Group of investigation specialists claims to have uncovered identity of the Zodiac Killer

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Peyton Renwick, Reporter

A team of forty investigation specialists in Vallejo, California recently claimed that they have solved the mystery of the Zodiac Killer. The group calls itself the “Case Breakers.” It consists of retired law enforcement investigators, journalists, and military intelligence officers. With all these different areas of expertise, they were able to come to a conclusion. Meanwhile, the FBI is also working on this case, making sure that the group has correctly accused this man. So far, they are confirming nothing said by the “Case Breakers.

Oct. 6, the group uncovered his identity using “…new physical and forensic evidence, signed up eyewitnesses, filed court affidavits, and secured decades of pictures from Gary Poste’s former darkroom,” according to a press release. One image that was found specifically features scars on the forehead of [the suspect] that match scars on a sketch of the Zodiac. 

They finally identified the killer as Gary Poste. He had retired from the Air Force, and passed away in 2018. One of his former friends had posted on Facebook with the caption, “My Last Visit with Old Man! Gary Poste! Zodiac? God Dang! I Miss You Old Man!,” after his passing. This led many to be more confused, due to the usage of “zodiac” in the post. 

Jen Bucholtz, a former Army counterintelligence agent, said the team also found deciphered letters from the Zodiac Killer that reveal him as the killer. 

“So you’ve got to know Gary’s full name in order to decipher these anagrams,” Bucholtz said. “I just don’t think there’s any other way anybody would have figured it out.”

When he was active (between 1968 and 1969), the killer would send taunting notes and codes to the police after every murder, which they would then have to decipher. He loved to brag about every kill he had, and he was truly menacing. This had caught the attention of many North Carolina citizens, and especially the police themselves. The killings had the people frightened and always on the lookout. In total, he sent four codes. Over the years, people have only broken one, and nobody could identify him until now. David Oranchak was the leader of the group that had cracked the 340 character cipher. The Zodiac had written in the solved code that, “I hope that you have lots of fun trying to catch me.”