UPDATE: The Mysterious Vanishing of D.B. Cooper
- Sarah Miller
- May 9
- 1 min read
DB Cooper ransom money found buried in sand along Columbia River had fallen into the water months after infamous skyjacking, scientist claims - adding new mystery to the 49-year-old cold case
A new clue may have been unearthed in the infamous 49-year-old cold case of skyjacker DB Cooper thanks to new analysis
DB Cooper hijacked a Northwest Orient flight from Portland to Seattle to November 1971, before vanishing after skydiving out of the plane with $200k
One of the few clues recovered in the case came in 1980 when a boy found $6,000 of Cooper's ransom money while camping in Tena Bar
Analysis of that cash shows the money was submerged in water for a short amount of time between May and June - months after the skyjacking
Kaye said his discovery has of summer diatoms discredits the theory that Cooper landed in the river in November, soaking the money and then buried it on shore
He said it also debunks the idea that Cooper or an accomplice attempted to bury some of the money near to the river at a later date to cause a distraction
How the money came to be in the water months after Cooper’s jump remains a mystery, as does the fact it was found relatively preserved nine years later
Asked about the lingering questions, Kaye said ‘Cooper is still messing with us'
