ADIC Los Angeles to Director (Identification Division) re Bryant Jack Coffelt fingerprint comparison and leads
Document date 24 January 1977
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Id: Cooper-Part-120:374-380
Subject: Cooper Files: Cooper-Part-120:374-380 Document: Airtel ADIC Los Angeles to Director (Identification Division) re Bryant Jack Coffelt fingerprint comparison and leads Id: Cooper-Part-120:374-380 Page: https://cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-120%3A374-380 What is wrong (title, date, type, which pages belong together, copies)? What does the scan show?
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FBI 164-81, Vault Part 120 pp. 374–380 (DB Cooper-55406–55412), Airtel, dated 24 Jan 1977 — cooper.theunsolved.net/documents/Cooper-Part-120%3A374-380
FD-36 (Rev. 2-14-74)
F B I
Date: 1/24/77
Transmit the following in _______________ (Type in plaintext or code)
Via AIRTEL AIR MAIL (Precedence)
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TO: DIRECTOR, FBI (164-2111) ATTN: Identification Division
FROM: ADIC, LOS ANGELES (164-497) (P) (13)
RE: NORJACK OO: Seattle
RE: UNSUB; [blank/redacted box] Source [blank/redacted box]
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BRYANT COFFELT X
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Re Los Angeles airtel to Seattle dated 11/15/76; Seattle letter to Bureau dated 12/20/76; Minneapolis letter to Seattle dated 12/22/76; Los Angeles airtels to Seattle dated 1/7/77, and 1/19/77; Los Angeles telephone call to Las Vegas dated 1/12/77; and Las Vegas letter to Los Angeles dated 1/18/77.
Enclosed for each receiving office are two copies each of photographs of BRYANT COFFELT reportedly taken in 1974.
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3 - Bureau 2 - Alexandria (Enc. 2) 2 - Honolulu (Enc. 2) 2 - Kansas City (Enc. 2) 2 - Las Vegas (164-60) (Enc. 2) 2 - Portland (164-41) (Enc. 2) 2 - Seattle (164-81) (Enc. 2) [illegible handwritten addition] 2 - Washington Field (Enc. 2) 2 - Los Angeles
(19) crs/lac
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164-81-73[illegible, possibly 7329] (handwritten, circled) SEARCHED ___ INDEXED ___ SERIALIZED ___ FILED ___ JAN 28 1977 FBI - SEATTLE [illegible handwritten number] Per.
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Approved: [illegible signature] Sent __________ Special Agent in Charge
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GPO : 1975 O - 530-982 DB COOPER-55406
LA 164-497
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For the information of the Bureau and receiving offices, information has recently come to the attention of the Seattle, Minneapolis, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles Divisions concerning a television documentary, "Still at Large" by Alan Landsburg Productions, Los Angeles, concerning the skyjacker as D. B. COOPER. It has recently been ascertained through investigation at Las Vegas and Los Angeles that this production is based on a manuscript written by JAMES H. BROWN, currently residing in Las Vegas, Nevada.
BROWN has been interviewed in Las Vegas and advised he was in the Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta, Georgia, in the 1940's, where he had a cell mate whom he refused to identify. This cell mate and BROWN had maintained periodic contact with each other over the years. During 1974, while this cell mate was residing in Bend, Oregon, BROWN and [REDACTED] had visited him. During conversation, this former cell mate had pointed to himself and said, "I am D. B. COOPER." Subsequent investigation by Las Vegas revealed that BROWN had made inquiry through a private detective agency in Las Vegas to confirm the death of one BRYANT COFFELT in Honolulu.
Subsequent investigation at Los Angeles reveals the man BROWN believes to be D. B. COOPER is one BRYANT COFFELT, also known as Bryant Jack Coffelt, J. C. Ross, John Hardy, Jr., a white male, born 2/20/16, at Carthadge, Missouri, or 2/20/25, at Picher, Oklahoma.
On 1/17/77, screenwriters DIRK WAYNE SUMMERS and ROBERT PRISNELL were interviewed by SAs C. ROBERT STRANGER and JOSEPH C. ALSTON in the presence of their attorney, [REDACTED].
SUMMERS advised he has purchased exclusive rights to the manuscript of a story based on the activities of "D. B. COOPER," from JIM BROWN, a writer residing in Las Vegas. SUMMERS stated he is convinced that BROWN genuinely believes a former cell mate of his named BRYANT COFFELT is the skyjacker known as COOPER.
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DB COOPER-55407
LA 164-497
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While making references to notes which SUMMERS explained were taken during interviews of BROWN and infor- mation related to him by "researchers," SUMMERS related as follows:
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During the 1940's, JIM BROWN, a former military pilot, was incarcerated in Atlanta Penitentiary as a result of a general court martial, and while in prison, his cell mate was a man named BRYANT COFFELT. Following their release from prison, BROWN and COFFELT maintained periodic contact with each other, and in 1974, COFFELT related to BROWN that he was D. B. COOPER. On one occasion in 1974, BROWN and his son, named BRYAN, traveled with COFFELT to a remote mountain area near Mount Hood where they searched for the ransom money which COFFELT alleged he had lost upon jumping from the victim aircraft. BROWN had indicated that COFFELT had received serious leg and groin injuries during the jump which made it very difficult for him to search for the money.
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SUMMERS related the following information, which allegedly was furnished to BROWN by COFFELT in 1974:
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Upon boarding the airplane at Portland, COFFELT had taken a seat and ordered a whiskey with which he had paid for with a twenty dollar bill. A Philippino stewardess had made the change for him. He had asked the stewardess to sit with him and told her what he wanted. He then gave the stewardess a handwritten note with instructions to be taken to the captian. He had received the note back. COFFELT smoked Raleigh cigarettes and had an altimeter and a device to receive beep signals strapped to his right wrist. He had placed one beeper in the money bag and one beeper was in a jeep on the ground near his landing spot. He had received the money in some type of laundry bag and had dropped this bag inside of a plastic "Hefty" disposal bag, then bound it with cordage cut from one of the para- chutes. COFFELT allegedly had some type of trouble when he went to leave the airplane and had remarked that the hand- rails on the door of the plane were very large, making it difficult to grip with his hands. He had thrown a brief-
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DB COOPER-55408
LA 164-497
case or valise which contained the alleged explosives out over Lake Merwin.
Making references to his notes at this point, SUMMERS stated he had noted that one of the parachutes was inoperable and possibly was thrown out at this point too, but he was not certain of this. COFFELT, due to losing his balance and having troubles with the wind while in the door, had left the airplane some ten to twelve seconds later.
He had tied the money bag to one arm and had lost the money on the way down.
He had seriously injured himself upon striking a tree limb when landing, although he actually landed only a short distance from a jeep previously placed in the area. Due to the serious groin and leg injuries he had received upon landing, it had taken him several hours to get to the jeep located in a remote mountainous area near a small lake close to Mount Hood, Oregon. COFFELT reportedly used acid to destroy the parachute. However, JIM BROWN and/or [redacted] [redacted] claim that COFFELT, in 1974, had shown them buckles which COFFELT alleged were the remains of the para- chute. He had also pointed out the tree limb which he had struck upon receiving his injuries.
COFFELT allegedly had driven the jeep to the small lake in the area where he had landed and had utilized some type of plastic explosive to destroy it and sink it in the lake.
Both SUMMERS and PRISNELL advised that they did not understand why the jeep would have been destroyed at this time.
It is recognized that a great deal of public infor- mation is available concerning this matter and that some license has possibly been taken with the facts set forth
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DB COOPER-55409
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LA 164-497
above between the time they were allegedly provided by BRYANT COFFELT, who allegedly died in Honolulu in 1975, to his cell mate, JIM BROWN, and in turn related to DIRK SUMMERS and the Los Angeles FBI.
However, as actual activities of the skyjacker in some areas closely parallel the facts provided by SUMMERS, the following investigation is being recommended by the Los Angeles Division to ascertain if COFFELT is pos- sibly identical to the unknown subject in this matter.
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REQUEST OF THE BUREAU
The Identification Division is requested to com- pare all unidentified latents in this matter with the known fingerprints of BRYANT COFFELT, FBI number 590 868, Atlanta Penitentiary number 69305, and advise Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles of the results of this comparison.
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ARMED AND DANGEROUS
LEADS
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ALEXANDRIA
AT ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA: Conduct appropriate investigation at Northern Virginia Doctors Hospital, 601 Carleen Springs Road, Arlington, where COFFELT was allegedly em- ployed as a surgical technician during the time of 12/8/71, through 3/3/72, and 4/24/72, through 9/29/72, it being noted that the date of 12/8/71, is a very short time after the skyjacking which occurred on 11/24/71, and if in fact COF- FELT was seriously injured during the jump, such injuries should be a matter of record at this institution.
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HONOLULU
AT HONOLULU, HAWAII: Check records at Bureau of [continues on next page - cut off]
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DB COOPER-55410
LA 164-497
Vital Statistics in an effort to verify the death of BRYANT COFFELT noting that SUMMERS displayed a xerox copy of a Honolulu State Bulletin obituary indicating COFFELT died at age 59, on June 25, 1975. Obtain any pertinent information regarding cause of death and next of kin.
KANSAS CITY
AT PITTSBURG, KANSAS: Will check records of the Pittsburg, Kansas, Police Department, number A9860, for JACK BRYANT COFFELT as FBI identification records indicate he was arrested 9/29/74, for felony theft. Obtain any pertinent information, for example, any obvious scars or data at time of arrest indicating COFFELT suffered a crippling injury in 1971 in the groin or leg area.
LAS VEGAS
AT LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: Reinterview JAMES H. BROWN concerning alleged buckles remaining from parachute which COFFELT allegedly displayed to them while they were searching for the money in a remote region near Mount Hood.
PORTLAND
AT PORTLAND, OREGON: Conduct investigation as set forth in Las Vegas letter dated 1/4/77.
WASHINGTON FIELD
AT WASHINGTON FIELD, WASHINGTON, D.C.: Check employment records and display photographs of COFFELT to owners or managers of Hoffman Furniture Company, 1824 18th Northwest, Washington, D.C., which firm COFFELT listed as his prior employment from 1963 to 1970 on the records of the Northern Virginia Doctors Hospital. It is noted that SUMMERS claims [REDACTED] determined this place went out of business in 1970, all records were destroyed, and the owner of the firm, a Mr. HOFFMAN, could not recall COFFELT.
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DB COOPER-55411
LA 164-497
LOS ANGELES
AT LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Will maintain contact with screenwriter DIRK SUMMERS for any additional pertinent information regarding this matter.
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DB COOPER-55412
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Serials: 164-2111, LA 164-497, LV 164-60, PD 164-41, SE 164-81