CUMBERLAND, M.D. (KYW Newsradio) — A Delaware County woman will be in a Western Maryland court this coming week on trespassing, gun and drug charges in connection with multiple crimes thought to be connected to the ‘Zizians.’ It’s a cult-like group of computer scientists whose beliefs revolve around veganism, sleep deprivation, the idea that each half of the brain has its own gender, and an apocalyptic fear of AI.
Michelle Zajko, 33, originally from Chester Heights, PA, was accused of possessing multiple guns, ammo, and drugs while trespassing in Frostburg, Maryland, a few miles from the Pennsylvania border. She was arrested alongside two other people in Maryland, including the alleged leader of the ‘Zizians,’ Jack ‘Ziz’ LaSota, on Feb. 16, 2025.
Two days later, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms said Zajko lied about when she purchased the three guns authorities found. Two of them are connected to a shootout between other alleged members of the Zizians and Border Patrol agents in Vermont on Jan. 20. The shooting left one Border Patrol agent and a Zizian dead.
The District Attorney said she also remains a person of interest in connection with the shooting deaths of her parents. Rita Zajko, 69, and her 72-year-old husband Richard were found shot to death at their Chester Heights home on New Year’s Eve in 2022. Zajko, who was living in rural Vermont at the time of their deaths, told police she had not spoken to her parents in over a year. However, court records suggest someone arriving at the Zajko home shortly before the shooting, and a Ring camera at the home captured someone shouting “Mom.”
Three more Zizians are also awaiting trial in California for the murder of a Bay Area landlord in 2025.