New York media outlets on alert after 'Chinese Zodiac Killer' sends threatening letters

The letters were recently received by several local news organisations in Albany and are now the subject of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

The agency, however, has not revealed the names or the number of organisations that have been sent the letters. It has not revealed the contents of the letters either.

The FBI said it was investigating the letters and that there was currently no threat to the community, according to an agency statement quoted by The Albany Times Union and People magazine.

Meanwhile, the FBI has reportedly issued a notice to local news organisations asking them to be on alert for more letters and to not to open suspicious mail to help preserve possible DNA evidence.

The person who sent letters used the name of the infamous serial killer from the 60s to threaten the media outlets.

The case of the Zodiac killer who claimed to have murdered 37 people has been described as the most famous unsolved murder case in US history, inspiring films and stories.

Five known victims have been attributed to the Zodiac killer between December 1968 and October 1969 in the San Francisco Bay Area. He targeted young couples, with two of the men surviving, and killed a lone male cab driver.

The murderer was known for sending letters and cards with coded messages and ciphers and included several taunts to media organisations.

Several of the killer’s messages warned of carrying out killing sprees and bombings if they were not printed.

Of the four ciphers he produced, two remain unsolved to this day. The first was cracked in 1969, while the second was solved in 2020 by private citizens. The FBI said in 2020 that the investigation was ongoing.

The serial killer’s identity has never been revealed. Several potential suspects, including Gary Francis Poste who died in 2018, have been investigated over the years.