This segment from Buzzfeed Unsolved discusses the famous D.B. Cooper case, one of the great unsolved mysteries in FBI and U.S. history. D.B. Cooper hijacked a plane in 1971, demanded ransom money and parachutes, and then jumped out of the plane, disappearing without a trace. The show presents various suspects and theories, including the possibility that Cooper didn't survive the fall due to the challenging conditions of his jump.
1. The case discussed is the famous unsolved mystery of D.B. Cooper, a man who hijacked a plane and demanded a ransom of $200,000.
2. D.B. Cooper purchased a one-way ticket on NorthWest Orient Airlines from Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington on November 24th, 1971.
3. Cooper was described as being in his mid-40s, wearing a business suit, a black rain type overcoat, brown shoes, a white shirt, and black tie.
4. He carried a dark briefcase and a paper bag, and ordered a bourbon and soda before the plane took off.
5. After the plane had taken off, Cooper handed a note to the stewardess, claiming he had a bomb.
6. Cooper asked the stewardess to write down his demands, which included the ransom money, two back parachutes, two front parachutes, and instructions for the plane to remain below 10,000 feet.
7. The plane landed in Seattle, and Cooper exchanged the 36 passengers on the plane for the money and the parachutes he had requested.
8. Cooper put on a pair of dark wrap-around sunglasses with dark rims, which became part of the sketch that would become famous for anyone familiar with the case.
9. A little after eight p.m. when the plane was somewhere between Seattle and Reno, Nevada, Cooper jumped out of the rear doors of the Boeing 727 with two of the parachutes and the money, never to be seen again.
10. The FBI was able to procure a DNA sample from a tie that Cooper took off before jumping.
11. The case was called NORJAK, standing for Northwest Hijacking, and would last decades.
12. The initials D.B. have no actual relevance to the case, and the FBI isn't sure where they came from.
13. The physical description of Cooper is thought to be very accurate.
14. The charge against Cooper was originally air piracy, but that had a five-year statute of limitations and as time went on, with no suspects being found guilty, a grand jury later indicted Cooper for violating the Hobbs Act.
15. The FBI eventually ruled out Richard Floyd McCoy as a suspect for the Cooper case, mainly because he didn't match the descriptions of Cooper given by the flight attendants.
16. Duane Weber claimed to be D.B. Cooper on his death bed.
17. Kenneth Christiansen, the brother of Kenneth Christiansen, was a favorite suspect of the author Geoffrey Gray.
18. The FBI closed the case in 2016, though they are still willing to listen to possible leads.