Modern Mysteries

Parachute strap linked to 1971 DB Cooper case

By T.K. Randall
August 11, 2017 ·  12 comments

Who is this man and where is he now ? Image Credit: PD / US Government The infamous hijacking occurred in 1971 when a mysterious man, who at the time went by the name Dan Cooper, boarded Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 to travel from Portland to Seattle.

During the trip, Cooper called over one of the flight attendants and asked them to write out a note declaring that he had a bomb in his briefcase and that the plane was being hijacked.

When the aircraft stopped at Tacoma International Airport, he allowed the passengers to leave in exchange for four parachutes and the sum of $200,000 in cash.

After the plane had taken off again, Cooper strapped the bag of money to himself, put on one of the parachutes and jumped out somewhere between Seattle and Reno. No trace of him was ever found.The mystery of Cooper's identity has proven so difficult to solve in fact that even the FBI, which had been investigating the case for over 45 years, was eventually forced to admit defeat.

Now though, amateur detectives believe that they might have finally made a breakthrough following the discovery of what is thought to be a strap from the parachute that Cooper used to escape.

The item was unearthed at an undisclosed location following a tip-off from a 'credible source' and could lead to the place where Cooper buried the money he had stolen during the hijacking.

Whether it will be enough to solve the mystery once and for all however remains to be seen.

Source: News.com.au | Comments (12)

Tags: DB Cooper, FBI