A partial $20 Federal Reserve note connected to the famous D.B. Cooper airplane hijacking found its way to Heritage Auctions’ October 6–9 GACC U.S. Currency Signature Auction (#3602). Estimated at $20,000, the winning bid of $134,200 shows that although the only unsolved American air piracy case has remained a mystery, it is very clear that D.B. Cooper loot holds strong interest with collectors.
According to Heritage, the most wanted notes from the Cooper hijacking are those with complete serial numbers, of which this recent sale contains almost two. The note also includes all other features of a typical Fr. 2067-L note: portrait, seals, series numbers, obligation clause, and Secretary of the Treasury printed signature. The note measures 4.5 inches in width and 1.5 inches in height, and comes with the PCGS tag that reads, “D.B. Cooper loot found on banks of Columbia / River 2-10-80. Serial numbers match FBI list,” which also shows a reproduction of the infamous FBI sketch of D.B. Cooper wearing sunglasses. The paperback book, D.B. Cooper Dead or Alive by Richard T. Tosaw, was also included in the lot.
The ransom money became available for collectors when 8-year-old Brian Ingram found three packs of money ($5,800, composed of 10,000 $20s) on a riverbank of the Columbia River in Washington in 1980. Although the notes were exposed to the elements, they were bound by rubber bands.
The found money was then divided between Ingram and Northwest Orient’s insurer, Royal Globe Insurance, with the FBI holding 14 for evidence.
Source: Numismatic News