New Evidence May Link D.B. Cooper Case to Longtime Suspect

A parachute found on a North Carolina property reignites FBI interest in the unsolved 1971 hijacking mystery.

The FBI is informally revisiting the D.B. Cooper case after a parachute, believed to be linked to the 1971 hijacking, was discovered on the property of Richard McCoy II's family.
Richard McCoy II, a longtime suspect, was arrested for a similar hijacking months after Cooper's escape but was never conclusively tied to the original case.
The parachute, described as 'one in a billion' by investigator Dan Gryder, matches the type used by Cooper and was handed over to the FBI along with a skydiving logbook.
McCoy's children, who long suspected their father’s involvement, shared the evidence after their mother’s death, fearing she might have been implicated in the crime.
The FBI has not officially reopened the case but has conducted a property search and collected DNA samples to assess potential links to McCoy.