D. B. Cooper

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D. B. Cooper
A composite drawing of D. B. Cooper made by the FBI in 1972
Born
Other names	Dan Cooper
Occupation	unknown

A sketch drawing made by the FBI. It shows how Cooper could possibly look today

D. B. Cooper (also known as Dan Cooper) is an alias (false name) for a man who hijacked an airplane in 1971. He received the ransom payment of 200.000 Dollars^[1]. He jumped from the plane, a Boeing 727 that was travelling in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, possibly over Woodland, Washington.^[2] Hundreds of suspects have been named through the years, but no conclusive evidence has surfaced regarding who Cooper was, or where he lived. The FBI believes he did not survive the jump.^[3] Several people have tried to explain what happened after the jump. Some of these explanations contradict each other.

Because no one expected he would jump and because little is known of what happened afterwards, people are still interested in the case. The Cooper case (code-named "Norjak" by the FBI)^[4] remains an unsolved mystery.

The case is famous for its enduring lack of evidence. A few significant clues have arisen, nevertheless. In late 1978, a placard, which contained instructions on how to lower the rear stairs of a 727 was found just a few flying minutes north of Cooper's projected drop zone. It is believed that this is from the rear stairway of the plane from which Cooper jumped. In February 1980, eight-year-old Brian Ingram found $5,880 in decaying $20 bills on the banks of the Columbia River.^[5]

In October 2007, the FBI announced it was able to get a partial DNA profile of Cooper from the tie he left on the hijacked plane.^[6] On December 31, 2007, the FBI revived the unclosed case: They published never before seen composite sketches and fact sheets online. They did this because some people might remember them, and help identify Cooper. In a press release, the FBI said that it still does not believe Cooper survived the jump, but expressed an interest to know who Cooper was.^[6]^[7] In March 2008, the FBI announced that another possible clue was being investigated after a torn, tangled parachute was found within the bounds of Cooper's probable jump site near the town of Amboy, Washington.^[8] However, the FBI announced on April 1, 2008 that the parachute in question was not D. B. Cooper's. The man responsible for packing the four parachutes said that the recently discovered parachute was not Cooper's, as his was nylon, and the newly discovered parachute was silk, dating from the 1940s.^[9]