The memo that was sent to Napa suggested the Riverside Police Department were considering the Zodiac Killer as the suspect but later was said to not be the suspect. The memo itself says the Confession Letter had details only the killer of Bates would have known. We know that this is part of the MO for Zodiac with the Bay Area letters. The memo written to Napa PD indicates the Confession Letter includes details only the killer would know. If I am not mistaken that letter was sent out a month after the killing and by this time Press Enterprise had already published an article with lots of details provided by Riverside PD. The memo was written in 1969, three years after the killing. How is anyone from Riverside PD concluding those details were not public knowledge? They seem to link the two killings immediately while Riverside PD currently do not consider the two to be related.
Am I missing anything? Link to the memo: http://www.zodiackillersite.com/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=89
I’m not sure I am understanding your question correctly.
It seems they are just saying they believe the person who wrote the Confession Letter and their killer are one in the same. At the time, they believed no one else would know what was written in that letter.
By 1969, they hadn’t found Cheri’s killer and Zodiac was quite similar so they reached out. My guess is the prints Napa had (which has been said those were not usable–still confused about that) did not match the prints on Cheri’s car so they dropped it. But as others have questioned…did they drop "Bob Barnett"? Sure would be nice to get the inside scoop.
“…they may be dealing with one or more ersatz Zodiacs–other psychotics eager to get into the act, or perhaps even other murderers eager to lay their crimes at the real Zodiac’s doorstep.“ L.A. Times, 1969
