Killers usually go to great lengths to avoid the police and media attention but the self proclaimed zodiac who terrorized the bay area in the late 1960s and early 1970s was an exception.

Zodiac killer explained. These letters included four cryptograms or ciphers. The zodiac killer was a serial murderer who stalked parts of northern california from december 1968 through october 1969. It could be said that the killer was one of the most meticulous and complex serial killers in history rendering him untraceable and leaving all of his murders ultimately unsolved. The zodiac movie ends with allen being identified as the killer by mike mageau one of the survivors.

The case inspired the 1971 film dirty harry which starred clint eastwood and it was the subject of the critically acclaimed david fincher drama zodiac 2007. The zodiac killer or simply zodiac or the zodiac is the pseudonym of an american serial killer who operated in northern california from at least the late 1960s to the early 1970s. His identity remains unknown. The zodiac killer was an active serial killer between 1968 and 1974 and he was notorious for his methods of involvement in each crime.

Zodiac killer unidentified american serial killer who is believed to have murdered six people primarily in northern california between 1966 and 1969. The mystery of the zodiac killer a serial murderer who terrorized the san francisco bay area for years during the 1960s and 1970s is a case that has inspired heaps of speculation but no firm. The zodiac killer corresponded with authorities and the public via letters and postcards sent to media organizations occasionally cryptographically encoded in which he claimed a total of 37 victims. Through a series of cryptic letters he sent to the media and others the killer disclosed his motivation for the slayings offered clues to future murders and adopted the nickname zodiac.

• Zodiac Killer Letters Deciphered