Mike Renault Mageau and Bryan Calvin Hartnell are the only two known survivors of the Zodiac. Mageau was conversing in a car with her co-worker, Darlene Ferrin, when the Zodiac shot and killed Ferrin. Mageau was shot four times and survived.
On 30 December 1977, serial killer Ted Bundy escaped from prison while most of the guards were off for Christmas. He did so by sawing through the vent of his cell with a hacksaw blade, ending up in the chief jailer's apartment (who was away on Christmas break).
Case Breakers said it found DNA on a hiking mat once owned by Poste and connected it to him after securing DNA from a relative of Poste's. The group wants law enforcement to compare that DNA to hairs found on Cheri Jo Bates, who it believes was a sixth victim of the Zodiac killer in 1966.
In all, the Zodiac Killer claimed to have committed 37 murders, but has never been identified and is officially tied to six murders.
There's no clear-cut DNA evidence
But detectives aren't as lucky with Zodiac. Most of his murders involved him shooting the victim and running away. The only crime scene where he had extended contact with his victims was at Lake Berryessa.
Bundy escaped from prison twice in 1977. The first time, he was indicted on murder charges for the death of a young Colorado woman and decided to act as his own lawyer in the case. During a trip to the courthouse library, he jumped out a window and made his first escape. He was captured eight days later.
This Florida woman is one of the most well-known female serial killers in American history. Born to a broken family, Wuornos had a troubled childhood and left home at a young age to escape alleged abuse. To make ends meet, she turned to sex work while living in Florida, where she began killing men.
Serial killers with the highest known victim count. The most prolific modern serial killer is arguably doctor Harold Shipman, with 218 probable murders and possibly as many as 250 (see "Medical professionals", below). However, he was actually convicted of a sample of 15 murders.
Whether it was Gary Francis Poste or not, one thing that is clear according to the authorities is that the Zodiac killer would now be around 90 years old.
The last murder confirmed to have been committed by the Zodiac killer was on October 11, 1969. The killing, which took place in San Francisco, claimed the life of Paul Stine, a 28-year-old taxi driver.
Later that year the Zodiac killer attacked another young couple, though once again the male survived. The last known victim, a taxi driver, was shot in October 1969.
Some murderers, such as Albert Fish, Boone Helm, Andrei Chikatilo, and Jeffrey Dahmer, are known to have devoured their victims after killing them. Other individuals, such as artist Rick Gibson and journalist William Seabrook, have legally consumed human flesh out of curiosity or to attract attention to themselves.
H.H. Holmes was one of America's first serial killers. He lured victims into his hotel, the “Murder Castle”. This guide provides access to materials related to the “H.H. Holmes” in the Chronicling America digital collection of historic newspapers.
The Zodiac Killer is one of America's most infamous serial killers. During the 1960s and 1970s, Zodiac murdered at least five people, often couples in secluded areas, near San Francisco. His first victim was Cheri Jo Bates. He wrote a confession about her, including a message to “beware…”
He actually gave himself the title “Zodiac” in the cryptic letters he sent to the press during his murder spree. The letters often began with the words “This is the Zodiac speaking,” and contained various cryptograms and taunts alluding to his planned murders. Most of the cryptograms remain unsolved to this day.
Arthur Leigh Allen (b. December 18, 1933 - d. August 26, 1992) is one of the most significant Zodiac suspects as he was the only one ever officially named by law enforcement. Allen is also the subject of David Fincher's acclaimed 2007 movie, Zodiac, starring Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr.
Amarjeet Sada: The Eight-Year-Old 'Sadist' Who Became The World's Youngest Serial Killer.
According to the website UberFacts: “Seventeen serial killers were born in November, compared with an average of nine for other months, out of a total of more than 100 in the study. Those born in November are most likely to believe they get a raw deal.
From the late 1960s to the early 1970s the Zodiac killer sent four coded letters. Of the four ciphers, only one has actually been solved. His letters were written in two parts. The first part was usually written in plain text, while the other was in cipher text, in which he claimed contained his identity.
From Australia's first serial killer (William MacDonald) to its worst (the "Snowtown" murders), Australia has suffered a wide range of homicidal psychopaths who were compelled to keep killing until they were caught.
But both Hitler and Stalin were outdone by Mao Zedong. From 1958 to 1962, his Great Leap Forward policy led to the deaths of up to 45 million people—easily making it the biggest episode of mass murder ever recorded.