Zodiac Killer cipher is cracked after eluding sleuths for 51 years

A coded message sent by a brutal serial killer who has never been caught has been cracked more than 51 years after it was sent.The male suspect, known as the Zodiac Killer, killed at least five people and attempted to kill at least two more in Northern California in 1968 and 1969. A male San Francisco cab driver was the last known victim.During the murder spree, the Zodiac Killer sent media outlets a series of letters taking credit for the slayings. The killer demanded the papers publish the letters in full or he would kill again.A week after the letters were sent, a couple in Salinas, California, cracked the cipher. The Zodiac Killer, the plaintext revealed, said he was collecting slaves for the afterlife and that he wouldn’t disclose his identity because doing so would interfere with those plans.In November 1969, after killing the remaining two known victims, the Zodiac Killer sent a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle that included a new puzzle.