Los Angeles to Director, Minneapolis and Seattle re South Dakota man claiming to be Cooper

LA0014 1632335Z RR HQ MP SE DE LA R 132335Z JUN 80

FM LOS ANGELES (164-497) (7) (P) TO DIRECTOR (164-2111) ROUTINE MINNEAPOLIS (164-73) ROUTINE SEATTLE (164-81) ROUTINE BT UNCLAS NORJAK

---

ON [REDACTED] FORMER [REDACTED] FURNISHED THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION RE CAPTIONED INVESTIGATION TO SA [REDACTED] LOS ANGELES DIVISION, DURING A TELEPHONE CALL FROM SOURCE'S PRESENT RESIDENCE IN [REDACTED]

SOURCE ADVISED THAT ABOUT ONE YEAR AGO [REDACTED] [REDACTED] DATE OF BIRTH [REDACTED] AN AMERICAN INDIAN NOW LIVING IN SOUTH DAKOTA CONFIDED HE WAS PLANNING TO EVENTUALLY PUBLISH A BOOK REGARDING HIS PAST ACTIVITIES AND ADVENTURES AND [REDACTED] AN EXCERPT FROM WHAT WAS PURPORTED TO BE A [REDACTED] OF THE BOOK. THIS EXCERPT WAS AN ACCOUNT OF [REDACTED] HIJACKING OF A COMMERCIAL AIRLINER IN THE EARLY 1970S USING THE NAME "COOPER". ACCORDING TO SOURCE,

---

b6 b7C b7D SUB U,J

---

DB Cooper-18118

---

8408

PAGE TWO (LA 164-497) UNCLAS

---

DOCUMENT CONTAINED MANY DETAILS OF THE CRIME AND WAS REPRESENTED BY [REDACTED] TO BE AN ACCOUNT OF HIS OWN ACCOMPLISHMENT OF THE HIJACKING.

SOURCE STATED [REDACTED] IS A HEAVY DRINKER AND [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

[REDACTED] SHORTLY THEREAFTER, [REDACTED] MADE ADDITIONAL REFERENCES TO HIGHJACKING TO SOURCE AND CAUTIONED THAT NO ONE ELSE WAS AWARE OF THIS MATTER. SOURCE UNABLE TO RECALL ALL DETAILS OF THE [REDACTED] BUT REMEMBERED ACCOUNT CONTAINED EXPLANATION OF HOW CRIME WAS PLANNED, INCLUDING THE USE OF THE NAME "COOPER" AND A REFERENCE TO PARACHUTING FROM AIRCRAFT.

---

ACCORDING TO SOURCE, [REDACTED] SERVED IN U.S. MARINE CORP (USMC) APPROXIMATELY [REDACTED] AND IS A COMBAT VETERAN OF TWO OR MORE TOURS IN VIETNAM. HE CLAIMS TO HAVE BEEN PARACHUTE TRAINED IN USMC AND IS BELIEVED BY SOURCE TO HAVE BEEN ACTIVE IN "SKY- DIVING" SUBSEQUENT TO HIS DISCHARGE FROM THE MILITARY SERVICE. FOLLOWING DISCHARGE [REDACTED] RESIDED WITH [REDACTED] IN SEATTLE,

---

DB Cooper-18119

P A ↳ G

---

E THREE (LA 164-467) UNCLAS WASHINGTON, IN THE EARLY 1970S.

SOURCE ALSO LEARNED THROUGH CASUAL CONVERSATION WITH UNIDENTIFIED AMERICAN INDIANS IN SOUTH DAKOTA THAT [REDACTED] REPORTEDLY GAVE SUMS OF MONEY TO THE AMERICAN INDIAN MOVEMENT (AIM) IN SOUTH DAKOTA IN EARLY 1970S. SOURCE HAS HEARD DONATIONS [REDACTED]

SOURCE DESCRIBED [REDACTED] AS FOLLOWS: [REDACTED] AKA [REDACTED] DOB [REDACTED]; [REDACTED] 5 FOOT 10 INCHES, 170 POUNDS, DARK HAIR, GREEN EYES.

SOURCE BELIEVES [REDACTED] PRESENTLY RESIDING KYLE, SOUTH DAKOTA, AND EMPLOYED IN UNKNOWN CAPACITY AT LITTLE WOUND SCHOOL, KYLE.

SOURCE PLANS TO VISIT FRIENDS IN SOUTH DAKOTA, AUGUST 1980 AND IF SO DESIRED BY THE BUREAU CAN ARRANGE TO RECONTACT [REDACTED] FOR POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. SOURCE DID NOT DELVE INTO THIS INCIDENT IN GREAT DETAIL WITH [REDACTED] IN 1979 AS SOURCE WAS NOT THEN AWARE OF A SEATTLE HIJACKING INVOLVING

---

DB Cooper-18120

PA [redacted]

G

---

E FOUR (LA 164-467) UNCLAS SUSPECT USING THE NAME COOPER.

FOR INFORMATION SEATTLE AND MINNEAPOLIS, SOURCE WAS ACTIVE FOR PHOENIX DIVISION [REDACTED] WHEN SOURCE FURNISHED EXTENSIVE AND RELIABLE INFORMATION REGARDING [REDACTED] IN PHOENIX AND ELSEWHERE. SOURCE WAS [REDACTED] AND THERE HAS BEEN NO SUBSEQUENT CONTACT WITH THIS INDIVIDUAL UNTIL CONTACT WITH SA [REDACTED], LA DIVISION, [REDACTED]

SHOULD SEATTLE DESIRE TO UTILIZE SOURCE TO DEVELOP ADDITIONAL INFORMATION RE [REDACTED] IT IS SUGGESTED A FOLLOWUP CONTACT WITH SOURCE, WHICH CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED BY TELEPHONE, BE MADE BY SA [REDACTED]

IT IS EMPHASIZED THAT DURING [REDACTED] INTERVIEW SOURCE SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED HIS IDENTIFICATION BE PROTECTED. IN THIS REGARD, EXTREME CARE MUST BE TAKEN DURING ANY INTERVIEW OF [REDACTED] AS SOURCE BELIEVES HE MAY BE THE ONLY INDIVIDUAL WHO KNOWS OF THE AFOREMENTIONED [REDACTED] OF CAPTIONED HIJACKING.

LOS ANGELES INDICES NEGATIVE RE [REDACTED] AKA. LOS ANGELES RECOMMENDS MINNEAPOLIS CONDUCT DISCRETE INTERVIEWS VIA ESTABLISHED SOURCES TO CONFIRM WHEREABOUTS OF [REDACTED] THAT

---

b6 b7C b7D

---

DB Cooper-18121

P A

---

GE FIVE (LA 164-467) UNCLAS ANY INTERVIEW OF [REDACTED] BE DELAYED PENDING COMPARISON OF [REDACTED] FINGERPRINTS WITH LATENTS FROM CRIME SCENE SEARCH AND FURTHER CONSIDERATION RE UTILIZATION OF SOURCE PRIOR TO HIS INTERVIEW.

BUREAU IS REQUESTED TO COMPARE KNOWN FINGERPRINTS [REDACTED] [REDACTED] DOB [REDACTED] IF ON FILE, IDENTIFICATION DIVISION, WITH CRIME SCENE LATENTS.

LOS ANGELES WILL AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTION RE POSSIBLE RECONTACT WITH SOURCE.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OF THE BUREAU, SOURCE IS SUBJECT OF BUREAU FILE [REDACTED] BT

---

b6 b7C b7D

---

DB Cooper-18122