Parachute linked to DB Cooper found, revives McCoy’s hijacking theory

The decades-old mystery surrounding DB Cooper, the infamous hijacker who disappeared after parachuting from Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 with $200,000 in cash, may finally be unraveling.

A parachute discovered on the property of Richard Floyd McCoy II’s family has sparked new interest in the case, suggesting that McCoy may have been the fugitive on the run.

The renewed investigation into the 53-year-old case began in 2020 when McCoy’s children, Chanté and Richard III “Rick” McCoy, reached out to YouTuber Dan Gryder. Gryder, an amateur investigator who had long investigated the case, was invited to their family estate in North Carolina in July 2022. There, inside their late mother’s warehouse, Gryder uncovered a modified military surplus parachute rig. He described it to Cowboy State Daily as “one in a billion” and speculated that it was used in DB Cooper’s daring escape.

McCoy’s children shared Gryder’s belief, suspecting that their father might have been DB Cooper. However, they had refrained from coming forward until their mother’s death, fearing her involvement in their father’s crimes. Gryder’s findings prompted the FBI to unofficially reopen the case, marking its first significant move since the investigation was brought forward in 2016. That breakthrough has now shifted focus back to McCoy, whose name has long been whispered in true crime circles as a potential match for Cooper .

In a video released Monday, Gryder revealed that FBI agents had contacted him after seeing his previous videos documenting the parachute find. Agents met with Gryder and Rick McCoy and collected the parachute and its harness as evidence. The FBI also expressed interest in a log that Chanté found that fit the timeline of Cooper’s hijacking over Oregon and a later hijacking in Utah for which McCoy was convicted in 1972. The log could prove crucial as it provides another potential connection between McCoy and DB Cooper case.

The FBI’s actions did not stop there. A month after collecting the parachute, agents conducted a thorough search of the McCoy family’s property. Rick McCoy recounted how dozens of agents inspected “every nook and cranny” for additional evidence, while Gryder and his colleague, retired airline pilot Laura Savino, documented the four-hour search from a distance. This was the first time the FBI had dedicated such resources to the case in years.

Despite the apparent breakthroughs, the FBI has yet to confirm any updates. Rick McCoy provided DNA samples to the agency, but no results have been shared with the family. The parachute itself bore unique modifications consistent with those described by Earl Cossey, who provided the chutes for the original 1971 heist, further supporting Gryder’s theory that McCoy was DB Cooper.

Richard Floyd McCoy II has long been a suspect among Boy Scouts because of his nearly identical robbery months after the Cooper case. In April 1972, McCoy hijacked a United Airlines flight and demanded $500,000 before parachuting to escape. The FBI apprehended him within 72 hours, thanks to fingerprints on a note and an eyewitness account. But the FBI’s hasty raid on his home without a warrant likely prevented further evidence linking him to the Oregon theft. McCoy was sentenced to 45 years in prison, but escaped months later, only to be killed by police in Virginia in 1974.

The discovery of the parachute, along with the children’s testimony and the logbook, has sparked interest in McCoy as the possible culprit. However, there are still some skeptics. Retired FBI Special Agent Larry Carr, who briefly oversaw the case in 2007, doubts the hijacker could have survived the parachute jump. Others argue that McCoy’s age — he was younger than Cooper’s reported profile — makes him an unlikely match. Gryder denies these claims and suggests that McCoy used a disguise during the robbery.

To add to the mystery, true crime investigator Eric Ulis has proposed an entirely different theory. Ulis believes that DB Cooper was Vince Petersen, an aerospace engineer from Pittsburgh. After studying microscopic evidence from Cooper’s clip-on tie, which was left behind before the hijacker jumped from the plane, Ulis discovered particles consistent with metals used in the aerospace industry. Ulis has linked these metals to Petersen’s work as a Boeing subcontractor. However, his Freedom of Information Act requests for Cooper’s DNA records were denied, leaving his theory unresolved.

While these conflicting theories continue to generate debate, Gryder remains steadfast. He is convinced that the parachute, with its unique modifications, will finally provide the concrete evidence needed to solve the DB Cooper case. Despite the growing body of evidence, the FBI’s silence leaves many unanswered questions, keeping the mystery of DB Cooper alive. As new discoveries emerge, one thing is certain – the hunt for DB Cooper continues to capture the public’s imagination.