Summary
The FBI has released new documents about the 1971 airplane hijacking involving a man known as DB Cooper. After hijacking a plane and obtaining a $200,000 ransom, Cooper jumped from the plane with a parachute and was never found. The FBI files reveal their investigation into Raymond Sidney Russell, one of many possible suspects.
Key Facts
- In 1971, a man calling himself Dan Cooper hijacked a plane, demanded $200,000, and jumped out with the ransom money, disappearing.
- The hijacking occurred on November 24, 1971, on a Northwest Orient Airlines flight from Portland to Seattle.
- Cooper claimed to have a bomb and demanded four parachutes and the ransom money.
- After releasing the passengers in Seattle, Cooper ordered the plane to fly to Mexico City.
- Cooper jumped from the plane between Seattle and Reno at around 8 p.m. and was never found.
- The FBI considered over 800 suspects but never identified Cooper.
- In 1980, a boy found $20 bills matching the ransom money near the Columbia River.
- Raymond Sidney Russell, once a pilot, was investigated but denied involvement; he matches some descriptions given by the FBI documents.
