Although active only from December 1969 until November 1970, a serial killer that was never brought to justice managed to claim the lives of nine women in northern California, most of whom were found nude and dumped in ravines.

The first official victim was Leona Roberts, found dead in December of 1969. Roberts' demise was deternined to be the result of exposure but her case was treated as a homocide. In March of 1970 the unknown slayer began killing at a firghtening clup. Five women were found murdered during the month, Colette Edison, Pat King, Judith Hikari, Marie Anstey, and Eva Blau.

The next murder did not occur until September 26 when Donna Lass disappeared from Lake Tahoe and was never seen again. In October Nancy Bennallack became victim number eight and the spree apparently concluded in November with the slaying of Carol Hilburn.

Questions abound regarding this particular string of homocides. Lass, for instance, has been linked to the infamous Zodiac as a possible victim because of a mailing to the San Francisco Chronicle that alluded to the girl's disappearance. Some feel the postcard was sent by Zodiac to claim responsiblity for Lass' abduction and apparent killing. Naturally, author Robert Graysmith and others believe that not only Lass, but the other nine victims could be the work of Zodiac. It's an interesting theory though based on a single postcard of unknown origin.

Also, many feel that the nine victims, plus six other possible victims offered up by Graysmith, may have been killed by someone with an astrological motive. Many of the fifteen were found dead in close proximity with a solstice or equinox. Further still, it is debatable whether a single perpetrator is even responsible for all nine of the official victims listed by authorities, given that the cause of death often differed dramatically, ranging from beatings to stranglings to the unknown. It is possible that more than one killer was working the area seperate from one another.