NMIWrecks

I always thought he requested the extra chutes to imply he was taking a hostage with him, so the authorities wouldn't sabotage any of the chutes. That's just an opinion.

Smokin99: Or it shows that he planned the hijacking and knew it from looking at a map. As Robert99 notes, the only factual conclusion that can be drawn is that Cooper knew the approximate driving time from McChord AFB to SEATAC. There is nothing that says how he knew this and you definitely have nothing to make this "almost certain". Speculation that he took the flight previously is only speculation that he took the flight previously. Tells us nothing about where he was from or his personal familiarity with the area. Plus maybe he did take a previous flight but maybe it was to familiarize himself with sights and distances so that he could make them THINK he was from the area? For someone that lives in that area you should know that there have been numerous reports of whole planes going missing and have never been found. Google it. See response to number 2 – in addition to planes, also google bones found in Washington and Oregon and how long the person had been missing/dead before they were found. I agree with Robert99 – meaningless unless it turns up tomorrow in his boney hand. if he threw it out ahead of his jump, which is the only time that he could have thrown it out if he didn’t take it with him, what would this narrow down? If he threw it out when he first opened the door, it could be far away from where he finally jumped. I agree that his intention was most likely to jump pretty soon after takeoff, and one indication of that could be that he requested that the stairs be down -- but it is not the only reason he might have made this request, and you definitely can't make the leap that this makes it likely he was from the Puget Sound area. You are making speculations and labeling them as probable truths based on nothing. Where he wanted to jump could have been solely based on what he had researched and planned to do and nothing at all with where he was from. Cossey, as a master rigger, and the one who packed the chutes was in the better position to identify the chutes than the owner, who says he never used the chute. I ‘ve already given logical rasons why Cossey said that they were his chutes, but that is really not relevant as to whether he was in the better position of describing and/or identifying the chutes. Additionally, the FBI did not “admit” to only talking to other experts by phone. That is something you claim from piecing together articles, and making supposition but it never actually says that. The primary articles say that “the conclusion was based on a totality of the evidence, and NOT just the opinion of Cossey, …..that several other experts who stepped forward after the find were consulted.” Please provide proof that the FBI ever admits that additional experts were “only” consulted by phone. Speculation no doubt based on wishful thinking. It’s also been speculated that there are aliens in refrigeration at Area 51. Jeez for you to even put that on a list titled 10 things we can assume to be true is just plain silly. I imagine the lowest point of his life if he lived, was that he didn’t get to keep all (or maybe any) of the money. If he did worry, which we have no way of knowing -- he has no doubt relaxed now since he still hasn’t been found. And I hate to tell you (from your response to R99 - but federal judges ave been known to bypass the Constitution more than a few times. That’s why cases are overturned in appeal and supreme courts. Unless he is being held down by trees or other obstacles. Items that enter the Columbia River might wash up, but many are also just never found. Again – google Columbia River suspected drownings and boat wrecks and you will find multiple instances where the body and debris was never found. I will agree on parts of this one - there have been multiple witness descriptions of the weather . As to the hijacker's demeanor, I think only Himmelsbach subscribes to the theory that he was overall abusive and threatening (though I don’t remember if those are his words). The crew makes reference to one or two instances when the hijacker was forceful and getting upset - example when he thought they were stalling, - but overall Flo and Tina spent the most time with him and they say that he was not the nasty character that Himmelsbach claims. I believe words like calm and polite were used. As for the descriptions: the three attendants' descriptions - which I believe the most weight should be given to: Flo said 6 feet - 6'1"". Tina said 5-ten to 6 feet. As for the suit – dark brown with a black stripe might actually look black to someone. I think we can safely say the suit was dark, the shirt was white, and the tie was black. Additionally, both Tina and Flo said straight hair – Flo said parted on left, Tina said narrow sideburns. We are not told whether they differed with each other on the sideburns and part. AS for dk brown or black - hair - again I think that this can be safely described as dark brown/black without any quibble. In certain light and to certain people, dark brown looks black. As a child my hair was so black that it looked blue. As I got older it changed to more of a darkest brown but people still called it black. Point being I don't think it would have made my description wrong if someone said black or dk brown- it had elements of both. As for the eyes, I have been doing an experiment for a couple of years (unscientific I know -- but most people that I have asked (and I've asked quite a few) describe even dark hazel eyes as hazel though a few have said hazel brown as opposed to hazel green) - but no one has ever said that a person with any degree of hazel was brown - they always preface it with "hazel". As for identikit differences, Geoff’s book only gives complete identikit info for Alice Hancock, I don’t think he gave complete info for Flo and none for Tina - though I'm basing that on memory. I'm not well versed in each of the identikit numbers, are you? Is Gray? Gray alludes that the descriptions are different because of the different identikit numbers - but how do you or Geoff know that the numbers they chose aren’t virtually identical except for some small something? As far as I know, there is nothing that Gray reports - other than the one other passenger description - that changes the basic / general description that was given out at the beginning. That’s what a composite is – you take the most relevant and most cited descriptions and go from there. But aside from that, I don't know if there is anything to suggest that the original description that the FBI originally put out was grossly incorrect. Having said that -- when I first read the original article on KC by Gray, I thought he favored the composite. I still do, but I can’t make the descriptive stuff that doesn’t fit go away – nor can I or you do anything more than speculate about KC's role in a hijacking. If we want to assume speculations as truth, then Tina probably saw the guy standing the most and in the closest proximity – plus she had herself as a measuring stick -- so by that reasoning, why not say that the hijacker had to be taller than 5’10? Most of the 10 things you say that we can assume to be true are just pure speculation and no more or less probable than that. Really, don't you think this case has enough myths without proclamations of what "we" can assume to be true without any basis in fact. I pretty much agree with what the "99"s said (Smokin, Robert). As for the russet suit issue, anybody who spends any amount of time around vintage clothing via thrift stores and estate sales has seen sun faded black suits and tuxes. Black fabric, when exposed to sunlight, takes on a reddish brown hue over time. This can also happen with bleaching or over-washing. Maybe the Cooper suspect spent some time in a sunny climate, say Mexico. Or maybe his suit was older and had been washed many times.

It may be time for us to develop a unified witness profile: 5: Bill Mitchell: skyjacker was an "old" guy, nerdy looking with bad hair, and a turkey gobble under his chin. But skyjacker didn't have HUGE ears like Duane. Bill sat in Row 18, and at 6'2" and 220, was "way bigger" than skyjacker. Who else? What other descriptions? Five passengers volunteered themselves to talk with the feds in the terminal, saying they had seen the skyjacker: Mitchell, Gregory, Labonissiere, and two others that I forget. Bill Mitchell pegged the Cooper suspect's age as 40 years old.

Good questions. Here is what I know: The missing grocery store money was investigated jointly by the Michigan State Police and the Grayling Police Department. All records from both agencies have been purged. I talked with the only surviving officer of the Grayling Police Department during that time and he vaguely remembers the incident. He recalls a suspicion that Lepsy had fled to Mexico with a paramour, but the person in question was found not to have left the area. There are no missing women from that time period in the Grayling area. I want to be careful what I say here. Allegedly, Lepsy confessed to his wife that he had an affair with one of his employees, months before he disappeared. She had just graduated from high school. Yes Bruce, she was very attractive. Nobody knows of Lepsy's activities in Mexico, so it's anybodies guess how he could have learned about 727s. It's my understanding the Cooper suspect didn't know how to open the aft stairs and had to be shown. Book smart? There are whispers of a Mexican drug connection. For years, grocery stores in small towns where thought to be the distribution center for drugs being delivered by trucks carrying produce from southern states. All rumors, but there are rumors. How about the wife and daughter? What have they turned up? They've been active in finding Dick, such as Sally Jesse Raphael. What do they say about DB C? The children (three sons and a daughter) have thought for years that their father resembles the FBI Cooper suspect sketches. They did not bring this to their mother's attention because of her fragile condition concerning their father's disappearance. Lepsy's wife never remarried or even dated after his disappearance. Lepsy's daughter finally listed him on missing person websites (NAMUS, etc.) as a missing person in 2011, around the time of the death of her mother. Lepsy has not been seen or heard from since his disappearance. It's like he fell of the edge of the Earth, or landed in the Columbia...

Ahhh, the phantom army of suspects is referenced again! Please, show me some of these guys who fit the description of being about 6 feet tall, weighing 180 pounds, brown eyes, black hair, and hasn't been seen since thanksgiving of 71. Feel free to add no discernible accent and a tan like someone who has been spending time in Mexico. Before the "usual suspects" chime in about the usual suspects who survived the jump, remember this: There's been 43 years to prove the Cooper suspect survived, and there hasn't been a shred of evidence that he did. Nada, zip, zero, zilch. Any of the evidence that has been presented thus far would be laughed out of court. It should be a lot easier to prove the Cooper suspect survived, than to prove he perished after four decades, wouldn't you think?

Good questions. Here is what I know: The missing grocery store money was investigated jointly by the Michigan State Police and the Grayling Police Department. All records from both agencies have been purged. I talked with the only surviving officer of the Grayling Police Department during that time and he vaguely remembers the incident. He recalls a suspicion that Lepsy had fled to Mexico with a paramour, but the person in question was found not to have left the area. There are no missing women from that time period in the Grayling area. I want to be careful what I say here. Allegedly, Lepsy confessed to his wife that he had an affair with one of his employees, months before he disappeared. She had just graduated from high school. Yes Bruce, she was very attractive. Nobody knows of Lepsy's activities in Mexico, so it's anybodies guess how he could have learned about 727s. It's my understanding the Cooper suspect didn't know how to open the aft stairs and had to be shown. Book smart? There are whispers of a Mexican drug connection. For years, grocery stores in small towns where thought to be the distribution center for drugs being delivered by trucks carrying produce from southern states. All rumors, but there are rumors.

Are you tired of looking for a phantom, unemployed, Hispanic, French Canadian, comic book reading, aerospace engineer with no discernible accent? Are you sick of having the same dozen suspects paraded before you, even though they don't match the general description of the Cooper suspect and have been "ruled out" according the the FBI's website? Different height, eye color, facial features, etc. If you think it's possible the Cooper suspect was a no pull, then take a look at Dick Lepsy (see attachments below). Same height, weight, hair color and eye color as the Cooper suspect was reported to have. I've heard a few ridiculous reasons why it couldn't be Lepsy. One of these notions is "If we consider Lepsy, then we have to consider everybody!" If everybody is 6' tall, weighs around 180 pounds and has black hair and brown eyes and disappeared around the time of the skyjacking, then YES, maybe we should consider them. The idea that there is an army of missing persons our there fitting this description is preposterous. Please show me these phantom missing persons. One guy even said if we consider Lepsy as a suspect, then we should consider his dad a suspect also. If his dad was 6' tall, weighed around 180 pounds and had black hair and brown eyes and disappeared around the time of the skyjacking, and resembled both FBI sketches, then YES, we should definitely take a good look at his father! Tell us more! Feel free to comment and give your opinion. Along with your opinion, I ask you answer these simple questions: What’s the biggest mystery you've solved? What’s the biggest cold case you've cracked? If you have never solved a mystery or closed a cold case, then you don’t have the kahunas to take on this case. Arguing minutia about the so called facts of this case doesn't make one a sleuth, it makes one a douche bag. Thoughts? .

I forgot to mention that half a pack of cigarettes were found on the dash of Lepsy's unlocked station wagon.

When Dick Lepsy disappeared on October 29th of 1969, the safe (see attachment) at the grocery store he managed was found to be "jammed shut". A locksmith was called and when the safe was finally opened, an audit revealed $2000 was missing. A couple days later, Lepsy's station wagon was found at an airport, which is located an hour from his home, unlocked with the keys in the ignition. Lepsy was never seen or heard from again. Dick Lepsy has been described by family members as being around 6 feet tall, around 180 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Over the years, family members noted a similarity between the FBI Cooper sketches and Dick Lepsy, but never pursued the issue because of the fragile condition of his wife, Jackie. Lepsy's case was featured on the Sally Jesse Raphael Show in 1986, 17 years after his disappearance and 15 years after the skyjacking. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbKZsQfzDSo Authorities claimed Lepsy's destination was Mexico. Images comparing Lepsy with the FBI Cooper sketches are attached below.

I prefer "attention slut." But remember, I was asked to list my sex life as a means to solving Norjak. Don't you think that is interesting? Even Nimi Wrecks is amazed. See above, way above. I'm still amazed! To Jo: Let me know if you need any resources for your health struggles. I may be able to steer you towards groups that can offer guidance and support for your particular medical issues and needs. RR

Bruce, I think I just threw up in my mouth, just a little. Let's hope this lights "1000 Thingys" fire and we get some serious answers! The sacrifices you make simply amaze me. RR

Bruce, Why would "1000 Things" want a list of those guys? Sorry, I just couldn't resist

RobertMBlevins wrote: I'm going to disagree with the supposition that the money wouldn't have survived in a natural environment for 9 years. I've attached an image of corn from the hold of a ship which sank in 1893. Despite being submerged for more than a century, the kernels of corn are in pretty good shape. I've also seen examples of where human soft tissue can be preserved for decades in underwater environments, under the right conditions. One of the major conditions needed is lack of water flow. Material in some type of container or buried in silt or mud can show little signs of decay even after decades. I have myself seen paper submerged since the 1800s, still intact under these conditions. I've had quite a bit of experience in this area, and that experience is telling me that, it's not only possible that the money was either underwater and/or encased in silt/sand for nearly a decade, but it's highly probable that it was.

Good luck Jo. I hope the procedure is a success and that you'll feel better. We'll hold down the fort while you're gone. RR

The short answer is "no" but Jo Weber will probably claim otherwise. Well, you never know until you dig a little deeper. Dick Lepsy lived about a mile from the Grayling Army Airfield, and a couple miles from Camp Grayling, the main training facility for the Michigan National Guard and the largest US National Guard training facility in the USA. He undoubtedly had contact with military personnel as these bases were used extensively for training during the Vietnam War.