# Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste > Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste is a 2021 meme about cold-case investigators identifying deceased painter Gary Poste as the Zodiac Killer, featuring fake Metacritic reviews and Ted Cruz conspiracy jokes. Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste refers to the October 2021 viral news event and resulting memes after a group of cold-case investigators called the Case Breakers publicly identified Gary Francis Poste, a deceased California house painter and Air Force veteran, as the infamous Zodiac Killer[2]. The announcement sparked a wave of internet humor centered on Poste dying in 2018 before anyone could catch him, fake Metacritic music reviews attributed to him, and jokes tying the story back to the Ted Cruz Zodiac Killer meme[3]. ## Origin On October 6, 2021, Fox News published an article reporting that the Case Breakers, a volunteer team of more than 40 former law enforcement investigators, journalists, and military intelligence officers, had identified a man named Gary Francis Poste as the Zodiac Killer[2]. Poste was an Air Force veteran who ran Pine Mountain Painting Co. in Groveland, California and had died on August 23, 2018, at age 80[5]. The Case Breakers built their claim on several pieces of evidence: photographs from Poste's darkroom showing forehead scars that matched a 1969 police sketch of the Zodiac, a cipher decryption that allegedly revealed Poste's full name when specific letters were removed, and circumstantial links to the 1966 murder of Cheri Jo Bates in Riverside, California[2]. Former Army counterintelligence agent Jen Bucholtz, a team member, told Fox News: "So you've got to know Gary's full name in order to decipher these anagrams. I just don't think there's any other way anybody would have figured it out"[10]. The FBI responded the next day by telling CNN that the Zodiac Killer case "remains open" with "no new information to share"[1]. The Riverside Police Department went further, explicitly stating that their Homicide Cold Case Unit had "determined the murder of Cheri Jo Bates in 1966 is not related to the Zodiac killer"[2]. Poste was never linked by DNA, and no working law enforcement agency confirmed his identity as the killer[3]. - **Platform:** Fox News (breaking story), Twitter (meme spread) - **Creator:** Thomas Colbert (Case Breakers lead), Twitter users @dykecastoria, @shtpst, @sleep2dream, @heavystupidlove (viral meme posts) - **Date:** 2021 ## Overview The Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme emerged from genuine breaking news coverage that quickly became comedy material on Twitter. The core joke operated on a few levels: the absurdity of a serial killer living a quiet life as a house painter in a small California town, the dark humor of him dying before he could face justice, and the imagined scenarios of Poste watching movies and reading memes about himself while knowing the truth. A popular format involved photoshopping fake Metacritic reviews under his name with sly self-references to being a famous killer[3]. ## How It Spread The story blew up on Twitter the same day Fox News broke it, with users racing to dig up any trace of Poste's online life. On October 6th, Twitter user @dykecastoria posted a screenshot of Poste's arrest information, picking up over 8,200 likes in a single day[3]. User @shtpst found a 2018 Facebook post by a Glynn Barnes posing with Poste, captioned simply "Zodiac?", suggesting Barnes suspected or knew about Poste's alleged identity before he died[3]. Additional digging turned up a 2012 PollCode thread asking "Who is the most likely Zodiac," where a user named Gary Poste had commented in 2017, and Barnes had posted a full identification in 2018[3]. The jokes came fast. Twitter user @sleep2dream posted: "The Zodiac Killer probably went to see Zodiac with friends and afterward was like, 'wow, that's crazy. anyway, y'all be safe'" and racked up over 81,000 likes and 8,700 retweets in a day[3]. People also revived the Ted Cruz Zodiac Killer meme, imagining Poste watching Cruz get roasted online while he was the actual suspect[3]. The most distinctive meme format to emerge was fake Metacritic reviews. User @heavystupidlove posted a photoshopped screenshot of a Metacritic review by "garyfrancisposte" for Lady Gaga's song "Joanne" that read: "A national treasure, like myself." The post gained over 21,000 likes. The review was fabricated and could not be found on the actual site[3]. Other Twitter users quickly adopted the format, creating fake reviews for various albums where "Poste" would make thinly veiled references to being a serial killer[3]. CNN, the Daily Mail, Fox LA, and numerous other outlets ran the story on October 6th and 7th[1][9][10]. The viral explosion was fueled by the inherent drama of a decades-old cold case meeting internet detective culture. Users treated the story as both genuine true-crime content and meme fodder at the same time. ## How to Use The Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme typically takes a few forms: **Fake Metacritic Review:** Screenshot a Metacritic review page, photoshop the username to "garyfrancisposte," and write a review for any album or song that includes a veiled reference to being a famous killer. The humor comes from the subtlety of the self-reference. **Movie Theater Scenario:** Write a tweet imagining Poste going to see the 2007 film *Zodiac* with friends and acting casual about it, or watching any true crime documentary about himself with zero reaction. **Ted Cruz Callback:** Reference the older Ted Cruz Zodiac Killer meme and joke about the real suspected killer watching Cruz get blamed online. The format is mostly historical at this point and peaked during the first week of October 2021. ## Cultural Impact The Case Breakers' announcement generated major news coverage from CNN[1], Fox News[2], the Daily Mail[9], Newsweek[12], KQED[7], and HowStuffWorks[11], among dozens of other outlets. The story sat at the intersection of true-crime culture and meme culture, with many people engaging with both the serious criminal investigation angle and the comedic possibilities at the same time. The case highlighted the growing role of civilian investigative groups in cold cases, though it also drew criticism about the reliability of their methods when official law enforcement repeatedly declined to confirm their findings[4]. The Wikipedia article on Zodiac Killer suspects includes Poste alongside other named suspects like Arthur Leigh Allen and Earl Van Best Jr., noting that "rumors about Poste as a suspect had been investigated by the SFPD in 2017"[4]. The story also briefly revived interest in the Zodiac Killer's unsolved ciphers. Two of the four cryptograms remain unbroken as of 2024, and experts have noted that because they are so short, it may be impossible to definitively prove any decryption is correct[11]. ## Fun Facts - Poste ran Pine Mountain Painting Co. in Groveland, California with a partner named Rodney Louis Hamlin. The business held a C33 painting and decorating contractor's license issued in 1977 that expired in 2007[13]. - The forehead scars that the Case Breakers matched to the Zodiac sketch were actually from a car accident in Indiana when Poste was about 20, not from any criminal activity[5]. - Before his death, Poste gave away his personal arsenal, including over a thousand shell casings of various calibers, to people he considered his "favorites"[5]. - After he died, his remains were scattered in the Sierra Mountains[5]. - The Case Breakers had previously investigated other famous cold cases including the D.B. Cooper hijacking and the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa[2]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is the Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme? It refers to the October 2021 viral moment when the Case Breakers, a team of 40+ former law enforcement investigators, publicly identified deceased California house painter Gary Francis Poste as the Zodiac Killer, sparking both serious discussion and a wave of internet jokes[3]. ### Where did the Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme come from? Fox News broke the story on October 6, 2021, and it immediately went viral on Twitter, where users began creating jokes, fake Metacritic reviews, and callbacks to the Ted Cruz Zodiac meme[2][3]. ### What does the Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme mean? The memes play on the dark absurdity of a notorious serial killer allegedly living a quiet life as a house painter in a small town, dying of natural causes in 2018 without ever facing justice[3][5]. ### How do you use the Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme? The most common format was photoshopping fake Metacritic album reviews under the username "garyfrancisposte" with subtle references to being a famous killer. Other formats included imagining Poste watching the 2007 *Zodiac* film and playing it cool[3]. ### Is the Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste meme still popular? No. The meme peaked during the first week of October 2021 and faded quickly as the news cycle moved on. It saw a minor bump when the Case Breakers made additional claims in 2023[12]. ### Was Gary Francis Poste actually the Zodiac Killer? His identity as the Zodiac has not been confirmed by any law enforcement agency. The FBI stated the case "remains open and unsolved," the SFPD declined to comment on specific suspects, and the Riverside PD explicitly denied any connection between the Zodiac and the Cheri Jo Bates case[1][2][12]. ### What evidence did the Case Breakers present? They cited forehead scars matching a police sketch, a cipher decryption revealing Poste's name, a paint-splattered military wristwatch found at a crime scene (Poste was a career house painter), matching shoe sizes, and witness testimony from people who knew him[2][8]. ### Who were the Case Breakers? A volunteer group of more than 40 former FBI agents, police investigators, journalists, military intelligence officers, and academics led by investigative journalist Thomas Colbert. They also investigated the D.B. Cooper case and the Jimmy Hoffa disappearance[2][12]. ### Did the FBI ever confirm Poste as a suspect? Not publicly. However, in 2023 the Case Breakers claimed an FBI whistleblower told them Poste had been listed as a suspect in the bureau's database since 2016, with partial DNA stored at the Quantico lab. The FBI neither confirmed nor denied this claim[12]. ### What was the fake Metacritic review meme? Twitter user @heavystupidlove posted a photoshopped Metacritic review by "garyfrancisposte" for Lady Gaga's "Joanne" reading "A national treasure, like myself." It gained over 21,000 likes, and other users created similar fake reviews for various albums[3]. ### How did the Ted Cruz Zodiac meme tie into this? The long-running joke that Senator Ted Cruz is the Zodiac Killer (which originated around 2016) resurfaced when Poste was named. Users joked about the real alleged killer watching Cruz take the blame online for years[3]. ### What was Poste's criminal history? In 2016, he was arrested for domestic violence after allegedly pushing his wife Mary into a wall and breaking her pelvis. He was found mentally incompetent to stand trial and placed in a state hospital[5][6]. ## References 1. [Zodiac Killer: Group claims it has solved the identity of the serial murderer as law enforcement investigates | CNN]() 2. [Cold case team says Zodiac Killer ID'd, linking him to another murder | Fox News]() 3. [Pine Mountain Painting Co · 11255 Merrell Road, Groveland, CA 95321]() 4. [Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste - Know Your Meme]() 5. [Zodiac Killer suspects]() 6. [Gary Francis Poste - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]() 7. [Is Gary Francis Poste the Zodiac Killer? Cold case explained]() 8. [Gary Francis Poste, 'Zodiac Killer'? Learn About 5 Others Suspected Throughout History | KQED]() 9. [Was Gary Francis Poste Really The Zodiac Killer?]() 10. [Group of investigators claim to have identified Zodiac killer | Daily Mail Online]() 11. [Cold case group claims they've finally ID'd the Zodiac Killer | FOX 11 Los Angeles]() 12. [Was Gary Francis Poste the Zodiac Killer? We Can't Be Sure | HowStuffWorks]() 13. [Did FBI Miss Chance to Arrest Suspected Zodiac Killer Gary Francis Poste⁠? - Newsweek]() 14. [View all Poll Comments: Who is the most likely Zodiac]() 15. [Pine Mountain Painting Co · 11255 Merrell Road, Groveland, CA 95321]() 16. [Create a free poll - Instant & easy. No sign up | Pollcode]() 17. [Zodiac Killer: Group claims it has solved the identity of the serial murderer as law enforcement investigates | CNN]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/zodiac-killer-gary-francis-poste Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library