In the forested areas surrounding Chapel Hill, North Carolina, an inquisitive landlord became increasingly unsettled by the peculiar activities of tenants residing in two of his rental properties.
Tenants donned long, dark coats and parked box trucks outside the duplexes, running electrical cords from one truck into a condo while maintaining a stretcher in another unit.
A neighbor recalled witnessing similarly dressed individuals strolling at night, holding hands without uttering a single word.
Last week, when the FBI executed a search of the properties, one of the most recent occupants had already died in a violent confrontation with U.S. Border Patrol in Vermont, while another resident faced arrest.
The third tenant, a mysterious figure known as “Ziz,” remains unaccounted for after authorities connected their cult-like assembly to a series of six homicides across three states.
Few details have emerged regarding the multilayered investigation, which escalated following the shooting death of a Border Patrol officer during a traffic stop on January 20.
Interviews and court document analyses detail how a group of young, intellectually adept computer scientists—most in their twenties and thirties—met online, resonated with anarchist ideologies, and gradually adopted a more violent stance.
While the group’s specific objectives remain ambiguous, their online writings delve into subjects ranging from radical veganism and gender identity to artificial intelligence.
At the center of this labyrinthine issue is “Ziz,” purportedly the leader of this peculiar movement known as “Zizians.”
She has appeared near various crime scenes and has established connections with several suspects.
Remarkably, she was once declared deceased but reemerged amidst further turmoil.
Ziz’s backstory traces to Jack LaSota, who transitioned to the San Francisco Bay area after obtaining a computer science degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2013, along with an internship at NASA—though confirmation from NASA remains unverified.
By 2016, she began a darkly chaotic blog under the alias Ziz, theorizing that each brain hemisphere might possess distinct values and could “often desire to kill each other.”
Identifying as a transgender woman, LaSota, utilizing she/her pronouns, criticized perceived adversaries, notably rationalist groups focused on understanding human cognition.
Jessica Taylor, an AI researcher, noted that LaSota championed an extreme blend of rationalism, ethical veganism, and anarchism, eventually alienating herself from the rationalist community.
Taylor observed that Ziz’s followers utilized rationalist ideologies as justifications for violent acts, citing instances like evading rent payments while resisting eviction.
Professor Poulomi Saha, an expert on cult studies, suggested that LaSota’s writings resonated with readers who felt seen—a powerful element influencing cult formation, especially in the online forum era.
LaSota, aged 34, has evaded responses to multiple inquiries from the media, with her attorney declining to comment on any potential links to the ongoing deaths.
She has evaded court appearances in two states, prompting bench warrants for her arrest.
The initial legal confrontation occurred in November 2019, when LaSota joined others in a protest at a Northern California retreat center housing a Center for Applied Rationality event, leading to an intervention by sheriff’s deputies and a SWAT team.
Charges against LaSota were pending when, in August 2022, a report arose that she had fallen from a boat in San Francisco Bay.
Her body wasn’t recovered, but her mother confirmed her death, only for Ziz to resurface shortly thereafter.
By the fall of 2022, LaSota and some associates, including Emma Borhanian and Alexander Leatham, took to living in vans and box trucks on a property owned by Curtis Lind near Vallejo.
Described as a kind and intelligent individual, Borhanian allegedly participated in a violent altercation against Lind on November 13 when he attempted to evict them for unpaid rent.
Having sustained grievous injuries, Lind managed to fatally shoot Borhanian in self-defense while charges were later filed against Leatham and Suri Dao for murder and attempted murder related to the episode.
While police suspect LaSota’s presence at the crime scene, she was not apprehended.
The violence escalated as an elderly couple, Richard and Rita Zajko, were shot in their home in Chester Heights, Pennsylvania, on New Year’s Eve 2022.
Audio and video captured the harrowing event, leading to calls for police intervention.
Following an investigation, LaSota faced arrest while a connection was made with the couple’s daughter, Michelle, and LaSota was charged with obstructing law enforcement.
Despite his claims of innocence, LaSota failed to return to court.
Amidst these legal troubles, the case involving the landlord in California progressed, but on January 17, 2023, Lind was murdered, his throat cut near the site of the previous attack.
Maximilian Snyder, charged with murder, notably has connections to the individuals implicated in both previous cases.
The saga continued with a confrontation in Vermont on January 20, where a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed following a vehicle stop connected to Ziz’s group.
One suspect, Teresa Youngblut, found herself embroiled in violence, leading to ongoing legal battles while further uncovering the intricate web surrounding Ziz and her followers.
Witnesses in North Carolina revealed bizarre behavior from the group members, who often dressed in tactical outfits, adding layers to an already complex narrative of crime and ideology.
As the investigation continues, the connections among the participants and the unfolding ramifications of their alleged actions remain under scrutiny.
