A 1971 artist's sketch released by the FBI shows the skyjacker known as 'Dan Cooper' and 'D.B. Cooper', was made from the recollections of passengers and crew of a Northwest Orient Airlines jet he hijacked between Portland and Seattle, Nov. 24, 1971.
/ AP photo
SEATTLE (AP) — The FBI says it has a "credible" lead in the D.B. Cooper case, which involved the 1971 hijacking of a passenger jet over Washington state and the suspect's legendary parachute escape.
FBI spokeswoman Ayn Sandalo Dietrich tells The Seattle Times that a law enforcement member directed investigators to a person who might have helpful information on the suspect.
Dietrich says an item belonging to the man was sent to a lab in Quantico, Va., for forensic testing. She did not provide specifics about the item or the man's identity.
Federal investigators have checked more than 1,000 leads since a hijacker dubbed "D.B. Cooper" parachuted from a flight with $200,000 dollars in ransom.
His fate remains unknown, although the Seattle Post Intelligencer reports agents have previously said they believe he died the night he jumped.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
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