The Zodiac Killer...maybe?

[Doyle]

A new suspect in San Francisco's notorious "Zodiac Killer" case was discharged from Vietnam and returned to California just three months before the unsolved serial murders began, The Post has learned.
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/16590.htm

 

[Casshew]

January 26, 2004 -- A new suspect in San Francisco's notorious "Zodiac Killer" case was discharged from Vietnam and returned to California just three months before the unsolved serial murders began, The Post has learned.

Convicted hit man William Mentzer saw heavy combat in Vietnam when he was just 18 and 19 years old - and suffered from chronic post-traumatic stress disorder when he returned in 1968.

In prison interviews with The Post, Mentzer, 54, said he liked to taunt enemy North Vietnamese soldiers by taking pictures of their dead comrades.

The new revelations come in the wake of a Post report that the San Francisco district attorney found "compelling" links between Mentzer and the police profile of the never-caught Zodiac Killer - who taunted cops in letters as he brutally murdered five people and severely wounded two others in the Bay Area in the late '60s.

Mentzer is serving life sentence without parole for the 1983 Los Angeles murder of New York theatrical producer Roy Radin and the 1984 slaying of prostitute June Mincher.

Full Story from the New York Post

 

[JDB]

OMG this brings back memories for me. I had frogotten they never caught anyone in these cases.
Thanks cass
:blowkiss:

 

[lymom3]

It would be incredible if this case was to be solved at this late date.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,414022,00.html

The Zodiac killer kept the country on edge for five years in the late 1960s and early 1970s before his series of murders in Northern California's Bay Area stopped abruptly. The killer was never found, though plenty have speculated on his identity.

 

[Cymro]

Full disclosure: I also post at the zodiackiller.com message board.

There is a lot of compelling evidence there, if it is true. Unfortunately Kaufman has been around for years, is aggressive, self-contradictory and mercenary, offering to sell Zodiac artefacts to researchers rather than handing them in to investigators.

You also have to wonder why Kaufman is allowed to handle these items of "evidence" if that is truly what they are, rather than something that he has fabricated.

I find Tarrance a plausible suspect - but I don't find Kaufman a plausible investigator. If the evidence came from someone else I would be on the cusp of believing that the case had been solved, subject to DNA - but Kaufman's attitude makes me think that he is an egotistical attention seeker with no regard for others.

So if Tarrance is the killer, it's a case of "like father, like stepson."

 

[Richard]

There is a thread in Cold Cases about the Zodiac case that goes back a few years.

I have always felt that there may have been more than one serial killer responsible for the murders generally credited to Zodiac. And I think that the guy who wrote the Zodiac letters may have taken credit for killings that he did not commit, just to boost his standing with the police and public.

It is not likely that these killers worked together, but rather that there were several around in the San Francisco area and other places in California and Nevada and that some how they were linked through similarities or coincidence. Or through Zodiac (the writer) claiming to have committed the crimes.

 

[Dr. Doogie]

Years ago, Dennis Kaufman offered to sell a piece of Paul Stine's bloody shirt for $50,000 (Stine was a cabbie killed by Zodiac and Z used to include swatches of the shirt in his letters for verification). Yet there is no mention of this shirt being given to the FBI for testing. (Strike one)

Dennis claims that the FBI tested Jack Tarrance's DNA in 2000 and determined that he was the Zodiac. If that was true, then why are they doing this new round of testing? - They already "have their man". (Strike two)

Dennis allegedly wrote a book and sold copies on his website. I say allegedly because few if any ever actually received his book. When challenged as to the book's existence, Dennis posted a photo of a mock-up of the book - a shoddily printed cover wrapped loosely around a stack of papers that was supposed to prove that he actually had a book. When he was again challenged, he "withdrew" the book from sale. (Strike three)

And now, Dennis just happened to find Zodiac's hood and a bloody knife hidden in Jack's old stuff. Of course, by pure coincidence, Dennis has just completed a "documentary" about Jack this week which I am sure will be available for a fee at his website. (Strike four)

This guy is a huckster and a loser. I cannot believe that the media is giving this clown the credibility that it is. Five minutes of googling would have saved them from looking stupid, but I guess a "good story" and a "true story" are not the same thing.

 

[kline]

I think Richard Giakowski is a far more compelling suspect at the moment.
Youd have to go to the Zodiac Board to read about him.

 

[martin walkerdine]

as america most famous serial killer been id at last the name is as following
Zodiac Killer's Identity And Weapon Uncovered?

Local Man: Zodiac Killer Was My Stepfather

Update On Evidence Investigated By FBI



SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ¯

The Zodiac Killer attacked at least eight people, terrorizing the Bay Area and taunting police in the 60's and 70's. The FBI confirmed to CBS13 on Thursday that they are now running laboratory tests on some items that may link a suspect to the killer.

The evidence was given to the FBI by a Pollock Pines man who also claims he recently found the disguise worn by the Zodiac Killer during one of his attacks.

"The identity of the Zodiac Killer is Jack Tarrance. He's my stepfather," said Dennis Kaufman.

Eight years of Dennis Kaufman's life has been consumed with attempting to prove the only father he's known since he was five-years-old is none other than the Zodiac Killer.

"This a handwriting comparison I did," Kaufman said, showing handwriting samples he claims to be his father's and the Zodiac Killer's, which are strikingly similar. Kaufman said it's no coincidence.

"The composite is a dead ringer," Kaufman said, showing composite sketch of the killer next to his stepfather's -- a resemblance that is undeniable between pictures of Jack Tarrance and descriptions of the zodiac.

Kaufman also claims his stepfather, in a taped phone conversation, indirectly admitted being the zodiac killer.

"If I wrote a book and said I think my stepfather is the Zodiac Killer they wouldn't believe me," Kaufman said.

Jack Tarrance died in 2006. Kaufman said that while going through Tarrance's belongings, he made some disturbing finds, including a knife still covered with what could possibly be dried blood.

"It could be a knife he barbecued with or a knife he murdered someone with," Kaufman said.

Jack also left behind rolls of undeveloped film. Kaufman plans to hand over the film to the FBI. There were numerous gruesome images on a roll he did develop.

"[It] appeared to be people who were murdered," he explained.

Just recently, Kaufman remembered his stepfather asking him several times about an old PA system, which led him to take it apart.

"When I first opened it up that did affect me. My heart skipped a couple of beats when I saw it," he said.

The material folded and tucked inside, Kaufman believes, may unmask the zodiac killer.

"It was a black hood with a zodiac on it," Kaufman said.

It's similar to the hood worn during the vicious 1968 Lake Berryessa attack, which could be key evidence connecting his stepfather to the killings. He also believes there are dozens more victims which were never linked to the Zodiac, including Kaufman's own mother, who he claims was suffocated.

"She sat there and told me Jack was trying to kill her and I didn't listen. I can only imagine how she felt. Imagine how scary that would be. That is what kept me going this whole time," he said.

The FBI confirmed they are running DNA tests on items that Kaufman gave them.

Kaufman said there are postage stamps sent to him by his stepfather, and authorities are trying to get DNA profile of Jack Tarrance to compare to the Zodiac Killer. The FBI told CBS13 they could get those results back any day.

 

[Columbo]

According to the article, she and her father were "unusually close" (I wonder what that means? could be horrifying) so they supposedly went together on his Zodiac killing sprees. At the time, she didn't know what was happening, but now she has "recovered memories". She claims to have the cab driver, Stine's, eyeglasses.....

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/04/29/BAFA17BE9N.DTL&feed=rss.bayarea

 

[smart blonde]

This should be interesting to follow, and see where it leads...

 

[Kateyes]

Thanks for the link. Now I have to get out the book, "The Zodiac" and look it over again to refresh my memory. I can't remember for certain,but I believe this is a new name into the possible perps list. Does anyone here remember if the name in this article has ever surfaced before in connection with the Zodiac?

 

[Columbo]

Thanks for the link. Now I have to get out the book, "The Zodiac" and look it over again to refresh my memory. I can't remember for certain,but I believe this is a new name into the possible perps list. Does anyone here remember if the name in this article has ever surfaced before in connection with the Zodiac?

You're welcome, Kateyes. I recently saw the movie "Zodiac" and don't remember his name mentioned at all. I haven't read the book.
I'll have to re-read the article,maybe I missed something, but I'm starting to wonder how he could have been the Zodiac if he lived in So. Cal?

 

[shadowraiths]

Thanks for the link. Now I have to get out the book, "The Zodiac" and look it over again to refresh my memory. I can't remember for certain,but I believe this is a new name into the possible perps list. Does anyone here remember if the name in this article has ever surfaced before in connection with the Zodiac?

Its a new name, and interestingly, here is what the folk over zodiac killer have to say:

No, the Zodiac has not been identified.

The story told today by Deborah Perez at the press conference in San Francisco differs from the original claims she made to me about a year ago via e-mail and voicemail, which I still have.

Site: Zodiac Killer

 

[PattyCake]

Well here's my take.

How do you spell Oscar Mayer? BOLOGNA!

She's a real estate agent and her 'adoptive' father died in '83 making it convenient for her own DNA not to be tested against know DNA of the Zodiac? '83, she's 47 and she waits THIS long? Whatever. She would have come forward when the movie came out in 2007 if it was real.

I say it's a very slow year in real estate, we know that. She's a fraud looking to get her name in the paper so she can make money. My 2cents everyone. That is what my gut is screamin'.

 

[Gozgals]

Well here's my take.

How do you spell Oscar Mayer? BOLOGNA!

She's a real estate agent and her 'adoptive' father died in '83 making it convenient for her own DNA not to be tested against know DNA of the Zodiac? '83, she's 47 and she waits THIS long? Whatever. She would have come forward when the movie came out in 2007 if it was real.

I say it's a very slow year in real estate, we know that. She's a fraud looking to get her name in the paper so she can make money. My 2cents everyone. That is what my gut is screamin'.

I agree. The Bolonga factor did it for me. I never heard the name mentioned in the book or the movie as being one of the suspects. Great case but she is full of it. 15 minutes of fame baby. That's it.

Goz

 

[Shecky]

Well here's my take.

How do you spell Oscar Mayer? BOLOGNA!

She's a real estate agent and her 'adoptive' father died in '83 making it convenient for her own DNA not to be tested against know DNA of the Zodiac? '83, she's 47 and she waits THIS long? Whatever. She would have come forward when the movie came out in 2007 if it was real.

I say it's a very slow year in real estate, we know that. She's a fraud looking to get her name in the paper so she can make money. My 2cents everyone. That is what my gut is screamin'.

I agree. Hasn't there been at least one other person to claim relation to the Zodiac in some way? But of course these claims can never be proved.

You know what? hell with it, Websleuths! I'm going to the San Francisco PD tomorrow to turn myself in. I am the Zodiac. What's that? I was born in 1984? Well uh..I forged my birth certificate ya see, and uh...I just look young because I take lots of vitamins and work-out regularly!

Well you have to admit it's a funny scene to picture.

 

[PattyCake]

I agree. Hasn't there been at least one other person to claim relation to the Zodiac in some way? But of course these claims can never be proved.

You know what? hell with it, Websleuths! I'm going to the San Francisco PD tomorrow to turn myself in. I am the Zodiac. What's that? I was born in 1984? Well uh..I forged my birth certificate ya see, and uh...I just look young because I take lots of vitamins and work-out regularly!

Well you have to admit it's a funny scene to picture.

If you can earn my hubby money in the oil industry at the moment, I'll back up your claim! rollingggggggg eyes please

Damn you Zodiac, I KNEW YOU WERE STILL ALIVE. And I thought the hollywood movie would make you come forward like the BTK news media anniversary story made him mad... But it was Websleuths instead? Your IQ is higher than we 1st thought.

I agree. The Bolonga factor did it for me. I never heard the name mentioned in the book or the movie as being one of the suspects. Great case but she is full of it. 15 minutes of fame baby. That's it.

Goz

Goz hon, you look an awful lot like a sexy man named Bono. Any relation?
Shame what people will do to sell a few homes hey?

 

[Shecky]

Damn you Zodiac, I KNEW YOU WERE STILL ALIVE. And I thought the hollywood movie would make you come forward like the BTK news media anniversary story made him mad... But it was Websleuths instead? Your IQ is higher than we 1st thought.

It is I! Unfortunately, I lost my infamous Zodiac hood years ago, I'll have to make one out of a paper shopping bag tomorrow. When the police and media see me in it, it will surely be enough to convince them -AND THE WORLD!- that I am who I say I am!

:woohoo:

 

[PattyCake]

It is I! Unfortunately, I lost my infamous Zodiac hood years ago, I'll have to make one out of a paper shopping bag tomorrow. When the police and media see me in it, it will surely be enough to convince them -AND THE WORLD!- that I am who I say I am!

:woohoo:

If you at least color in some black and white stripes on a bed sheet, you can claim its the last remaining piece of the taxi drivers shirt Paul Stine that has never been located. That will go a long way with associate press and whomever will show up at your press conference.

I've read books and endless pieces about the Zodiac. The fact that anyone took this woman seriously - it HAD to be a very slow day in the news.

Good timing on her part. :sick: