The Zodiac Killer's sinister message finally deciphered 50 years on from chilling unsolved murders
One of the most mysterious messages left by the Zodiac Killer has finally been solved nearly 50 years after his killing spree took place - here is what the chilling message contained.
The Zodiac Killer is arguably the most infamous criminal in US history, given the case's blend of murder and creepy cryptogram messages sent out.
Between the 1960s and 70s, a string of murders shocked residents of Northern California, with authorities at the time unable to track down the perpetrator. Investigators would later summarise the mysterious killer had targeted seven victims (five of which died from their injuries) while notes sent into local newspapers saw the Zodiac claim to have taken the lives of 37 people.
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One of the most promising leads on tracking down the killer's identity involved the mysterious ciphers (encrypted message) which investigators hoped would help them be able to track down his identity.
A total of four ciphers were sent out to local newspapers - alongside various letters - with several of the encrypted messages remaining unsolved to this day.
Despite the difficulties, authorities and true crime fanatics alike haven't given up on trying to figure the puzzles out, with one of them finally decoded back in 2020.
Known as the 340 cipher, the chilling message was sent out to a newspaper in San Francisco back in 1969 - with investigators hoping that solving the message would help uncover the killer's identity.
After spending over 50 years unsolved, the cipher was decoded, with the message turning out to be a taunt from the killer.
"I hope you are having lots of fun in trying to catch me that wasnt me on the TV show which brings up a point about me I am not afraid of the gas chamber because it will send me to paradice [sic]," the note read.
"All the sooner because I now have enough slaves to work for me where everyone else has nothing when they reach paradice so they are afraid of death I am not afraid because I know that my new life is life will be an easy one in paradice death."
Two ciphers remain uncoded, with authorities unsure they'll ever be able to fully unravel the mysterious notes.
Although no one was ever charged with the crimes, police did have one suspect who is currently featuring in an upcoming Netflix documentary.
Watch the trailer below:
The prime suspect is Arthur Leigh Allen, but police were never able to find enough evidence to charge him.
However Netflix's new documentary This Is the Zodiac Speaking follows the Seawater siblings, whom Allen had been involved in their childhood, sharing their experience with law enforcement for the first time.
This Is the Zodiac Speaking is available to stream on Netflix from 23 October.
Topics: Community, Crime, True Crime, Netflix
Brenna Cooper