D.B. Cooper Suspect: Maine Pilot Investigated

Newly declassified FBI files indicate that investigators once focused on a former pilot from western Maine, Raymond Russell, as a potential suspect in the infamous D.B. Cooper hijacking case. Russell, also known as R. Sid Russell, was interviewed by the FBI in September 1972, over six months after the November 1971 incident where the hijacker parachuted with $200,000.

Russell, a Norway, Maine native born in 1923, had a background in aviation, including time with freight airlines. He had lived on the West Coast before returning to Maine in 1971. While the FBI files do not detail how Russell came to their attention, they show agents reviewed his background and conducted an interview at his home.

During the interview, Russell reportedly denied any involvement and stated he had returned to Maine prior to the hijacking. Despite some individuals believing Russell was capable of the crime, a handwritten notation in November 1972 from the FBI read "ELIMINATE RUSSELL," suggesting he was no longer considered a primary suspect.

Ryan Burns, a D.B. Cooper investigator, noted that Russell was one of about two dozen people seriously investigated. Burns believes Russell was not the hijacker due to discrepancies in physical descriptions and doubts the case will ever be solved due to potential evidence degradation over the decades. Russell died in 1989 and is buried in Paris, Maine.