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[Shutter]

Anyone remember DB Cooper? lately we have nothing but bickering and making fun of other posters here...this is a good reason I don't post here anymore...I posted something the other day but took it down due to lack of interest..

to top it off, you go to Bruce's site, and everyone is firing off full names (Georger's name) and accusations left and right...

when you guys decide to show a little respect, I might return....

Shutter

[Robert99]

Bruce,

While I am sure that the above will end up as proven facts in your next book, just take a couple of minutes to understand what he is saying and why it is a bunch of baloney...

Why the dis, Robert? You don't even read my books, so how would you know what's in them or how I decide on what I include?

Bruce, I have read at least several pages of your book.  And just remember that I bought a copy of it.  Don't trash yours readers.

[Bruce A. Smith]

Well, then, I stand corrected. Thanks for the purchase.

[georger]

A Big Hmmmmm.

A fellow named Gene Bland posted some interesting statements at the Mountain News today. Gene has come across our radar screen before, briefly, and has been unresponsive so far to phone calls. But he made himself known, now. Here are his comments:

 Gene says:
April 6, 2018 at 4:52 pm (Edit)
I was a consultant, subject-matter expert on the DB Cooper case for the FBI office in Reno NV. After he jumped the B-727 landed in Reno with three chutes still on board. One of the chest chutes was missing the container and he had jumped with an NB-8. From the time the back ramp dropped we figured he exited over the Willamette Valley in OR. Some tracks were found from that night walking out of a field and got into a vehicle.
To subsequent cases I worked on resulted in convictions, McCoy in UT and Heady in NV, but there are still some unanswered questions about the DB Cooper case. I have some ideas…..
Reply

And:

The witness at the other end in Portland was Earl (Mouse) Causey. He picked out two pilot rigs as back packs and two training reserves for chest packs. He easily could have picked a sport rig hanging in the next room. We figured DB must have put the $200K in the reserve container he took with him. Without "D" rings on the pilot rig he had to have hooked the snaps up to the leg "V" rings.

There is a Gene Bland on facebook for a job as a cosultant for Astroid Aviation. I wonder if it's the same guy.

Same guy, but he has a 1990 Cessna for sale. cosultant for Astroid Aviation ? Did you look Astroid Aviation up to see what it is? (NO!). Its a dealership - sales.

Do they sell boats too?

cosultant for Astroid Aviation is spelled "consultant". And astroid is spelled "asteroid"! 

Oh and he may be 85. Am I allowed to say that much? 

Georger your not my teacher, if I don't spell a word correctley I don't need it corrected. Maybe we should have a spell check option to click on. Another good option would be to click on a button and have a picture of someone giving you the finger when someone is being a dick.

Sir MEYDC you are confused. YOU MEYDC were not the subject of my post! I was posting about Gene Bland and HIS bad spellings, not you. Read my post again! How could you possibly think (or get from my post) I was talking about you MEYDC?

I was talking about the person who posted whose name is GENE BLAND - are you Gene Bland? No. So MEYDC, re-read my post and act appropriately!

The reason for my post was obvious, I thought. Gene Bland is the subject of my post and he is misspelling words. I think he is 85. It is possible Mr. Bland is confused due to his age in his thinking about Cooper matters. He calls Cossey 'Causey'. There are other examples in his posts. Bland claims to be an official in the parachuting association? Does 377 know of him or can 377 validate Band's claims? Bland also claims to have had an advisory role with the FBI in at least three different cities over time - can that be validated?

Those were the reasons for my response to MEYDC -  IT HAD TO DO WITH GENE BLAND NOT WITH MEYDC! I thought that was 100% clear! No good deed goes unpunished around here - 

Thank you in advance MEYDC, for your cordial courteous attention in this obvious matter of a mistake on your part. Please stop making and inventing trouble when there is none.  Thank you and Have a nice day.

 

[Bruce A. Smith]

It's done. Relax.

[Shutter]

Problem has been resolved so the comments have been removed....

[georger]

Gene Bland - who is he?

Material is available about him on the net including his small plane registration/FAA with Astroid Aviation. MEYDC referenced some of this - thanks to MEYDC. Bland's 1990 Cessna is for sale at Astroid Aviation. Bland seems to have been an official with the parachuting assoc of America USPA? Did 377 know him? Did Cossey know him and communicate with him in 1971? According to docs and registrations on the net Bland's current age is approx 85-86. Is Bland working with Colbert?

What was his actual relationship with the FBI and the Cooper case. ??

Here's a post of Bland's from a Facebook page years ago, posted recently on another site:

Gene Bland:
You know what you know, and what you don’t know you just don’t know.

I was brought into the investigation the day after it happened by the FBI in Carson City NV. I inspected the parachutes he left in the B-727. I talked with Causey [presumably, Earl Cossey–ed] in their office on the phone to the Bureau office in Portland about the chutes that he jumped with. We reviewed the routes.

I helped them purge the files at USPA Hq in Monterey while I worked there in the summer of ’72.
From the FBI profile and the short list compiled we went through the possible suspects.

I jumpmastered on[e] of them on his first FF and later made his first hook up. He was a USAF Survival Instructor at Stead AFB. He met the physical profile. He bought some property on an airport in KS.
Some of the jumpers that knew him there agreed.

We’ve discussed this several times before on Oldschool Skydiving.

I also participated in the investigation of two more skyjacking cases where we had convictions.
[Found on November 19, 2017 on a public Facebook group]


Further: what was the flight path Bland was given by the FBI or whoever in 1971? And what is the location of the Willamette Valley drop site he says the FBI identified which involved tracking 'footsteps to a car' .... much to consider! 

[377]

I don’t recall knowing Bland or whether he was a USPA official but he definitely seems gear savvy. 

I own an NB 8 and several chrstvreserves. I’ll chrck to see if the reserves could be clipped to the NB 8 leg strap hardware.

A Willamette Valley exit seems very unlikely to me.

377

[Lynn]

Anyone remember DB Cooper? lately we have nothing but bickering and making fun of other posters here...this is a good reason I don't post here anymore...I posted something the other day but took it down due to lack of interest..

Well, I hope you come back. Fully concur on the bickering.

I wandered through some older threads the other day. Someone - maybe 377? - mentioned it was possible the FBI do have the cigarette butts still and that's how they've eliminated suspects- they do have a full DNA sample, depite CKret saying the butts were lost. Something was bothering me about that, and here's what it is - DNA shows dominant ethnicity. Likely eye colour if that eye colour is brown, as most races have dark eyes generally. Thinking about it, seems likely that the description of Cooper would have been updated if at least dominant ethnicity were certain. Much as I wish it were otherwise, I really do think those butts are gone.

[377]

Gene Bland was a USPA official and a Master Rigger.

You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login

From his FB Page:

“We formed a Montagnard assistance group in 1986 to help 200 of these Dega People settle in the US. Our organization consisted of former Special Forces and CIA Paramilitary veterans that worked with them in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.As the article says they're Christians and suffered persecution by the Communist Vietnamese Gov.�

377

[georger]

Anyone remember DB Cooper? lately we have nothing but bickering and making fun of other posters here...this is a good reason I don't post here anymore...I posted something the other day but took it down due to lack of interest..

Well, I hope you come back. Fully concur on the bickering.

I wandered through some older threads the other day. Someone - maybe 377? - mentioned it was possible the FBI do have the cigarette butts still and that's how they've eliminated suspects- they do have a full DNA sample, depite CKret saying the butts were lost. Something was bothering me about that, and here's what it is - DNA shows dominant ethnicity. Likely eye colour if that eye colour is brown, as most races have dark eyes generally. Thinking about it, seems likely that the description of Cooper would have been updated if at least dominant ethnicity were certain. Much as I wish it were otherwise, I really do think those butts are gone.

Lynn, Ckret claimed they only have a partial after three or more tries. So the genetic info you speak of might not be revealed in the samples the FBI has. Remember (this may mean nothing to you) - Ckret said a partial profile, in the CODIS-13 system. That means not all genetic loci were revealed in the testing. There are gaps.   

[georger]

Gene Bland was a USPA official and a Master Rigger.

You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login

From his FB Page:

“We formed a Montagnard assistance group in 1986 to help 200 of these Dega People settle in the US. Our organization consisted of former Special Forces and CIA Paramilitary veterans that worked with them in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.As the article says they're Christians and suffered persecution by the Communist Vietnamese Gov.�

377

Yes. I have done more looking. He appears to be the "real deal". Has a definite strong work history. He may not be as old as I thought - maybe 72 if its the same guy? I have his LinkedIn profile and its very specific. He worked for the FAA for one. His aviation credentials are real. I will not post his LinkedIn vita - anyone with the keys can get it freely. But his education, work history, and affiliation all seem real and relevant to the current interest...

His first post about the Cooper case was on a Facebook page and personal (almost anecdotal) he didnt seem to be looking for attention. I think the date of that was in 2017. That seems to have attracted attention and somehow Bland's Facebook remarks got reposted on several Cooper sites. At length somebody must have contacted him which brought him recently to Smith's site, in 2018 and the remarks Bland has made there? Maybe Smith knows the chronology.

There is more. A lot more. Its serious, but I am not going to post it to protect his personal life.

He looks very interesting.

I want to know the basis for his Oregon drop scenario and what 'footprints leading to a car' means. I want to know his version of the flight path and flight drop scenario!



 

       

[georger]

If you are looking for civil posting about the DB Cooper case, and recent hard accurate news/info about the Cooper case, and dont want to be involved in the daily meaningless social strife going on (and endemic) at Bruce's Smith's page, here is one place to look for updates: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login

Just sayin.  Good luck. 

[georger]

Anyone remember DB Cooper? lately we have nothing but bickering and making fun of other posters here...this is a good reason I don't post here anymore...I posted something the other day but took it down due to lack of interest..

Well, I hope you come back. Fully concur on the bickering.

I wandered through some older threads the other day. Someone - maybe 377? - mentioned it was possible the FBI do have the cigarette butts still and that's how they've eliminated suspects- they do have a full DNA sample, depite CKret saying the butts were lost. Something was bothering me about that, and here's what it is - DNA shows dominant ethnicity. Likely eye colour if that eye colour is brown, as most races have dark eyes generally. Thinking about it, seems likely that the description of Cooper would have been updated if at least dominant ethnicity were certain. Much as I wish it were otherwise, I really do think those butts are gone.

Given your interest, you might benefit from reading this enjoyable page on what dna profiling is, and is not: You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login

and this which deals with Partial profiles which is what the FBI claims to have in the Cooper case:
You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login



 

[Lynn]

Anyone remember DB Cooper? lately we have nothing but bickering and making fun of other posters here...this is a good reason I don't post here anymore...I posted something the other day but took it down due to lack of interest..

Well, I hope you come back. Fully concur on the bickering.

I wandered through some older threads the other day. Someone - maybe 377? - mentioned it was possible the FBI do have the cigarette butts still and that's how they've eliminated suspects- they do have a full DNA sample, depite CKret saying the butts were lost. Something was bothering me about that, and here's what it is - DNA shows dominant ethnicity. Likely eye colour if that eye colour is brown, as most races have dark eyes generally. Thinking about it, seems likely that the description of Cooper would have been updated if at least dominant ethnicity were certain. Much as I wish it were otherwise, I really do think those butts are gone.

Lynn, Ckret claimed they only have a partial after three or more tries. So the genetic info you speak of might not be revealed in the samples the FBI has. Remember (this may mean nothing to you) - Ckret said a partial profile, in the CODIS-13 system. That means not all genetic loci were revealed in the testing. There are gaps.

Ah, that's a shame. I had my own tested once, but of course it was a full profile. Pinning down at least ethnic background for Cooper would have been nice. "Olive-skinned" is one of those terms that depending on the viewer could be applied to someone with just darker/tanned skin; can never see these "green or yellow undertones" that supposedly accompany this skin tone. But several witnesses do mention that.

I'm sorry I'm late to the Gene Bland discussion. It's not a name I've heard before. Are people looking at him as a person of interest in the case or a possible consulted expert? Or just someone who's been commentating on websites? Georger,  by the way, whether tired of the drama or not, I agree people are well advised to check out Mr. Andrade's website. I pop back there often and have just purchased his book on kindle - he has a clear mind and equally clear and concise writing style. I appreciate his insights.

 (Bruce, I think I need yours in hardcover unless the e-version has been updated - I realized reading on here that there is a more recent version. I only realized when I hit a section I saw had been updated more recently at TMN. I have to buy one or two a month as am only a poor prole. Still think the book and TMN are excellent resources for people new to the case. Can always ignore comment threads. Mr. Andrade has also done some very concise and convincing posts on why certain suspects can, in his view, be eliminated. Was cheering through the RR one!)

Georger, thank you for the info on DNA profiling. I've read what they gave me when they did mine for me, but of course they don't provide info on partials because commercial DNA profilers don't deal with partials.