John Haught
John Philip Haught, also known as "Zero", was an associate of the Manson Clan. Haught began living with the group after he moved from Ohio to California. Haught was arrested with the group during the Barker Ranch raid. After being released from jail, Haught moved to a Venice Beach house, rented by a Manson Family associate, Mark Ross, aka Aesop Aquarian.
On Wednesday, November 5th, 1969, the Venice Police Department responded to a call at 28 Clubhouse Avenue. At the scene, law enforcement discovered the body of John Haught. Haught was lying on a mattress in the bedroom. He had an entrance wound to the Right temple. There was a leather gun case and a revolver lying beside the body.
According to Madaline Joan Cottage, she and Haught were in bed when he picked up a .22 Caliber revolver. After Madaline told Haught that there was only one bullet in the gun, he spun the cylinder, placed the muzzle against his head, and shot himself.
Several Manson Family members were present when Haught died, including Bruce Davis and Catherine Gillies. They told the police that Haught killed himself playing Russian roulette.
The police questioned everyone who was at the residence but did not know the people involved were members of the Manson Family. All told the same story, and the police ruled the death a suicide [image]. They didn't suspect foul play, not even when they found out the gun was fully loaded at the moment of the shooting, and that the gun had been wiped clean of fingerprints.
Later, an anonymous source reportedly told the L.A. Times that he was there when Haught died. He claimed Haught didn’t kill himself but was shot by one of the Manson girls.
Mark Ross, the tenant of the house where Haught was found dead, was a member of the Manson Family. He joined the clan after Manson and the others were arrested for the killings. After the Manson Family fell apart, Ross joined another cult, the Source Family, and changed his name to Aesop Aquarian.