Zodiac's last definite murder occurred on the night
of Oct. 11, 1969. The victim was a cab driver named Paul Stine. The location of the crime
was the rich, safe and exclusive San Francisco neighborhood called Presidio Heights.
Presidio Heights hasn't changed very much in the almost 35 years since the crime occured.
Meanwhile, Zodiac's motivation to kill in that particular neighborhood, as well as his
behavior after the murder, remains a mystery. |
The intersection Zodiac identified when
referring to the crime scene. Note the school crosswalk.
Presidio Hill School, located on Washington
Street between Maple and Cherry.
The correct location of the murder is next to
the intersection of Washington and Cherry Streets. Curiously, the location Zodiac gave is
almost a full city block to the east.
3898 Washington Street directly overlooked the
crime scene from the north.
The car in the center of the picture is parked
at the approximate location of the crime scene.
3899 Washington Street at Cherry. Three
teenagers looking to the north from the top-story window witnessed Zodiac as he prepared
to flee the scene. (The car in the picture is facing east on Washington. Stine's cab was
parked across the street and facing the opposite direction.)
Facing the witnesses house from the crime
scene. Zodiac allegedly made eye contact with the witnesses before fleeing. |
The witnesses were at these third-story
windows. The cab was parked directly across Washington Street, approximitely 60 feet to
the north. Lighting conditions were rather poor as it was after 10 p.m. and somewhat
foggy.
The intersection of Washington and Cherry
Streets as viewed from the southwest. The black car in the picture is parked at the
approximate location as Stine's cab.
Zodiac's escape route: From the cab, around
the corner and north on this street, Cherry. He was never seen again.
The intersection of Cherry and Jackson
Streets. Near this location, police officers encountered a man walking east on Jackson
shortly after Stine was killed. Unfortunately, the officers had been told to search for a
black male suspect and therefore never detained the mystery man. Was it Zodiac?
Looking east on Jackson Street. If Zodiac
indeed took this escape route, it was an easy downhill walk.
Just past Jackson Street to the north and only
a minute's walk from the crime scene, Cherry Street ends at this small, secluded vehicle
turnaround. Had Zodiac picked this spot to kill Stine, it's virtually guaranteed he
wouldn't have been seen and would have had an easy getaway. The obvious question is, did
Zodiac want to be seen? If so, why?
-- BONUS VIDEO -- |
Looking south toward the crime scene from the
edge of the turnaround.
On the northern edge of the turnaround, these
steps lead down to a ledge. After a four-foot drop, you're on a road bordering the
southern edge of the Presidio.
Looking south toward the crime scene from the
ledge. At night this area near the Presidio is almost entirely void of vehicle and
pedestrian traffic.
Below the ledge and looking east on the road
bordering the Presidio's south side. The Presidio is heavily wooded and virtually inactive
at night.
About 100 yards east of the ledge is the
Julius Kahn playground. Shortly after the Stine murder, a man was allegedly seen running
through this playground. If it was the Zodiac, he was headed into dense woods.
Escaping through a playground would have been
quite fitting for Zodiac. After all, in the letter Zodiac wrote taking credit for the
Stine murder, he not only gave the murder location as a school crosswalk, but also
threatened to kill school children. |
