By Guy Page

Investigative journalist and bestselling author Andy Ngo is the featured guest on Chronicle Conversations today, Monday, October 19, at 12:30 PM, discussing his new book, The Zizians: Inside a Trans Death Cult, including new details about the group’s Vermont connections and the January 2025 shooting death of U.S. Border Patrol Agent David Maland.

The live interview airs on WVMT AM 620, FM 101.3, and online live and (by mid-afternoon) podcast at wvmtradio.com.

Ngo’s book examines the origins, beliefs and activities of the Zizians, a fringe group that emerged from the San Francisco Bay Area’s rationalist movement and whose members have been linked to multiple killings across the United States.

Of particular interest to Vermonters is Ngo’s account of why two members of the group, Teresa Youngblut and German national Felix “Ophelia” Bauckholt, were in the Northeast Kingdom when they encountered Maland on January 20, 2025.

According to Ngo, the pair had traveled to Vermont to purchase a house in Wheelock, a small Caledonia County town north of St. Johnsbury.

For years, members of the Ziz group had struggled financially in the high-cost San Francisco Bay Area. Despite their advanced education and expertise in mathematics and computer programming, some had difficulty maintaining steady employment.

That changed when Bauckholt, a skilled computer programmer and mathematician employed in New York, provided the financial means for the group to purchase real estate.

Another member of the group, Michelle Zajko, had already lived in the Northeast Kingdom for several years with a romantic partner. Ngo’s account suggests her familiarity with Vermont helped lead Youngblut and Bauckholt to consider purchasing property in Wheelock.

The Vermont connections did not end there.

Ngo also reports that Jasper “Gwen” Danielson, another person associated with the Ziz inner circle, had lived in the Hartford and White River Junction area. According to the book, Danielson received assistance from a prominent local activist and former Hartford selectboard member who had helped lead a 2019 Extinction Rebellion demonstration that shut down Main Street in Montpelier.

The book explores these Vermont relationships as part of its account of how a small group of highly educated, radicalized individuals became involved in a series of violent crimes.

The Vermont story came to national attention after employees of a Newport hotel reported suspicious behavior by two black-clad, masked guests, one of whom was openly carrying a handgun.

Vermont State Police sought assistance locating the pair, and Border Patrol agents joined the search.

Maland stopped Youngblut and Bauckholt on Interstate 91 in Coventry on January 20, 2025. After a roadside encounter lasting about 30 minutes, gunfire erupted.

According to federal authorities, Youngblut drew a handgun and fired at Maland and another Border Patrol agent. Maland and Bauckholt were fatally wounded. Youngblut survived and was arrested.

The case soon became part of a much larger investigation into the Zizians, a group founded by Jack LaSota, who uses the name “Ziz.”

The group developed within the rationalist and Effective Altruism movements, whose adherents emphasize reason, mathematics and evidence-based approaches to solving problems. The Zizians adopted more extreme beliefs involving artificial intelligence, animal rights, veganism and opposition to conventional social and economic structures.

Ngo traces the group’s origins in California, its internal relationships, and the influence LaSota came to exercise over followers. His book also examines the role of housing costs, financial hardship and ideological conflict in the group’s development.

The publisher describes the book as an investigation drawing on court records, interviews with witnesses and family members, and years of reporting. It links people associated with the group to eight deaths, although criminal responsibility in individual cases remains subject to court proceedings.

Ngo is also known for his reporting on Antifa and political violence. In 2022, a planned appearance at Dartmouth College was moved online after threats against him, including an offer of money to anyone who assaulted him at the event.

Vermont Daily Chronicle reporters Paul Bean, Mike Donoghue and Guy Page covered the Maland shooting and its aftermath, including the identification of the suspects and the prosecution of Youngblut.

Ngo continued investigating the Zizians after the initial national news coverage subsided, resulting in his recently released book.

Today’s interview will focus on the group’s Vermont connections, why members sought a home in Wheelock, the circumstances leading to Maland’s death, and the wider series of killings linked to the group.

Chronicle Conversations, hosted by Vermont Daily Chronicle editor and publisher Guy Page, airs on WVMT AM 620 and FM 101.3. Today’s live interview with Andy Ngo begins at 12:30 PM, Monday, October 19, and can also be heard at wvmtradio.com.

Ngo’s book, The Zizians: Inside a Trans Death Cult, is available on Amazon.