Suspected Leader of Cult-like ‘Zizians’ Arrested in the U.S. Amid Connections to Homicides | U.S. News
The suspected leader of a cult-like organization connected to various homicides has been apprehended in the United States.
Authorities reported that Jack LaSota, also known as Ziz, was taken into custody on Sunday in Maryland. He is facing several charges, including trespassing, carrying a handgun in a vehicle, as well as obstruction and loitering.
Accompanying him are Michelle Zajko, 32, and Daniel Blank, 26, who have been arrested on similar accusations. All three individuals are currently being held at a local jail.
The group, referred to as “The Zizians,” has been linked to the murder of U.S. Border Patrol agent David Maland, which occurred in January, along with five other homicides across Vermont, Pennsylvania, and California.
Border Patrol agent David Maland was shot dead last month. Pic: AP
David Maland, 44, lost his life in a shootout after a traffic stop near the Canadian border in Vermont.
In the same incident, one of LaSota’s followers, Ophelia Bauckholt, a German national, was also killed when Teresa Youngblut, a woman she was with, reportedly opened fire.
LaSota, aged 34, identifies using she/her pronouns and has stated online that she is a transgender woman. She works as a computer programmer and appears to be the leader of the Zizians.
According to the Associated Press, this group seems to comprise highly intelligent computer scientists, primarily in their 20s and 30s, who met online, shared anarchist views, and have become increasingly violent.
While their exact goals are ambiguous, their online writings explore various topics, including gender identity, radical veganism, and artificial intelligence.
LaSota’s blog presents a theory suggesting that the two hemispheres of the brain may represent different values and genders that “often wish to kill one another.”
Teresa Youngblut has been charged in connection with the shooting of David Maland. Pic: AP
Another murder associated with the group involves the stabbing of an 82-year-old man in Northern California last month.
Prosecutors suspect it was a preemptive measure to silence him ahead of a trial related to an alleged sword attack from disgruntled tenants in 2022, during which he lost an eye.
Maximilian Snyder, the individual charged with the murder, reportedly has ties to Teresa Youngblut, who is the alleged shooter in the death of the border patrol officer.
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In 2023, the parents of Michelle Zajko, who was arrested with LaSota on Sunday, were discovered shot dead in their home in Pennsylvania.
LaSota has been charged with obstructing the investigation and has been released on bail but is under an arrest warrant for failing to appear in court.
Zajko has also been questioned about her parents’ deaths but was released without charges.
A lawyer representing LaSota, Daniel McGarrigle, refrained from commenting when asked about any connections his client may have to the killings.
A bail hearing is set for Tuesday.
