Ni Hao: New York Television Stations Receive Letters From 'Chinese Zodiac Killer'
© AP PhotoWritten on greeting card mailed to a San Francisco newspaper (Chronicle) by a killer who calls himself Zodiac and included a letter and a cryptogram in San Francisco on Nov. 11, 1969. Police say Zodiac has killed five, but in his new communications Zodiac claims seven. The writer lists the months the killings took place at the bottom, with the total ?and I can?t do a thing with it!? refers to a drawing on the card showing a dripping wet pen with the salutation: ?Sorry I haven?t written, but I just washed my pen?? (AP Photo)
© AP Photo
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The news comes amid speculation about the identity of a serial killer who terrorised northern California in the second half of the 20th century. He is known to have killed five people and several other cold cases have been linked to the Zodiac. Police never caught the killer.
Several television stations in the city of Albany, New York have received letters from an individual calling himself the "Chinese Zodiac Killer", local media reported. The Albany Times Union was the first outlet to break the story. The FBI later confirmed to People Magazine the veracity of the report.
The agency has instructed the television stations not to open envelopes in order to preserve potential DNA. The FBI emphasised that there was no threat to the local community, but at the same time called on the news organisations to be on the alert for more letters and suspicious packages. It also stated that it would not comment on the issue while the investigation is ongoing.
This is not the first time that media outlets in Albany have received a letter from an individual calling himself the Zodiac Killer. In August 1973, The Times Union received a cryptic note in which the Zodiac Killer promised to kill a woman.
The agency has instructed the television stations not to open envelopes in order to preserve potential DNA. The FBI emphasised that there was no threat to the local community, but at the same time called on the news organisations to be on the alert for more letters and suspicious packages. It also stated that it would not comment on the issue while the investigation is ongoing.
This is not the first time that media outlets in Albany have received a letter from an individual calling himself the Zodiac Killer. In August 1973, The Times Union received a cryptic note in which the Zodiac Killer promised to kill a woman.
"YOU Were WRONG I AM NOT DEAD OR IN THE HOSPITAL I AM ALIVE AND WELL AND IM GOING TO START KILLING AGAIN Below is the NAME AND LOCATION OF MY NEXT VICTIM But you had Better hurry because I'm going to kill her August 10th at 5 P.M. when the shifts change. ALBANY is A nice Town”, reads the letter as per The Albany Times Union.
The note came following several years of silence from the Zodiac Killer, who frequently sent letters, post cards, and coded messages to the media in California.
The news comes amid speculation about the identity of the infamous killer. Back in October, a group of cold case investigators, consisting of volunteers from law enforcement, military, legal, and academic backgrounds, claimed to have solved the case, identifying US Army veteran Gary Francis Poste as Zodiac. The group cited similarities between Mr Poste, who died in 2018, and the police sketch of the Zodiac.
The group also claimed to have solved one of the cyphers Zodiac sent to newspapers and police as well as claimed to have found the evidence, which proved that Poste is the Zodiac Killer. The volunteers said several years before his death Poste started giving away his huge arsenal of weapons to his neighbours. Poste’s former daughter-in-law said she believes the investigators got it right.
The news comes amid speculation about the identity of the infamous killer. Back in October, a group of cold case investigators, consisting of volunteers from law enforcement, military, legal, and academic backgrounds, claimed to have solved the case, identifying US Army veteran Gary Francis Poste as Zodiac. The group cited similarities between Mr Poste, who died in 2018, and the police sketch of the Zodiac.
The group also claimed to have solved one of the cyphers Zodiac sent to newspapers and police as well as claimed to have found the evidence, which proved that Poste is the Zodiac Killer. The volunteers said several years before his death Poste started giving away his huge arsenal of weapons to his neighbours. Poste’s former daughter-in-law said she believes the investigators got it right.
"[He] is the Zodiac, without a doubt. Being around him, knowing his demeanour and his shadiness and twistedness — I have an intuition, I can read people", Michelle Wynn said.
Zodiac Killer is known to have killed five people, but several cold cases were linked to him. The murderer himself claimed to have killed 37 victims, whom, according to his letters, he planned to use as slaves in the afterlife. Despite massive police hunt, law enforcement failed to catch the perpetrator.