Inside The Tragic Stories Of The Zodiac Killer’s Victims — And The Mystery Of How Many People He Murdered

Kathleen Johns, A Possible Kidnapping Victim Of The Zodiac Killer

YouTubeKathleen Johns, a woman who said she survived an encounter with the Zodiac Killer.

Another potential Zodiac Killer victim is Kathleen Johns, who was briefly abducted by a stranger on the night of March 22, 1970 near Patterson, California, not long after the murder of Paul Stine.

Then, Johns — who survived the encounter — was driving along Highway 132 with her 10-month-old daughter Jennifer when she noticed a car behind her flashing its lights. Thinking something was wrong, Johns pulled over. A man got out of the car, approached Johns’ window, and told her that her rear wheel was “wobbling,” but that he could fix it. Johns later told police that the man was white, in his 30s, dark haired, and about 5’9″. She also remembered that he was wearing black-rimmed glasses.

Though the man seemed to “fix” the tire, the tire fell off when Johns tried to drive away. The man approached her again and offered to take her to a service station. Johns agreed, and got into his car with her daughter.

But instead of going to a service station, the man drove Johns along backroads for about an hour and a half. When Johns tried to ask where they were going, he would “merely elude the question and start talking about something else.” She began to feel nervous and so, when the opportunity arose, Johns grabbed her daughter and leapt from the car.

She was able to flag down a passing car, which took her to the police. At the station, Johns happened to notice a “wanted” poster on the wall — and exclaimed that the poster showed the same man who had abducted her.

Public DomainA wanted poster for the Zodiac Killer.

It was the Zodiac Killer.

Though Johns is not considered an official Zodiac Killer victim, the Zodiac did seem to take credit for her abduction in a July 24, 1970 letter. The letter claimed that the Zodiac had given “a rather interesting ride” to a “woman and her baby.” He also said that he burned the woman’s car after she and her baby escaped, and Johns’ vehicle was indeed found burned.