Leader of Cult-Like Zizians, Connected to Six Murders, Ordered to be Held Without Bail in Maryland

CUMBERLAND, Md.—The head of a cult-like organization linked to six murders across three states was denied bail on Tuesday in Maryland, where she is facing charges including trespassing.

Jack LaSota, 34, from Berkeley, California, appeared alongside two others arrested with her on Sunday via videoconference for bail hearings in Allegany District Court. The judge ordered that all three be held without bail, labeling them as significant flight risks.

Allegany County State’s Attorney James Elliott indicated that LaSota has previously faked her own death and “seems to be the leader of an extremist group called Zizians,” which has connections to several fatalities.

LaSota, known as Ziz online, requested pretrial release, stating she was homeless and unable to travel. Speaking slowly, she also asked for a vegan diet and mentioned she was “in a mild state of delirium” from food deprivation.

“I haven’t done anything wrong,” she asserted to the judge.

Members of the group, referred to as Zizians by others, have been implicated in the death of a woman during an attack on a landlord in California in November 2022, the landlord’s murder in January, and the killings of a couple from Pennsylvania in between. Most recently, the group has been associated with a highway shootout in Vermont that resulted in the deaths of a U.S. Border Patrol agent and a car passenger.

The victims from Pennsylvania were Michelle Zajko’s parents, who was arrested alongside LaSota and Daniel Blank. The trio faces charges of trespassing and obstructing law enforcement after a resident in Frostburg, Maryland, reported three “suspicious” individuals who had parked two box trucks on his property and requested to camp there for a month. Zajko, 32, from Media, Pennsylvania, also faces charges of resisting arrest and carrying a handgun, while LaSota was charged with having a firearm in a vehicle.

Witnesses noted that they were dressed in black, with two of them wearing gun belts equipped with ammunition. Police seized a rifle from the back of one truck and a handgun from the front floorboard. Zajko was taken to the ground by police after she resisted and was carrying a handgun at the time of her arrest.

According to the prosecutor, Elliott, two additional firearms that Zajko purchased were linked to the January 20 shooting death of Border Patrol Agent Chris Maland, 44, following a traffic stop in Coventry, Vermont. A passenger, Felix Bauckholt, also died in that incident, and the driver, Teresa Youngblut, has pleaded not guilty to related federal firearms charges.

Authorities indicated that the firearms they possessed were purchased by a person of interest concerning the December 31, 2022, murders of Richard and Rita Zajko in Chester Heights, Pennsylvania. Moreover, Youngblut had close ties to an individual suspected of involvement in a homicide in Vallejo, California.

Maximilian Snyder, who sought a marriage license with Youngblut in November, is charged with the January 17 stabbing death of Curtis Lind, a Vallejo landlord who had survived a previous assault by Zizian group members and was expected to testify against them.

Limited details have surfaced regarding the investigation spanning multiple states. However, interviews by the Associated Press and an examination of court documents and online posts paint a picture of a group of young, exceptionally intelligent computer professionals, primarily in their 20s and 30s, who connected online, shared anarchistic ideologies, and became progressively violent.

Their objectives remain obscured, but their online communications touched upon themes such as radical veganism, gender identity, and artificial intelligence. LaSota’s central role is prominent as a transgender woman who operated a dark and at times violent blog under the pseudonym Ziz.

Rebecca Francoeur-Breeden, a public defender for LaSota, mentioned she had talked to LaSota’s mother twice since the arrest. Francoeur-Breeden highlighted LaSota’s educational background, including a degree in computer engineering.

“This is a very, very bright person we’re dealing with,” she remarked.

Francoeur-Breeden is also representing Zajko and Blank, 26, of Sacramento, California. During the hearing, Zajko and Blank did not directly respond to the charges levied against them, while their attorney argued that Zajko should be granted release before trial, citing her master’s degree and notable internship history.

Francoeur-Breeden characterized Blank as a “brilliant young man” with significant mental health issues, noting that he had been reported missing or endangered prior to his arrest. Blank’s stepfather also spoke to the judge, stating he hadn’t seen Blank in two years but was prepared to secure local housing to ensure his court appearance.

Pennsylvania state police records indicate that Blank was living with Zajko in Vermont. In January 2023, police apprehended both LaSota and Blank at a hotel where Zajko was staying while investigating the shooting deaths of Zajko’s parents. While Blank was not charged, LaSota faced charges related to obstructing law enforcement and disorderly conduct.

By Lea Skene, Holly Ramer and Patrick Whittle