A cipher code from 1999 has left experts scratching their heads after over a decade. Experts say the code is a new cipher they were previously unfamiliar with and after extensive searching they still don’t know what it means. But they’re looking for answers and appealing to the public to help them out.
Ciphers have attained legendary status in the past leading back into the history of the art. Both the Allies and Axis forces had their own “unbreakable” methods of cracking codes, relying on everything from Native American Wind Talkers to a mysterious device known only as “Enigma” to encode and decode their messages.
The homicide, which occurred in Missouri just before June 30, 1999. 41 year old Ricky McCormick was discovered dead with the strange code in his pocket. After that the FBI’s Cryptanalysis team started working to crack the code, but were unable to do so. After the first few tries it was apparent they would be burning the midnight oil on this one. And as time went on, the mystery only deepened. Eventually the FBI concluded that the notes had been written only three days prior to his death.
So what does it all mean? Other mysteries have often surrounded a man who died under mysterious circumstances. In 1948 a man was discovered lying on a beach in Adelaide, Australia with a mysterious note tucked in his shirt. The code became a worldwide mystery, and soon everyone was doing their part in an attempt to crack the case. Unfortunately, it has never been solved.
In 1885 a man going by the name of Beale dropped off pamphlets with an innkeeper telling him of an immense treasure that had been buried in an undisclosed location in Bedford County, Virginia. During the next 20 years the text was only half solved, with the exact details of the treasure never being fully disclosed. There have been rumors that the entire story was just a hoax or a wild goose chase, but these stories are often argued by the proponents of the treasure. After all, if such a code existed along with the treasure it would certainly not be the first time.
There have also been others, such as the 1987 ciphers developed at Los Alamos to Richard Feynman. Only one of the three was ever deciphered. While this one doesn’t have a murder mystery attached to it or a golden treasure, there is some speculation that the code could one day lead one code breaker to the pride of knowing he outsmarted some of the scientists who were involved in the creation of the Atom Bomb.
But the newest code to reach national attention is making waves across social media and Internet forums. Though Mr. McCormick never finished high school, it’s said he was a man with a great deal of intelligence and spent a considerable amount of time developing his code. Anyone who solved it would not only assure themselves a place of fame, but also the thanks of the family still looking for what happened to their son.