Zodiac Unmasked (70 page)

TUCKER indicated that he saw the Zodiac symbol at ALLEN’s house and also some type of cryptograms.

7. A Zodiac letter received by newspapers dated 101369 al uded to “shoot the little darlings as they came bouncing off the bus.” Almost

the same verbiage given to CHENEY in 1968.

8. A Zodiac letter dated 110969 described making his bomb for blowing up buses by using ammonia nitrate, stove oil, and gravel. A

formula in ALLEN’s handwriting was found during the service of the search warrant at Al en’s residence on 02/91, as wel as completed pipe

bombs.

9. A Zodiac letter dated 110969 stated, “You don’t know if the bomb is at the site or stored in my basement for future use.” During the

service of the search warrant of ALLEN’s residence on 02/91, pipe bombs were found in ALLEN’s basement, as wel as formulas for

ammonia nitrate and stove oil bombs.

10. A Zodiac letter dated 110969. It indicated that the kil ing tools were bought through mail order. During the service of the search

warrant at ALLEN’s residence on 02/91, mail order catalog pages were found regarding bombs, booby traps, and guns.

11. On 032370, Kathleen JOHNS was stopped by an individual flashing his headlights. This individual indicated that her tire was loose.

He, in fact, loosened the lug nuts on her tire causing her tire to fal off, and then took her in his vehicle for quite some time. A letter sent to the

news media on 072770 by the Zodiac claimed he was responsible for this incident. This is almost exactly the same as told to CHENEY in

1969.

12. During this conversation with CHENEY in 1968, ALLEN asked CHENEY how to disguise his handwriting, and he would wear makeup

to change his appearance. Note—The Zodiac handprinting has never been matched to that [of] ALLEN. This could explain this match not

being made. This premise has been discussed at length with Terry Pascoe, Questioned Document Examiner, DOJ retired. He original y

worked on some of the Zodiac letters. He agrees that a person with high intel igence could study the methods used to examine handwriting

and fool a document examiner.

13. During the conversation with CHENEY, ALLEN indicated he would have fun hunting people.

14. ALLEN told CHENEY that he would send letters to the police to confuse and antagonize them.

15. ALLEN told CHENEY that he would attach a flashlight to a weapon for sighting in the dark. This is referred [to] by the Zodiac in a letter

he sent to the news media on 080769.

16. Shoe prints found at Lake Berryessa by the Napa County Sheriff’s Department belonging to the kil er are size 10½. ALLEN wears

shoes size 10½.

17. The description of the kil er in Val ejo at Blue Rock Springs and in Napa County Sheriff’s Department jurisdiction at Lake Berryessa is

a heavyset white male with a potbel y. ALLEN is a white male, heavyset with a potbel y.

18. Letters received from the Zodiac by the media had what appeared to be intentional y misspel ed words. ALLEN intentional y misspel s

words. One example would be in documents found during the search warrant of 02/91, ALLEN spel ed the word eggs “aigs.” This intentional

misspel ing of words was confirmed by his brother Ron ALLEN who says that Leigh ALLEN did that to be funny.

19. ALLEN denied any knowledge about making bombs and denied ever making any formulas for making bombs. ALLEN’s handwriting

has been matched to the formulas found for making bombs during the search warrant of 02/91.

20. ALLEN was reported to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department on 092374 as having molested a boy in that city. He was arrested

in late September or early October 1974. The last letter received from the Zodiac in this time frame was 070874. ALLEN was released from

Atascadero State Prison in September 1977. No Zodiac letters were received while ALLEN was in Atascadero Prison.

21. In 1969, Ralph SPINELLI had a conversation with ALLEN. ALLEN admitted he was the Zodiac. ALLEN claimed he would do a kil ing

in San Francisco to prove that he was the Zodiac kil er. On October 11, 1969, Paul STINE, a cabdriver in the City of San Francisco, was shot

to death. This shooting differs from the July 4, 1969, kil ing in Val ejo, and the September 27, 1969, kil ing in Napa County inasmuch as those

were both men and women in secluded areas. On 101469, a letter from the Zodiac took credit for the STINE kil ing and sent part of STINE’s

shirt to the newspaper.

22. In May of 1991, ALLEN gave an interview to the
Vallejo Times-Herald
. In that interview he indicated a “Man from Lake Tahoe” had

recently given Val ejo Police Department information regarding him (ALLEN). It should be noted that SPINELLI owned a restaurant in the Lake

Tahoe Area in the early 1980s. It is apparent that ALLEN must have kept track of SPINELLI as he was never told by us that SPINELLI had any

connection with Lake Tahoe.

23. Reference Item #6 in this list of circumstances—On 061191, Captain Conway and I re-interviewed Phil TUCKER. The excerpts from

Item #6 were from a 1971 interview by Detective Dave TOSCHI of the San Francisco Police Department. During our interview Phil TUCKER

was unable to remember that Arthur Leigh ALLEN had told him that he had special sights for shooting in the dark. He did, however, indicate

that Arthur Leigh ALLEN told him he was proficient in shooting and proficient in shooting in the dark.

Most significant new information revealed by Phil TUCKER was the fol owing: The book [Al en had mentioned] was about hunting people

with a bow and arrow. ALLEN was fascinated with this. He indicated a number of times that it would be more sport to hunt people as they had

intel igence. This conversation took place while ALLEN and TUCKER were discussing hunting trips while [en route] to the ocean to go diving.

ALLEN was fascinated with the concept of stalking people rather than game. TUCKER indicated that he felt that ALLEN wanted TUCKER’s

reaction to these statements. TUCKER told ALLEN that he would never consider hunting people. TUCKER indicated he thinks ALLEN told him

the name of the book he had read. After some time I asked TUCKER if the name of the story was “The Most Dangerous Game,” and TUCKER

said he did not think that was the name of the book. TUCKER indicated that this conversation took place prior to September of 1966 as that is

the month and year he married his first wife, and he did not see ALLEN to any great degree, nor go out on hunting and fishing trips with him

after his marriage.

It should be noted this is almost exactly the same as part of the conversation he had with Donald CHENEY on January of 1968 and almost

exactly the same as al uded to by the Zodiac in his letters to the press, as wel as in his cryptogram. TUCKER was asked if he knew Donald

CHENEY, and he advised he did not.

TUCKER was asked why he did not give this information to TOSCHI and MULANAX in 1971. He indicated he only answered their questions

and was not asked about any fantasies ALLEN may have related to him.

TUCKER also indicated that during the span of this conversation, Arthur Leigh ALLEN had a Zodiac brand watch with a Zodiac symbol

which consisted of a circle with lines horizontal y and vertical y through it.

TUCKER also indicated that he has seen Arthur Leigh ALLEN write with both hands, and that he uses both hands equal y wel when

handwriting. TUCKER describes his handwriting as not real good.

TUCKER also indicated that ALLEN had an interest in codes, and that he had seen a handwritten Zodiac-type cryptogram at ALLEN’s

house prior to any cryptograms being published in the newspaper. TUCKER also indicated that ALLEN loved to try and outsmart the other guy.

TUCKER indicates that in 1969, he owned an older brown Corvair that was beat up, and that ALLEN had driven this Corvair. He could not

specifical y indicate whether ALLEN drove this Corvair on July 4, 1969. It should be noted that witnesses at the kil ing at Blue Rock Springs on

July 4, 1969, described an older brown vehicle, possibly a Corvair, as being the responsible vehicle.

24. In the mid-1970s D.O.J. Investigator SILVER accompanied by Bryan HARTNELL, the victim in the Napa Sheriff’s Department Zodiac

Case, went to a hardware store where ALLEN was working. HARTNELL was directed to make a purchase from ALLEN. HARTNELL then

informed SILVER that ALLEN’s physical size and voice were the same as the person who had kil ed his girlfriend and badly wounded him,

HARTNELL, in Napa. HARTNELL did not see the face of the responsible [assailant] in this incident as he was wearing a hood.

25. While Arthur Leigh ALLEN was incarcerated at Atascadero State Prison, D.O.J. Investigator SILVER had a polygraph examination

given to ALLEN by D.O.J. Polygraph Examiner Sam LISTER. Sam LISTER indicated that ALLEN had passed this polygraph test, and he felt

he was not, in fact, the Zodiac kil er.

We had our polygraph examiner JOHNSON examine the charts used by LISTER on ALLEN. JOHNSON indicated that after examining the

charts, it was his opinion that ALLEN was on some type of drugs while he was taking the polygraph for LISTER, and that it was also his opinion

that ALLEN did not pass the polygraph examination, and that it was inconclusive. It should be noted that Atascadero is a mental hospital, and

many of the inmates are on different types of tranquilizers.

26. During the search warrant in February of 1991 at ALLEN’s residence, a letter was located that indicated it was from Investigator

SILVER at the Department of Justice. This letter was to “Whom It May Concern” and indicated that ALLEN had passed the polygraph

examination, and law enforcement should no longer consider him as a suspect in the Zodiac kil ings. Also found was the master for making this

letter. ALLEN subsequently admitted that he had printed this letter while working in the print shop at Atascadero Hospital. However, ALLEN

maintained that this letter was authentic.

Contacts with SILVER indicated that the signature on the letter was authentic, but it was not D.O.J. letterhead, and he would never write such

a letter. SILVER did indicate that he had written letters to ALLEN to obtain his permission to do a polygraphic examination, and this may have

been where his signature was found and used in this bogus letter.

27. In mid-1992, Michael MAGEAU, the victim in the Zodiac kil ing in Val ejo, wherein Darlene FERRIN died, and he was badly wounded,

made a positive identification from a photo lineup comprised of driver’s license photos, one of which was Arthur Leigh ALLEN’s picture from a

1968 driver’s license, that ALLEN was the responsible who shot him on July 4, 1969, at Blue Rock Springs.

28. One of the cryptograms sent by the Zodiac had a line on it that indicated, “My name is,” and it was a different cryptogram at this

location. This cryptogram was final y broken, and it was determined to read, “Robert Emmett, the Hippie.” No one was able to locate “Robert

Emmett, the Hippie.” In August of 1992, information was developed that ALLEN was an associate with the manager of the swimming team at

Val ejo High School whose name was Robert Emmett RODIFER, and this person later became a hippie attending University of California,

Berkeley, and U.S.F. in San Francisco.

Robert Emmett RODIFER was located in Germany. He confirmed that he did, in fact, know Arthur Leigh ALLEN although he indicated they

were never friends. RODIFER indicated that he was very popular when in school, and that Arthur Leigh ALLEN was not, and there was

apparently some animosity between him and ALLEN because of this. He was given the information about “Robert Emmett, the Hippie,” and

the only explanation he could have was that ALLEN was jealous of him, RODIFER.

29. Information was developed that when Arthur Leigh ALLEN was born, and as a youngster, he was left-handed, and that he was forced

to write with his right hand by his parents. Thus, he became ambidextrous. ALLEN steadfastly denied this [ability], indicating he was only able

to write with his right hand. However, his brother indicated that, in fact, Arthur Leigh ALLEN could write with either hand. Also, we interviewed

Arthur Leigh ALLEN’s best friend, Glen RINEHART, who was very defensive of ALLEN, but confirmed that ALLEN was able to write with his

left hand.

The handwriting of the Zodiac kil er has never been matched to the handwriting of Arthur Leigh ALLEN. Our handwriting expert,

CUNNINGHAM, confirms that if ALLEN had the ability to write with his left hand, that this could explain the inability to match the handwriting to

Arthur Leigh ALLEN.

30. In August of 1992, Arthur Leigh ALLEN was found dead in his residence of a heart attack. A search warrant served at ALLEN’s

residence revealed more bomb formulas, and a videotape of al the TV interviews related to the Zodiac. Also, a letter that was to be opened

upon his death indicating that he was not, in fact, the Zodiac, and that he had been persecuted by the Val ejo Police Department.

The Zodiac Letters

ZODIAC’S RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA WRITINGS

1. November 29, 1966 (Tuesday). Two typewritten carbon copies of a “confession” letter sent to the press and Riverside police. Zodiac

typed on a sandwich of Teletype paper and carbon paper and mailed the faintest, the fourth and fifth impressions. The original typed top page

was never sent. He entitled the letter “THE CONFESSION By————” and typed at the bottom: “CC CHIEF OF POLICE, ENTERPRISE.” The

confession had the same mocking tone Zodiac used in a later letter he began “My Name is———.” The threat of more kil ings to come is also