The Colorado Connection to the Zodiac Killer: A Possible Lead

America’s Zodiac Killer is believed to have murdered at least five people between December 1968 and October 1969 — and remains unidentified to this day.

The shootings and stabbings took place over 10 months in California's San Francisco Bay Area. Two victims survived. One of them claimed the killer was someone from Colorado.

Was the Zodiac Killer from Colorado?

The Zodiac Killer's messages began to appear in the offices of San Francisco newspapers in 1968. He threatened violence (bombings/shootings) if the letters went unpublished. While authorities acknowledged five murders, the Zodiac claimed 37 people in his last confirmed letter (1974).

On September 27, 1969, Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard were attacked at Lake Berryessa in Napa County, California — an assault believed to be carried out by the Zodiac Killer. Bryan survived and later told authorities that the killer claimed he had recently escaped from a Colorado prison.

Was the killer lying to throw others off his scent? Did trauma affect Hartnell's memory? The website Zodiac Ciphers is dedicated to these unsolved crimes. They report that in later years, Hartnell said the killer told him he escaped from a Montana prison.

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Wait, Was the Zodiac Killer from Colorado?

It just so happens that a man named Donald Lee Bujok was released from Montana's Deer Lodge Penitentiary in 1968. Researchers found parallels between Bujok's background and the Zodiac's known behaviors and writings. Sadly, their fingerprints did not match.

Read More: The Unsolved Murders that Haunt the Lumber Baron Inn in Denver

Moving Forward: New DNA Tech

Today, investigators still hope that new genetic technology can lift fingerprints or DNA evidence from the known envelopes handled by the Zodiac Killer. Answers from this evidence could help further develop clues about the Zodiac's identity, and help solve the 'Colorado connection'.