Is the Zodiac Killer a myth?

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. He’s a literary invention.” New Peacock series Myth of the Zodiac Killer explores a fringe theory that no single serial killer was ever responsible for the murders Five murders have been connected to the person claiming to be the Zodiac, and communication from the purported murderer boasts of dozens more. The first letters claiming responsibility for the murders arrived at San Francisco newsrooms just a few short weeks after the Vallejo attack, including the “cross-circle logo” that would come to be associated with the serial killer, though the writer did not yet use the term “Zodiac.” The author included details of the crimes and a cipher which contained his identity When authorities appealed for more information, the writer followed up with his first use of the infamous phrase: “Dear Editor, This is the Zodiac speaking.” Then, on 27 September 1969, college students Cecelia Shepard, 22, and Bryan Hartnell, 20, were tied up and stabbed repeatedly in Napa County. “As an English professor, these Zodiac letters were what got me interested in the case in the first place,” Mr Horan says in the Peacock series. open image in gallery Police sketches show the purported Zodiac Killer “Maybe he’s not guilty, but you do have a prime suspect who is worthy of further investigation,” Mr Horan says of Ferrin’s ex, Jim Phillips.