Part 54, page 45

Transcript

The scan is the source; the transcript is machine-generated from it.

THIS SIGN greets motorists headed for Ariel, Wash., on state highway 513, in the area where skyjacker D. B. Cooper is believed to have parachuted just one year ago.

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"MY LIFE has been one of hate, turmoil, hunger and more hate; this seemed to be the fastest and most profita- ble way to gain a few last grains of peace of mind," the letter writer said.

He went on to point out he is not a boasting man, he left no fingerprints, he wore a toupee and he used putty. makeup.

"I've come and gone on several airline flights al- ready and am not holed up in some obscure backwoods town. Neither am I a psycho- pathic killer. As a matter of fact, I've never even re- ceived a speeding ticket," he concluded.

A MILD and shortlived cult centered on the daring criminal sprang up in the forms of a recording called "D. Cooper, Where Are You?" and some fast opera- tors made a few bucks by issuing T-shirts with those, and other, words embla- zoned on them. And he be- came involved in a lot of bad jokes by so-called comedi- ans.

But in the ensuing days, D. B. Cooper faded from the public consciousness as oth- ers took a hand trying to ex-

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tort ransom by hijacking an airplane. Very few of those have been successful and in some cases deaths have re- sulted.

There are several theories as to where D. B. Cooper is today. Some people believe he may be seeing the high spots of Europe or enjoying the salubrious climate of some South American coun- try. Others believe his body may be rotting up in the Washington mountains while 10,000 $20 bills gather mold in a shady glen.

THE FBI is confident that the case ultimately will .be...[illegible]...legend.

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solved. "Some day one of those marked bills will turn up or somebody will talk. Or a deer hunter will find a skeleton," an FBI agent told this reporter.

But the most far-out theo- ry was advanced by a gov- ernment employe with a rep- utation as a bit of a wag.

"Haven't you heard?" he asked. "Ol' D. B. found himself a nice girl up there in the mountains, a nice Sas- quatch girl and they're busy keeping the Bigfoot story going."

But then, that's another [illegible]

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DB Cooper-22971