Willow page 10 is where I breakdown the my name is cipher solution Also check out the previous pages for handwriting comparisons Much of my book is on this thread Thanks

Alex Lewis

8/5/2018 05:37:27 am

. . . "I suggest you go to Zodiackiller.com..."

Do what???

No! it's against my religion!!

My Religion preaches intolerance to Bullshit!

Judith

8/5/2018 07:53:03 am

I am not able to copy and paste Not that technically knowledgeable...It would be easier to follow what I showed in my book by just going to this thread. Or better yet get my book Tit Willow from Amazon. Having said that, Tom disabled editing at some point when I was posting. He banned me from ever posting again on his site, insulted me personally, and yet refused to remove my thread, in spite of repeated requests. So there it is, buried under some final last Etc. category, as an insult to me. Please know he also received money from me and solicited me directly for more funds. I might note that I am not sure if any of his featured Suspects are in the law enforcement matrix as is Peter. 24200 hits on this thread I posted. He once, very early on, sent an email to me personally telling me to, "go play in traffic". Good thing Peter was dead.

8/5/2018 09:04:12 am

Judith

I dont know how to contact Graysmith but if you could show him what the two of you discovered perhaps that would get somewhere.

Karen C

8/5/2018 03:45:17 pm

He is not hard to contact. Just Google. Whether he replies or not, I can't say. That will be entirely up to him.

Karen C

8/5/2018 03:49:57 pm

I can only guess His Royal Highness was busy "following the yellow brick road" with Purple Blaine at the time, so had no time for your "distractions". But your experience on the forum does not surprise me at all. Sounds very "true to form" in fact.

Judith

8/5/2018 07:16:45 pm

It's not just the"I Plant Mr." I will work on transferring what I discovered on to this message thread. I took the raw 340 and used a the dicephermnt that ObiWan had posted on zodiac killer.com which GraySmith used for his anagrammed solution. Matching symbol for symbol from the "my name is" cipher to the 340 and then lining up those symbols with ObiWan's raw solution, the letters of Peter's name appeared. It's all in the thread on Tom Voigt's Site as I described earlier. Let me figure out how to post it here... thank you so much for listening

Sigmund

8/6/2018 05:11:15 am

Very interesting Judith. I may have to eat my words.The My Name Is cipher is an interesting one. Because of its small size, there is far too much variability for a solution to be possible without knowing the key. However, the fact that a correlation appears to have been made with the key to another possible solution does make this intriguing.

Karen C

8/6/2018 04:48:01 pm

It occurs to me that the small "my name is" cipher has two symbols not found in the 340, the 8 in a circle and the anchor symbol. So I am having difficulty understand how a perfect substitution from Graysmith's key could ever be possible.

8/6/2018 06:49:42 pm

Stanley Dean Baker kept fingers in his pockets.
I know he said it was to munch on but I wonder if he lied.
He could have used them to leave prints to mislead the cops.
In those days everybody thought all you had to do to get out of a crime, was act crazy and get put in the nut house instead.
If it takes a nut to think like a nut - I wonder if I'm nuts?
Stanley Dean Baker was released from the nut house in 1985.
He confessed to being the Zodiac. Maybe he was. Since he did get a lawyer to hide his where abouts, maybe the cops are also not allowed to speak to it from a court order. They can't apply todays laws retroactive. It could be a whole legal thing tangled up in penal codes as opposed to cipher codes.

Sigmund

8/7/2018 04:24:36 am

https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14568805/stanley_dean_baker_case_linked_to/

Judith

8/6/2018 08:13:08 pm

In April of 1970, Zodiac sends in another letter, claiming if they have cracked the last code, then they can use it to solve for his name, this is called the “My Name Is” letter.

The 340 symbol cipher, as decoded in Robert Graysmith's book “Zodiac”, is a mixture of legible statements and anagrams, mixed-up letters, re-arranged, creating the message, like the old word game “Jumble”, in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Here is a version of the solution:
HERB CAEN I GIVE THEM HELL TOO
BLAST THESE LIES, SLEUTH
SHOULD SEE A NAME BELOW
KILLEERS FILM. A PILLS GAME
PARDON ME AGCEPT TO BLAST
ME BULLSHIT THESE FOOLS SHALL
MEET KILLER
PLEAS ASK LUNBLAD
SOEL AT H LSD UL
CLEAR LAKE SO STARE I
EAT A PILL ASSHOLE I
PLANT MR A H PHONE LAKE B
ALL SSLAVES BECAUSE LSD
WILL STOLEN EITHER SLAVE
SHALL I HELL SLASH TOSCHI
THE PIG STALLS DEALS OF
EIGHT SOEL SLAIN

The Zodiac asks in the letter, “By the way have you cracked the last cipher I sent in- My name is-“ and then Zodiac gives us a string of symbols to represent his name.
Matching each symbol in the “My Name Is” cipher, working backwards from the Obiwan solution to the original 340 code,
I was able to decipher the letters of Peter’s name.

Here is the solution. Most of the letters or symbols represent more than one letter.
The odd letter they represent tends to be the one he used for his name.

A=A @=Zodiac cross hairs symbol
E=R
N=P 0= closed circle eight inside of circle
@=L
0=E &= anchor shaped symbol
K=S
0=E
M=T
0=E
&=N
N=P
A=A
M=T

Rearrange the letters, and you have, A, PETER S PLANTE.

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/zodiackillerfr/tit-willow-the-story-of-the-zodiac-killer-t6606-s90.html

Sigmund

8/7/2018 04:13:41 am

I don't quite understand. I only get this:

AEN+8K8M8vNAM
ARPA?S?T??PAT

Problems:

N=P= eight inside of circle ** This symbol is not in the 340, so not in Graysmith's key. How do you know it equals N & P? **

O=E &= anchor shaped symbol ** There is no anchor symbol in the 340, so it is not in Graysmith's key. Why should it equal O & E? **

@=L??? There is no @ symbol in either cipher. Do you mean "A"?

Rubislaw 32 link

8/7/2018 04:54:10 am

In answer to questions raised,with respect to the symbol appearing,in the ''My name is ---'' cipher :

Often referred to,as the ''Eight-Ball symbol'',it appears three times,in Zodiac's 13 symbol cipher.

BUT....it is NOT a conventional ''Eight-Ball'' depiction.

It is unique,in that outer edges of the number 8....touch the circle line,which encloses it.

In January 2016,I discovered that this unique symbol,was found,by the Zodiac,in one publication,at the documents wing of Berkeley University Library.

That document is the 1962 Colorado Brand Book,which documents registered livestock brands,for the State of Colorado.

The ''very specific'' type of 8-ball symbol,is registered to Helen Roper Brown,Hasty,Bent County.

Readers may be interested to know that,on page 454,of this same Colorado Brand Book,Red Ryder's ''Flying V.F.Bar'' symbol,is registered,to a ....Fred Harman III,of Pagosa Springs,Archuleta County,Colorado.

Sigmund

8/7/2018 06:17:47 pm

Thank you Rublislaw, this is very important and relevant information. Some have in fact used this to point to Ted K (or perhaps an unknown student or friend of his), as he was of course the "child prodigy" turned "Unabomber" who famously taught at TTC Berkeley prior to abruptly quitting from there and "dropping out" of the modern techno-industrial society for good.

However I am sure this book was more widely published and therefore could have been accessible to many other people virtually anywhere across the USA at the time.

If anything, it shows to me just how eclectic the Zodiac was. He was very much like the obsessive character from John Fowles novel The Collector. The Zodiac seemed to vacuum up bits of information from his experiences and from the books he read, then rehashed them later, not in complete form, but bit by bit - almost as if randomly scattered and mixed into his present thoughts.

The fact that he used that Harman brand as a return address is interesting. Was this to indicate a return address to a certain point in his mind or thoughts at the time, or was it intended to indicate a real address? Berkeley cannot be discounted as the return address of course, but as I have already stated, the book would have almost certainly been more widely available. It just so happens that you discovered the book there in 2016 in the documents wing of Berkeley University Library. I can of course well imagine a young Ted K being fascinated with such a book simply because the unique symbols could provide him with new material for creating such things as cryptograms and other mathematical puzzles.

Judith

8/7/2018 06:22:37 am

Look again closely at the 340 the samples were drawn with a felt-tip pen if you look at the symbols I circled you can see that they are the circle eights they just bled

Sigmund

8/7/2018 04:58:07 pm

I cannot really agree that the symbols "bled", sorry. The symbols are what they are, and clearly they are different. To force a match would be all too "convenient" IMHO.

Rubislaw 32 link

8/7/2018 07:04:24 am

Judith,I am not sure that we are on the same page of of the Hymn sheet here.....and I don't mean that to sound flippant,or disrespectful.

Examining the symbols that the Zodiac employed,for his ''340'' cipher,we find that :

i] Zodiac did not employ the ''Eight-Ball'' symbol,nor any symbol remotely close to its resemblance.

ii]If there is any cause for debate,on this,one could argue that,Zodiac electing to employ the alphabetical letter ''B'',and its mirror image,might be,in some way construed,as an ''8''.

But,I would doubt that anyone would believe that Zodiac meant to write ''8'',instead of ''B'',or its mirror image....in the ''340''.

And,further that the ''B's'',or their mirror images,in the ''340'',were encircled to look like an ''Eight-Ball'' symbol,anyway.

The ''variation'' on an ''Eight-Ball'' symbol,is employed by the Zodiac,for the purposes of the ''My name is ----'' cipher,for the very first....and indeed,''only ever'' time.

Not only is the ''Helen Roper Brown'' symbol unique....it is also unique,as employed in one of Zodiac's ciphers.

That being,the ''My name is ----'' cipher.

Judith

8/7/2018 07:15:09 am

Yada yada Warden. Rubislaw let me ask you first respectfully were you able to examine the documents I posted on the thread Tit Willow at zodiackiller.com? Try as I may I was not able to copy those images in the above thread. So sorry,
please examine the symbols I circled on the 340 closely. They are Circle 8s which simply bled on account of the use of the felt-tip pen. Either you follow what I've done here or you don't, it really doesn't matter to me.

Judith

8/7/2018 07:26:38 am

Why would zodiac ask us if we have cracked the 340 yet and then provide the my name is cipher with different symbols?
He didn't.
Do what I did. Look at the "my name is" cipher and then look at the raw 340. Circle those symbols on the 340 and then look at the ObiWan solution and solve the puzzle.

Rubislaw 32 link

8/7/2018 07:58:47 am

Judith,I am not in dispute with you,over your claim that Peter's name appears in the solution,to the ''My name ----''.

But to refer to me as a ''warden'' is churlish,and unhelpful [?].

The total work of the Zodiac,in writing,should stand up to examination and scrutiny....under its own merits.

You write : '' Circle those symbols on the ''340'' and then look at the ObliWan solution....''.

Why,anyone might ask,would it be a ''sound'' idea,to play around with any aspect of the Zodiac's work ?

The Zodiac's written work stands as he presented it,and it is then for us,to interpret the meaning,which he wished to convey.

Why,anyone might ask,would it be prudent to ''move bits about'',add extras,or subtract that which does not suit [?].

There is certainly evidence that the Zodiac had a penchant,for introducing a new symbol,when presenting us with a new cipher.

Perhaps,to just add a little interest,and draw extra curiosity,from the potential solver.

The ''omega'' symbol,employed in Z32,is a case in point.

''We'' are supposed to figure out the Zodiac,''mentally''.

And,without ''touching''.

Karen C

8/7/2018 06:31:33 pm

Okay, so I have just been re-reading everything. I am now totally confused. Is she saying the symbol on the 340 has to manually have a circle drawn around it; or is she saying the original symbol bled out? Or was it her or ObiWan's sample that showed what the symbol would look like if someone altered it by drawing a circle around it the one that bled out?

In any case, I don't understand. Why would we have to meddle with the 340 cipher in order to create another symbol????

Sigmund

8/7/2018 06:32:42 pm

Glad I'm not the only one who is confused! :-)

Judith

8/7/2018 01:00:03 pm

No disrespect intended Rubislaw yada yada Warden is something Peter used to say it's from Lenny Bruce one of his favorites. you would have to first accept the fact that ObiWan's solution to the 340 is the correct solution.
You did not indicate whether or not you had examined the documents that I did post. do the other symbols line up with the correct letters? re-examine the raw 340 and tell me what those symbols are then, the ones that you don't believe are Circle 8s. print it off and hold it up to the light. no one is rewriting any rules here. I would like to know who created the so-called rules to begin with, including the rule against anagramming. Perhaps we have had the solution all along.

Karen C

8/7/2018 05:55:49 pm

"re-examine the raw 340 and tell me what those symbols are then, the ones that you don't believe are Circle 8s."

Sorry Judith, but your statement reminds me a bit of other forum posters who say "Well if you can't prove me right, than why don't you prove me wrong?"

The thing is, it is not up to anyone else to prove you right or wrong. You can only do that for yourself.

All I know is this:
1) I personally do not see that any of those characters were originally circled 8s that "bled".
2) The 340 cipher has never been conclusively solved so how can anyone prove you right or wrong regarding the merit of your substitutions? Clearly they cannot!
3) We can only agree with you if we make the same presumptions that you have made.

Sorry, but I am only being honest here. :-)

Rubislaw 32 link

8/7/2018 02:31:58 pm

I accept your explanation,Judith,and,may I say,commend your great temperament,with regard to examining the work of the Zodiac.

This is what we must try to do - stick to Zodiac's ''script'' - for it was his gig.

With Zodiac's ''408'',and,as far as we are aware,his first cipher offered,he did,undoubtedly,leave the last line as an anagram puzzle.

We ''should'' know this,since Zodiac and ''concerned citizen'' were one and the same person.This is not difficult to surmise,since the time frame,between the cipher sent,and the ''concerned citizen's'' solution,was too short,to have assessed conclusively,that polyphonic symbols were employed.

The Harden's solution lays testament to this,in that their solution,was only approximately 98% correct,instead of 100% correct,bar Zodiac's single unforced error.

The real point [perhaps],is that Zodiac had elected to introduce an anagram,as part of the whole puzzle of the ''408'' cipher.

Therefore,the possibility subsequently existed,that further ciphers ''might'' contain polyphonic symbols....and,''might'' contain anagrams.

An anagram is a puzzle that exists,for us to solve on paper,But,in a literal sense,''still'' exists,in a jumbled form,just as the cipher maker [Zodiac],left it,in his presentation of the cipher.

Splitting hairs,perhaps [?].But,nevertheless,the reality.

Nothing actually changes,in Zodiac's ''presentation''.

A further point,that requires emphasising,I believe,is....that Zodiac was a ''cipher maker'',and not a ''cipher breaker''.

Personally,I find it easy to see,that Zodiac was a poor judge of ''degree of difficulty'',as his cipher making,started to develop.

But,there are instances,where ''we'' ought not to complain.''Z32'',in particular,where it is apparent that he attempts to give us,as many ''worded'' clues,as he is able,to compensate for only three symbols repeated,in the cipher.Certainly a case of Zodiac electing to make the cipher,solvable by cryptic clues,than cryptographic ones.

But,as has been noted,with regard to Z13,the ''My name is ----'' cryptogram,there are simply not enough symbol positions,to conclusively,by probability theory or otherwise,prove a correct solution.

Therefore your solution,Judith,could be correct.

Sigmund

8/7/2018 05:43:17 pm

he did,undoubtedly,leave the last line as an anagram puzzle.

A contradiction surely, as you also speak of probability theory and the requirement to prove. So how can probability theory provide overwhelming support for something as highly variable as a closing anagram? Quite clearly it cannot. So was the final line of the 340 "undoubtedly" an anagram or is it more a case of present day "presumption" based on "convenient telepathy" for some? The truth is it is a presumption of your own making.

Karen C

8/7/2018 05:19:16 pm

Not wishing to put too fine a point on it, but am I the only one who is beginning to see a similarity here, re "Sandy Betts", "Purple Blaine". "White Rabbit", plus just about every author to date who has claimed to write authoritatively about the identity of the Zodiac?

Once chasms are forcibly filled in for seeming want of convenience in order to satisfy a prevailing theory, I quickly lose interest.

The first thing I do when faced with a new solution or theory is follow the chain of logic that lead to the author's conclusions. The source of the idea is the place to begin, and if this is nothing more than a presumption based on other presumptions, well it stands to reason that the conclusion must also be based on those same presumptions. The presumption in this case is that Graysmith and an online identity known as "ObiWan" were 100% correct. Of course, in reality we have no way of knowing if they were 100% correct. Given the huge variability in a cipher that, some have presumed, requires each symbol to have numerous possible substitutions, the chances of Graysmith and ObiWan being correct are actually rather slim. Add to this a new presumption that one of the symbols got misrepresented due to "bleeding ink", and you begin to see the problems. I see no such evidence that the ink "bled" on that particular character at all.

Seems to me that too many presumptions have to be made from the outset for the solution to ever be deemed the only possible solution. This is the simple truth.

Tom

8/9/2018 08:45:22 pm

Karen C, you make way too much sense.

Rubislaw 32 link

8/7/2018 06:29:20 pm

Hi Richard

Quod erat demonstrandum ?

Peace be with you.

Karen C

8/7/2018 06:39:28 pm

I am SO confused. I am actually hoping that Richard could maybe do this whole Judith cipher theory on a separate page, set it out logically and in sequence, without all the murky confusion surrounding characters that have "bled" and so forth. Having to go to and fro to other forum pages to check on things is giving me a splitting headache.

It is also a bit unfair to Judith, and must be very frustrating for her, as I am sure some of us are not seeing exactly what she means, or in the correct sequence.

Tom

8/8/2018 07:48:51 pm

This stuff does get confusing, but there is one salient fact that remains. No known POI could have comitted all the murders. If you follow the logic of the advocates it leads to a circumstantial case of involvement in only one crime. For this I issue an apology to Judith and Sandy. Mr X was not involved in the LB attack , sorry Mike R. I am going to follow the lead of Randall Clemons and spend my energy in an effort to learn about coded messages. See ya.
TM

Karen C

8/10/2018 04:12:34 am

What you say is very true. It is interesting to note that many (perhaps most) of the suspects now in the "public domain" are skewed toward one of the crime scenes and not others. Gaikowski seems inextricably linked to Stine, if we believe the presumptive circumstantial evidence. Likewise Qvale. Then there is Sullivan to Cheri Jo Bates, Leigh to Lake Herman Road (perhaps), and now Plante to Lake Berryessa, etc. The theories seem to be pre-occupied with circumstantial evidence supporting a contention of involvement in only one of the Zodiac's crimes, rarely the crimes as a whole. The Zodiac's M.O. changed with the geography of the crime scenes, which were frequently a great distance apart.

Good luck with coded messages. The thing about ciphers is this. They are only ever as good or bad as their authors.

Tom

8/10/2018 03:08:30 pm

Toschi and Armstrong stated that the crimes were linked by evidence. The known POI’s were excluded based on that same evidence. There is a good chance the gulity party was interviewed at some point by LE but somehow couldn’t be linked to the crimes. Very frustrating to say the least.

Karen C

8/10/2018 04:31:27 pm

Yes, I think he was probably one of the people interviewed early on in the case and dismissed.

Rubislaw 32 link

8/10/2018 04:39:52 am

Most Zodiac enthusiasts have personal takes on culpability.

Mine is that William Grant was a victim of Zodiac's persecution.And further,that the murder of Darlene Ferrin,was personal.

I agree,Tom,that no known POI's,so far,committed all the murders.But I believe that ''one'' Zodiac is responsible.

The late great comedian,Sir Ken Dodd,died this year,aged 90.

Such was his desire to please the public,he was known to regularly take to a stage,and tell a stream of jokes for 6-8 hours,without even stopping for a sip of water.Even taking to heckle members of an audience that needed to leave,in order to catch the last bus home.

When the Royal Shakespeare Company offered Dodd the role of Malvolio,in ''Twelth Night'',he was honoured and delighted.

Dodd's friends told him that he would never be able to stick to script.

''Yes I will.'',Dodd replied,and added : ''What do you take me for...a fool ? '',

Dodds friends reminded him that ''a fool'' was precisely whom he was playing [Malvolio],and the sooner he get used to it,the better for Dodd.

For Zodiac's writing,interpret precisely as one sees.

'' i.e.'' - id est,''that is'',......'' Read as written''.

Karen C

8/10/2018 04:53:16 pm

There is also a wise old saying: "Only fools rush in where angels fear to tread".

"For Zodiac's writing,interpret precisely as one sees."

Unlikely, and some might say impossible, to interpret precisely, because crazy rants from crazy people are generally only meaningful to those who wrote them, and those meanings may be as garbled, variable, confused and transitory as the author's state of mind from minute to minute or day to day. My bet is that even if the Zodiac is still alive, he would probably not be able to fully recall why he wrote some things or for what reason. Nevertheless there do seem to be plenty of people offering to help him to remember. LOL! Problem is the interpretations have become superfluous, yet every one of the "interpreters" foolishly believes they are right. I guess this is where the qualifying phrase "interpret AS ONE SEES" comes in. There will always be a huge element of subjectivity to contend with in the interpretation of any writings. The problem comes about when people begin to steadfastly believe in their own highly subjective reasoning.

Tahoe27

8/10/2018 06:20:30 pm

Yes.

Tom

8/11/2018 07:31:52 pm

Karen, thank you so much. Your posts are a great example of human reasoning power. Reading them is very refreshing. A very rare commodity in today’s world.
TM

Sigmund

8/10/2018 05:19:24 pm

I see no evidence at all that Darlene knew the Zodiac, although this seemed to be somewhat ostensibly implied by Graysmith and the movie script writers. She was, we are lead to believe, scared for her life that someone was either stalking her or angry with her for cheating or double-dealing etc. etc. Some people have tried to form tenuous links to underworld dealings and the drug culture etc. Again, no real proof is ever offered. It is all just based on rumor and innuendo against a deceased person who can no longer offer her side of the story. I have heard similar rubbishy rumor-mongering from the peanut gallery regarding Kathleen Johns, such as she made it all up as an elaborate insurance scam etc.

Darlene Ferrin may well have known the Zodiac, or more likely I feel, the Zodiac may have come to secretly know her from a distance. She may have vaguely known him by face only, but perhaps he was an insignificant speck on the far horizons of her social radar. He may have been all but invisible to her, but she became the center of attraction for him. There is perhaps enough evidence to suggest Darlene was a "social butterfly" who kept contact with numerous people. In this day and age she would no doubt have been one of those young girls who has a mobile phone plugged into her head 24/7 and thousands of friends on Twitter and Facebook. But whether this is grounds enough to suggest that she knew the Zodiac on a personal level would be rumor mongering at best.

As for Grant, I still fail to see any reason why he should even be considered as having anything whatsoever to do with the case. The whole case against him is so murky. It is a house of very wobbly match sticks with few foundations. We have only various "tall tales" provided by somewhat scurrilously inventive and essentially disingenuous authors to go by. One could only base any presumptions that follow logically from their claims on a "gut feeling" or a "belief". So to say with any certainty that Grant was being persecuted by the Zodiac reaches new levels of abstraction and inventiveness. It does in fact become the domain of shifty "under the counter" Tabloid media, IMHO. It also becomes somewhat political in that it is an idea inclined to produce sectarian division in the case and a caveman propensity for the believers to whack the "disbelievers" over the head with a big club. Oh well, we have seen such divisiveness many times before in the Zodiac case.

So once again it becomes a case of "each to their own peculiar encampment" I suspect!

Rubislaw 32 link

8/11/2018 12:37:57 am

Hi Richard

The ''redacted three'' request has been made.

Thanks for the March 30th 1974 date.

Expecting a reply on the twelfth of never,or thereabouts.

We can but hope [?].

Chris Stevens

6/24/2019 06:13:45 pm

https://youtu.be/sAh4YN3mcRM

Please watch my video on the Z340 cipher.
I’m not suggesting it still don’t contain a message, but what I found is amazing.

Thank you!

Sigmund

6/25/2019 03:46:13 pm

Interesting interpretation of the data. This presentation starts off promising, but it ultimately becomes far too subjective in its interpretation. There are a lot of other patterns that can be found in this cipher using various methods proposed by many different people, but none of them to date have provided a satisfactory solution.

Chris Stevens

6/25/2019 06:36:37 pm

At what point did it become subjective?

Sigmund

6/27/2019 10:58:36 pm

Hi Chris,

First of all let me say that I find any patterns in this cipher interesting, as they could be what points to a solution. Then again these patterns could be nothing more than accidental relics of the encryption process. They could be red herrings designed to lead people down a dead end, or they may have no relevance at all. The Zodiac may have just got sloppy or lazy.

The main problems for me can be listed as follows:

1) Although homophonic ciphers tend to lend themselves well to the idea of a grid pattern (rows and columns divided into squares of equal size), we have no way of knowing if the Zodiac intended this. You present what is essentially a vague pictogram that is partial and based on a small percentage of highly selected placements. The problem is that if we presume all symbols must represent a square on a grid, this tends to exclude other possibilities, for example the idea that the symbols were actually intended to represent different letters of the alphabet. I really wonder how a cipher can function as both a pictogram and a homophonic cipher, although I am sure that such a cipher could be possible.

2) The other problem is that the graphics are very reminiscent of 1980s computer graphics, as we once saw on Commodore 64s and Atari computers for instance. I think the Commodore guys were calling them "sprites" back then. A lot of early computer games were based on these square-shaped sprites that could be joined together to make recognizable patterns. The reason we humans today instantly recognize those "sprites" as ducks is because those kinds of images are now a part of our shared experience. But the Zodiac operated in the late 60s and would have had little or no social and cultural conditioning in such things. Arcade games showing crude sprite-like patterns on a screen did not really appear until 1971-2.

3) Thirdly, what if we presumed that instead of squares, the Zodiac had intended dot points in place of the matching symbols you found? Would the result still look like ducks? I doubt it.

4) At one point your methodology produces a large number of filled in squares, but all of a sudden you claim that many of them are just superfluous noise and are not needed, so you delete them. It was at this point that you completely lost my attention. The obvious question is, why should the symbols you kept in place be any more or less important than the ones you deleted? Surely if they are all the result of the same methodology, then each symbol should have equal value. Otherwise it appears you are simply selecting some squares to make shapes to suit your own theory.

Sigmund

6/28/2019 06:45:04 pm

The other problem is inconsistency in methodology. The first two patterns are matched using the same rules, but ultimately the similar patterns show DIFFERENT symbols. Yet you then suddenly switch to a method using another rule based on matching the SAME symbols as they relate spatially to the patterns.

Chris Stevens

6/26/2019 01:55:04 pm

https://youtu.be/BG6HsUCHSuQ

I made another video explaining and answering a few questions, and giving my option on the zodiac killer himself after finding the picture.
Please see the above link to my second video on the picture.

Sigmund

6/29/2019 04:05:40 pm

Unfortunately, these pivot points are not a new discovery and have been discussed in the past. They do in fact appear on the Zodiac Ciphers Wiki page under the heading "Pivots". See http://zodiackillerciphers.com/wiki/index.php?title=Pivots

You have however taken this another step further in your methodology, by matching the symbol pairs which relate to specific locations around these pivots.

It occurs to me that the other thing these shapes could resemble, even if we were to circle the symbols rather than show them as grid squares, are "keys" rather than ducks.

The Zodiac seemed to want to impress us with his so-called "Mt Diablo code", the relevance of which still evades all who have tried to make sense out of it. It occurs to me that any code requires a key. So maybe these are the "keys"?

Some people have wondered if the Zodiac may have turned some parts of the cipher around on itself, such as by swapping rows and columns around. Keys do tend to allude to this possibility.

But once again, without knowing which rows or columns he may have swapped, or in which order, finding the right combination could take an infinity to solve. We also of course do not know if these pivots 1) were left intentionally, or 2) were intended to represent any thing or purpose at all.

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