Who Was Hijacker D.B. Cooper? An Amateur Sleuth Is Closing in on the Infamous Criminal's True Identity. On this episode of "Dirty Money," we dig into the modern tactics one man is using to crack the case of the only unsolved hijacking in U.S. history.
By Dan Bova
Key Takeaways
- A passenger calling himself DB Cooper parachuted out of a commercial plane in 1971, stealing $200,000.
- He was never captured, and his true identity is still unknown.
- An amateur sleuth believes he knows the missing key to solving the case.
On Thanksgiving Eve of 1971, a hijacker known as D.B. Cooper parachuted out of a commercial airplane with $200,000 in ransom money and was never seen again. It's the only unsolved commercial airline hijacking in U.S. history, and the FBI officially closed the books on the investigation nearly a decade ago.
But while the Feds have thrown in the towel, citizen detective Eric Ulis is still fighting to learn the truth. For years, Ulis has been working on his own to keep the case alive and, thanks to a recent discovery, says he is on the verge of a breakthrough in revealing Cooper's true identity. All he needs is a little cooperation with the FBI, which he is suing the agency to get.
Related: How Identical Twin Brothers Brought Down Drug Lord El Chapo's $2 Billion Empire
In this episode, we speak with Ulis to get the amazing story of this daring and dangerous heist and delve into the modern detective tactics he is using to put some heat on this cold case. Ulis has made some incredible discoveries that could, at last, reveal the identity of the hijacker — all he needs now is for the Feds to give him access to a clip-on tie, one of the few pieces of evidence Cooper left behind when he jumped out of that plane.
Whether you're fascinated by historical crimes or fascinated by modern detective work, we can guarantee this: you will be fascinated by this episode!
Thanks as always for listening. Please rate and review us, and if you want to learn even more about D.B. Cooper, be sure to check out Kevin Ulis's CooperCon events.
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About Dirty Money
Dirty Money is a new podcast series from Entrepreneur Media telling the tales of legendary scammers, con artists, and barely-legal lowlifes who stop at nothing to bilk their marks of millions. Hosted by Entrepreneur editors Dan Bova and Jon Small, the podcast takes a deep dive into the deviants behind the deeds.
