FROSTBURG, Md. — Maryland State Police arrested two people Sunday that are allegedly connected to a cultlike group known as the Zizians in Allegany County.
The suspects, Jack Amadeus Lasota and Michelle Jacqueline Zajko, were taken into custody by troopers in the 10000 block of Piney Mountain Road in Frostburg, Maryland.
According to a report by the Associated Press, the Zizians have been tied to multiple murders across the United States, including the murder of U.S. Border Patrol Agent David Maland near the Canadian border on January 20.
Maland was killed in a shootout after a traffic stop in Coventry, Vermont.
The group is also linked to five other murders in Vermont, Pennsylvania, and California.
The AP reports the goals of the group are not clear, but online writings span topics from radical veganism and gender identity to artifical intelligence.
Both Lasota and Zajko were charged with trepassing, obstructing & hindering, and other handgun violations.
They are currently being held at the Allegany Detention Center.
"The Maryland State Police is working in coordination with our federal law enforcement partners and the Office of the State’s Attorney in Allegany County as this investigation continues."
