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Richard Joseph Gaikowski (March 14, 1936 - April 30, 2004) was a suspect in the case of the Zodiac Killer.

Early Life[]

Richard Joseph Gaikowski was born in Watertown, S.D., on March 14th, 1936. He went to Webster High School and then went to Northern State Teachers College in Aberdeen, S.D. before he stopped going to college.

In the military[]

Richard served as a stint in the Army in the 1950s and he trained as a medic during his stint in the military army.

Activity in 1960s and 1970s[]

In October 1965, Gaikowski was arrested for refusing to sign a traffic citation following a routine stop in Contra Costa County in California, Oregon not far from Canada. He had no children.

Death[]

Richard died of lung cancer at the San Francisco Veterans Administration Medical Center on April 30, 2004. He was 68 years old.

Evidence of Richard being the Zodiac Killer[]

  • Some argue that he looks like the sketch, in spite of lacking a widow's peak and having a wider nose .
  • Nancy Slover said that his voice is the same as the Zodiac, she conceded this at an advanced age.
  • Richard was in the military, but records were burned in a fire so we have no idea how long or any other details. The fire was eventually put out.
  • He was trained as a medic in techniques to rip wounded soldiers clothing off (to use as a tourniquet), which the Zodiac did to Paul Stine after killing him.
  • When Gaikowski was committed to a mental asylum, the Zodiac Killer didn't write for nearly 3 years.
  • In one of the Zodiac's cryptograms, the word "GYKE"/ "GAIK" can be seen among the letters. Some allege that Gyke or Gaik was a nickname for Gaikowski.
  • It has been alleged that he attended one of the victim's funerals, even though he had no idea who they were.
  • He followed a surviving victim to New York after she remarried and worked in the same building as her, he followed her and her husband for some time.
  • He had a basement which not many people knew about. Zodiac mentioned having a basement in one of his letters.

Criticism of Richard being the Zodiac[]

  • Richard's friends said that Richard was in Albany, New York during the time of the murders, therefore making it impossible for him to commit the murders. Michael Butterfield, who has alleged “problems”, also dismissed Richard. [It is claimed that Richard's friends lied about this, and he was never in New York.]
  • Richard was in Northern Ireland on the day of the first murder.
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