The Mysterious Case of Dan "D. B." Cooper

In Portland, Oregon 1971, a man going by the name of Dan Cooper bought a ticket for Northwest Orient Airlines Flight #305 at the airport. During the flight, Cooper explained to the stewardess that he had a bomb in his briefcase. Cooper escaped the plane with about 200,000 dollars in ransom money, and his disappearance remains unsolved to this day.

While on the flight, Cooper directed the stewardess to tell the pilot he wanted 200,000 dollars and four parachutes after showing her the makeshift bomb he carried in his briefcase. The crew and other passengers pooled their resources as the plane landed in Seattle. Cooper would hold crew members hostage as he directed the plane to relaunch and head for Mexico City, according to the official FBI website. However, while flying to the new destination, Cooper used the parachutes to jump out of the plane with the money. The FBI discovered what was happening while the plane was still in the air, and an investigation began. Cooper hasn’t been seen since then.

Cooper ordered a refuel after the plane landed in Seattle so they could escape to Mexico City. During that time, Cooper released the passengers and one of the flight attendants, according to Crime Museum. Cooper also had the crew and pilot follow specific instructions after receiving the money. He had the cabin depressurized, and he specifically asked for twenty-dollar bills because of their weight, according to Crime Museum. After he jumped off the plane, the FBI never discovered if Cooper survived the jump.

The FBI investigated around 800 suspects, including Richard Floyd McCoy, who was eventually acquitted, according to the FBI’s website. The “D. B.” in Cooper’s name, however, was created by the media. In 1980, an eight-year-old boy discovered the money belonging to Cooper in a briefcase in the Columbia River, though the eruption of Mt. Saint Helens kept the FBI from searching the area more, according to Crime Museum. The case remains unsolved to this day, with no fingerprint matches for any of the suspects so far.