F.B.I.'s new lead in D.B. Cooper 1971 case

[johnmiic]

They say it's just a lead but could the mystery be solved after 40 years?


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...pdbcooper.html

[MicromanZone]

I for one want to stop living in fear of being “D.B. Cooper”-ed so I welcome the end of this national nightmare!

[Adam West]

Brad Metzer's show "Decoded" devoted a whole show to the D.B. Cooper case.

The asked experts about whether he could have survived the jump (the answer was a definite yes) and they conducted their own investigation which lead them to a lot of places.

I believe at the end of the day, there was a split decision but thought there was more evidence pointing to him surviving and getting away with it than not. As a side note (and it has been a while since I watched the episode); I believe the person who they thought was D.B. Cooper is no longer alive.

[jwyblejr]

Brad Metzer's show "Decoded" devoted a whole show to the D.B. Cooper case.

The asked experts about whether he could have survived the jump (the answer was a definite yes) and they conducted their own investigation which lead them to a lot of places.

I believe at the end of the day, there was a split decision but thought there was more evidence pointing to him surviving and getting away with it than not. As a side note (and it has been a while since I watched the episode); I believe the person who they thought was D.B. Cooper is no longer alive.

He's not. The episode made quite a few interesting points about who they thought it was. Biggest one was the house he had built.

[megomania]

I for one want to stop living in fear of being “D.B. Cooper”-ed so I welcome the end of this national nightmare!

It's actually a very fascinating case...he (whoever he is) may have pulled off the perfect crime in the history of all crimes. No one was hurt, he hijacked a major airliner, made off with a fortune (for 1971), and he hasn't been identified for 40 years. To have the FBI still working on this case after 40 years is pretty amazing.

[EmergencyIan]

This new development has certainly peaked my interest.

- Ian

[Cosmicman]

There is no resolution. This dude fell and was smashed like a pancake and his remains were drug off by hungry wolves or some animals of the wild. They've been finding pieces of dirty money all over for years. You read that about that one kid awhile ago finding old money pieces? They have all kinds of stuff turn up once in awhile but never a body. The real D.B. Cooper never had a chance.

SPLAT!!!!

[megomania]

There is no resolution. This dude fell and was smashed like a pancake and his remains were drug off by hungry wolves or some animals of the wild. They've been finding pieces of dirty money all over for years. You read that about that one kid awhile ago finding old money pieces? They have all kinds of stuff turn up once in awhile but never a body. The real D.B. Cooper never had a chance.

SPLAT!!!!

Pure speculation on your part...many experts believe otherwise...

[johnmiic]

I thought Unsolved Mysteries w/Robert Stack had the inside track to this. Some years ago they had a segment on a guy who looked like Cooper, had the military training it was implied that Cooper had, (FBI thinks he was formerly from the Air Force-but not a pilot or paratrooper), and also this guy died after escaping jail attempting to rob more banks after the Cooper event. When in jail they questioned him about the case but he wouldn't admit to the crime. Some of the money has surfaced in rough form but I think largely it hasn't turned up in circulation because Cooper screwed up and it got lost in the woods over the area he jumped. It's probably underwater or buried like the samples that has surfaced.

[rche]

It is an interesting case, but I gotta agree with the folks that solving it does not justify the tax monies spent by the feds in FBI.

Best left as a mystery to be solved in the hands of the private sector and entertainment folks at this point.

[JediJaida]

Wouldn't he be dead of old age by now anyway? What's the point?

I can understand the need for closure, but not at the expense of the tax payer.

[johnmiic]

It isn't an active investigation but an unsolved/open case. There is not a staff sitting around eating donuts paid weekly still hunting for D.B. Cooper because the case is cold, (and old), but when a lead presents itself the FBI send an agent out to check it out. I doubt it adds up to much in tax dollars at all to check a credible lead.

It's the whole "long arm of the law" theory put to the test. Years may pass but if something comes up the law will try to get the criminal. I think it's great. It's the perserverence of Law Enforcement that led to the apprehension of John List, Wikimedia Error, once suspected of being Cooper himself. You may get away for a while or a long time but the law will catch you.

[Adam West]

He's not. The episode made quite a few interesting points about who they thought it was. Biggest one was the house he had built.

I couldn't remember whether or not the person who they thought he was is now deceased. I do remember something about the house of the person they suspected was D.B. Cooper and finding some type of mysterious hidden hatch up in an attic crawl space that looked like it had no other purpose but to hide something.

[MicromanZone]

You know I joked at the beginning of this thread about the case, but johnmiic is 100% right. But what I wanted to add is complaints about “taxpayers dollars being wasted” are ridiculous. There are tons of more persistent wastes of tax money happening in the U.S. everyday that suck tons of money out of the system and are basically “pork barrel” projects. This is not one of them. “Cold case” files exist everywhere and it’s comforting to know that justice can span generations.

[rche]

noting that the tax dollar discussion is flirting with the no politics rule of the MM board, I'm just going to say that I respectfully disagree, but that I do think it is a very interesting story.