New book on alleged Zizian cult shines spotlight on Fairbanks roots of accused leader

By SUZANNE DOWNING

July 14, 2026 – A forthcoming investigative book by independent journalist Andy Ngo revisits one of the country’s strangest and most violent alleged extremist groups, and it includes an Alaska connection that has received relatively little national attention.

Ngo announced this week that his new book, The Zizians: Inside a Trans Death Cult, will be released Oct. 13 by Center Street, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. In a video announcing the book, Ngo described the years-long investigation as one that “put my life at risk again” and promised new reporting on the shadowy network known as the Zizians.

The book examines a loose network centered around Jack “Ziz” LaSota, a transgender computer programmer whose alleged followers have been connected by investigators to a series of violent crimes across multiple states. He identifies as a woman.

According to the publisher, Ngo’s reporting draws on court records, interviews with witnesses and family members, and original investigative work to reconstruct the group’s origins and evolution. For Alaskans, the story has a direct connection.

Trans violence is real.

Investigating this secretive trans death cult took me back to America. It put my life at risk again.

Hormones. Human experimentation. Swords. Guns. Bodies.

This is the true story of the Zizians.

ON SALE OCT. 13. PRE-ORDER NOW. https://t.co/Co0qXWNerT pic.twitter.com/8IBghWUrTn

— Andy Ngo (@MrAndyNgo) July 13, 2026

LaSota was born and raised in Fairbanks. Before becoming associated with the Bay Area rationalist movement, he attended the University of Alaska Fairbanks, graduating magna cum laude in 2013 with a degree in computer science and computer engineering.

LaSota later completed a NASA internship and relocated to California, where involvement in the “rationalist” and “effective altruism communities” eventually led to the development of the ideology associated with the group now commonly referred to as the Zizians.

The Zizians are generally described as an informal, decentralized network rather than a formal organization. Members reportedly embraced a  blend of vegan anarchism, radical animal rights activism, trans-humanism, and highly unconventional interpretations of rationalist philosophy. The group has also been associated with bizarre practices and beliefs that became increasingly detached from reality over time. LaSota adopted the name “Ziz,” and is believed to be the cult’s leader.

Authorities have linked members or associates of the network to multiple homicide investigations, including the killing of a US Border Patrol agent, the murder of a California landlord, and the deaths of a Pennsylvania couple. Several people connected to the network have been charged in connection with those cases, while others died during violent confrontations with law enforcement or in related incidents. Court proceedings remain ongoing in several jurisdictions.

Ngo, who previously authored the New York Times bestselling Unmasked, has spent years reporting on political extremism and says this investigation led him into what he characterizes as an even more secretive movement.

According to the publisher’s description, the book argues that the Zizian phenomenon represents the convergence of online ideological communities with real-world violence. The publisher describes it as “the definitive account” of a group linked to multiple killings and says it examines the movement’s recruitment methods, ideology, and alleged leadership.

The Zizian story has remained largely unfamiliar to the general public outside technology, rationalist, and true-crime circles despite years of criminal investigations.

The Zizians: Inside a Trans Death Cult is scheduled for release on Oct. 13 and is available for pre-order through major booksellers.