by proldic » Mon Aug 15, 2005 12:24 pm
Key Selections:<br><br>"...the Presidio, which has so many connections to so many Zodiac and related crimes."<br><br>"Kaen was a man of no wealth and a petty criminal, at best. Yet, after the Bay Area Zodiac murders, he was able to get a key position inside the mob headquartered in Las Vegas." <br><br>"It is becoming more and more apparent that the Zodiac did not work totally alone - he may have killed people alone, but he may have had a reason for the killings and the support from other people. But what is the motive? Jealousy? Drugs? The Occult? The Zodiac killings were professional hits and for professional reasons."<br><br>"...it might mean that TEAM ZODIAC consists of not two, but at least three persons." <br><br>"There are those theorists - including members of Darlene's family – that think some of the murders may actually have been filmed." <br><br>"...the victims who were stabbed were murdered by a man wearing military shoes. According to police reports, the shoe was issued by the Navy, which could include the Marine Corps. The murderer had to have access to the military between 1966 and 1969. This could generally mean the stabber would have been in the military or recently released from the military. If he was an older man, in his mid-30s, he would have to be a career military person." <br><br><br>XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX<br><br><br>Napa Sentinel<br>August 12, 2005<br> <br>Who was the man with the red hair?<br>Unsolved Murders of the Napa Valley - <br>Eleven in a Series <br>(Part Five of the Zodiac)<br><br>by Harry V. Martin<br><br>He has red hair, wears glasses, was middle-aged and the side of his face is partially paralyzed - that is the description of the Zodiac. A man fitting that exact description was seen at the Washington and Maple streets house near where the cab driver was murdered. A man of that description was seen exiting Paul Stein's cab on the night of October 11, 1969. A man of that description has been identified by the family and friends -including a Vallejo Police Officer - as the man who Darlene Ferrin feared and who is alleged to have followed her on July 4, 1969 - the night she was murdered.<br>Is he the man identified in Zodiac code as KAEN? On Sunday, April 19, 1970 - between the dates that Kathleen Johns was kidnapped in Stanislaus County and Donna Lass disappeared in Lake Tahoe, the Zodiac sent a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle, and in it he made a cryptogram of his name - thirteen characters. Without much deciphering, the lettering was AEN K MYENAM - which was interpreted to possibly mean MY NAME KAEN.<br><br>There is another suspect in the case who uses many spellings of his name, Klein, Cain, Kain, and Kaen. This man has been in trouble with the law since 1946. Lawrence Kaen's photograph has been identified by Darlene Ferrin's family and a Vallejo Police Officer, as the man who followed Ferrin around, the man Ferrin was afraid of and the man Ferrin witnessed commit a murder. Kaen has red hair, wears glasses, has a slightly paralyzed face and therefore a partial smile. He fits the description of the man who followed Darlene the night she was murdered.<br><br>After Darlene's murder, Kaen traded his white vehicle in at a San Francisco auto dealer. Kaen, like Robert E. Hunter, cab driver Paul Stein, Darlene Ferrin and her husband, and Donna Lass all lived in San Francisco around the same time. According to Darlene's family, Stein and Darlene knew each other quite well. Lass, who lived in Southern California and moved to San Francisco, left the City at the same time Kaen did and they both went to work for the same Hotel-Casino - she disappeared shortly after that and a letter from the Zodiac indicated that she was his 12th victim.<br><br>Lass, while living near the Presidio, which has so many connections to so many Zodiac and related crimes, frequently flew to Riverside with two men, according to her roommate. It was in Riverside that Cheri Jo Bates was murdered - a murder claimed by the Zodiac many years later. The vehicle parked in Hunter's garage at Washington and Maple belonged to a couple that lived only one-and-one-half blocks away from Bates' home and it is known that Bates was close to the family. She was murdered on October 30, 1966. Cecilia Shepherd, who was murdered at Lake Berryessa, was also from Southern California and had close ties to Bates.<br><br>Kaen was a man of no wealth and a petty criminal, at best. Yet, after the Bay Area Zodiac murders, he was able to get a key position inside the mob headquartered in Las Vegas. In order to work directly with the head of the mob, one does not drop off a resume'. It takes connections to get inside the high echelons of the mob. A poor person like Kaen would need a reference, a sponsor, so to speak, to achieve such an exalted position. His boss was murdered after testifying to a Grand Jury and Kaen moved on to Lake Tahoe to again work with a powerful group - Donna Lass left at the same time and was employed under the same roof -the Sahara Tahoe on the South side of the Lake.<br><br>Eye witnesses report a man fitting Kaen and the Zodiac's description was inside the house at Washington and Maple - a house singled out by Zodiac clues. The final clue to focus on the house was the word "kiddie" in the Zodiac's letters. Right down the street from the house at Washington and Maple was the Kiddie School.<br><br>Kaen lived on Eddy Street at the Clark Hotel. This is the same address that Darlene Ferrin's family has related to her. Kaen lived there in 1966-1967, Darlene Ferrin lived in the vicinity in 1966-1967, Paul Stein lived there at the same time. They all knew each other. It was right after Stein's murder that Kaen left for Nevada. <br><br>The Vallejo Police Department found the information on Kaen to be very credible. He has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area, South Lake Tahoe, Las Vegas and Riverside.<br><br>One key feature, not known in too many investigative circles, was that the man who harassed Darlene Ferrin and who she said she saw kill someone, is a man with a partial smile because his face was slightly distorted in a cement truck accident. Kaen has that same distorted face, as did the man seen at Hunter's house.<br><br>What we know of Kaen is:<br><br>• He lived in the same hotel as Darlene Ferrin and Paul Stein during 1966-67.<br><br>• He has been identified as the man Darlene Ferrin was afraid of, the man she said she saw kill someone.<br><br>• He and Donna Lass moved to South Lake Tahoe at the same time and worked in the same hotel. Both leaving right after the murder of Paul Stein, the cab driver, near Robert Hunter's house and not too far from Donna Lass' house.<br><br>• He is believed to be the man in Hunter's house at the time a car was parked in the garage. A car that belongs to people who knew Cheri Jo Bates.<br><br>• He matches the description of the Zodiac with red hair, glasses and middle age. He was born in 1924.<br><br>• He also lived in Riverside. Lass and two men flew to Riverside quite frequently. Hunter, Lass and Kaen all had that Southern California connection with some having ties to Bates.<br><br>• He was not a man of means nor of any influence, yet he was able to land a job with one of the biggest mob bosses in America.<br><br>• He traded in his car the day after Darlene Ferrin was murdered. The car matches the description of the car reported to have followed Darlene Ferrin the night she was murdered.<br><br>Kaen is definitely a suspect in some law enforcement notebooks. But how does he tie in to people like Hunter or to the victims?<br><br>It is possible that Darlene Ferrin, Cheri Jo Bates and Cecilia Shepherd all dated the Zodiac - a man that could not take rejection lightly. Darlene Ferrin is believed to have had a close relationship with Paul Stein, according to Ferrin's family. Ferrin was in a car with another man the night she was killed. Shepherd was at Lake Berryessa with another man, as well. The killer of Shepherd wrote the dates of the Jenson-Farraday murder, and the date of Darlene's murder on the side of Shepherd's car.<br><br>It is becoming more and more apparent that the Zodiac did not work totally alone - he may have killed people alone, but he may have had a reason for the killings and the support from other people. But what is the motive? Jealousy? Drugs? The Occult? The Zodiac killings were professional hits and for professional reasons.<br><br>The owner of an airplane Darlene Ferrin is pictured by, and the owner of the boat Darlene Ferrin was to be on July 4, 1969, could blow the case wide open.<br><br>ZODIAC: he visited his victims after they died<br><br>"All the circumstantial evidence fit perfectly," said San Francisco Police Officer Jim Deasy. He was referring to the case involving the occupant of the Washington and Maple street house. He stated, however, "It was so good, in fact, that we had to check it out. Unfortunately, we were able to eliminate the man completely based on his fingerprints."<br><br>In a confidential document entitled: Special Report - Zodiac Homicides, issued by the California Department of Justice and stamped "For Law Enforcement Use Only", Special Agent Mel Nicolai wrote, "Pending receipt of any additional evidence, handprinting is the most positive method of identification or elimination of suspects. " Nicolai's statement is made with full knowledge of finger prints left in the Yellow Cab of Paul Stine, slain near Washington and Maple streets in San Francisco on October 11, 1969. Zodiac wrote after the Stine slaying criticizing the police. He said he left no finger prints at any of the crime scenes. Handwriting, not fingerprints, is the key to the Zodiac, according to the Department of Justice who have the files on Zodiac.<br><br>The following evidence is to be found in each case, according to the law enforcement agencies in their respective murder jurisdictions:<br><br>CHERI JO BATES: October 30, 1966 - Stabbed to Death<br><br>The evidence consists of handprinting, latents (skin of killer), militarv heel prints, Timex wrist watch, typewritten confession letter.<br><br>BETTY LOU JENSEN & DAVID FARRADAY:<br><br>December 20, 1968 - Shot to Death<br><br>The evidence consists of .22 caliber semi-automatic J.C. Higgins Model 80 or High Standard Model 101, .22 caliber Super X copper coated long rifle ammunition, .22 caliber bullets and casting, handprinting.<br><br>DARLENE FERRIN: July 4, 1969 - Shot to Death<br><br>The evidence consists of 9mm casings and bullets, handprinted letters.<br><br>CECELIA SHEPHERD: September 27, 1969 - Stabbed to Death<br><br>The evidence consists of latents, handprinting, white plastic clothes line, hollow core, military shoeprints.<br><br>PAUL STINE: October 11, 1969 - Shot to Death<br><br>The evidence consists of two portions of the victim's shirt, handprinting, latents, 9mm bullet and casing, black leather men's gloves size 7. (Note: Ferrin and Stine were shot with the same caliber bullet.)<br><br>The victims were either stabbed or shot. But notice that the victims who were stabbed were murdered by a man wearing military shoes. According to police reports, the shoe was issued by the Navy, which could include the Marine Corps. The murderer had to have access to the military between 1966 and 1969. This could generally mean the stabber would have been in the military or recently released from the military. If he was an older man, in his mid-30s, he would have to be a career military person. A person who served in the military during World War Two or who was born in the 1920s like Robert E. Hunter or Lawrence Kaen, would not have military shoes by the late 1960s.<br><br>The victims that were stabbed were Cheri Jo Bates of Riverside and Cecilia Shepherd of Southern California. The two are reported to have been friends and possibly school mates in Southern California. Bates was born in 1948 and Shepherd was born in 1947. Kathryn Hunter was born in 1948 and attended the same college with Bates, and her husband, Michael John Petlansky - whose vehicle was found parked in Hunter's garage at Washington and Maple streets was born in 1946. All these people were the same age and were close friends. Darlene Ferrin was also born in 1947 and knew Shepherd. Bates and Kathryn Hunter were very close friends.<br><br>In fact, when Bryan Hartner and Cecilia Shepherd decided to go to Lake Berryessa for the day, she may have indicated that she knew of a private place to go to at the lake and would call a friend of Darlene Ferrin's who owned the land in the area. Was this Running Deer Ranch at Lake Berryessa? Is this how the killer knew where to find her?<br><br>There may be some very pertinent clues that are etched virtually in stone. Prior to Cecilia Shepherd's funeral, a male suspect fitting the Zodiac's description went to the Morrison Funeral Chapel in St. Helena and asked to see her body. The Napa Sheriff's Department had half a dozen officers at the funeral looking for anyone who fit the description of the Zodiac - but a description was not furnished until several weeks later after the murder of Paul Stine in San Francisco. The Zodiac may have signed the guest book, which is in the possession of Cecilia's parents. If he did sign the guest book his handwriting could be matched with the Zodiac's and his name checked. There is even a possibility that he would have left a fingerprint According to law enforcement officials they never checked the guest book. The killer of Darlene was also believed to have looked through the windows of her house after she was killed. All family photographs of Darlene and people she was associated with were stolen from her house some time ago, according to the family.<br><br>The military shoeprints from the Riverside murder and the Lake Berryessa murder would indicate a younger man was involved, but the Zodiac claimed the credit for the murders. Was he boasting of murders he did not commit? He had the exact dates of several murders written on the side of Cecilia's car. But the list on the side of the door had no blood in or around the car, which means it would have been written before the murders. But the murderer approached from a different direction than from where the car was.<br><br>This would lead to the conclusion that the Zodiac was aware of the murders, but not necessarily involved. If the murderer was a younger man, it might mean that TEAM ZODIAC consists of not two, but at least three persons. This could also explain why the Zodiac did not claim any connection between the Jensen-Farraday murders and that of Bates' murder until after the death of Ferrin - because one man did not do all the murders and the claims were consolidated to confuse the police.<br><br>There are those theorists - including members of Darlene's family – that think some of the murders may actually have been filmed. Two key suspects in the Zodiac case were photographers. Darlene's family believes that at least two films showing Darlene are actually on sale from a San Francisco photographer -but having not seen any film clips, they cannot be certain. One photographer in San Francisco is familiar to the family and he admits knowing them - but no one knows the relationship.<br><br>Various clues and evidence on the Zodiac exists in many different files. Some of the reasons why the Zodiac case has been so hard to crack are multiple:<br><br>• Links between the victims were not examined..<br><br>• The relationship between some property where bodies were found and the murders has never been explored.<br><br>• Reading the clues incorrectly has led to wild goose chases, such as the threat to attack a school bus when it may have been a clue to the Zodiac's location.<br><br>• There was not sufficient manpower to investigate all potential suspects.<br><br>• Law enforcement, private investigators and reporters refused to share vital pieces of information with each other.<br><br>• Each law enforcement agencies had their own theories and did cursory investigations of subjects outside their jurisdiction.<br><br>The Sentinel has commenced to network with the various sources, each with their own story, each with bits and pieces. It is through this cooperative effort that a composite picture is emerging. Next we will paint a picture of TEAM ZODIAC, who they are, where they came from, and why they killed.<br><br>(To be continued.)<br><br><br><br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://napasentinel.com/ArticleTemplate.php?id=213&pid=1">napasentinel.com/ArticleT...=213&pid=1</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--> <p></p><i></i>