RD201904

generally appeared as living statues—

totally motionless for hours, days,

weeks, or years.

The cause is unknown, but one

theory is brain inflammation triggered

by a rare strain of streptococcus, the

bacteria responsible for many sore

throats each year. Science’s best guess

is that the bacteria mutated, provok-

ing the immune system to attack the

brain, leaving the victim helpless.

None of this explains why the ill-

ness disappeared only to resurface

sporadically, be it in Europe in the

1950s or in China ten years ago, when

a 12-year-old girl was hospitalized for

five weeks with the disease.

Are such occurrences the new nor-

mal, or are they signs that EL could be

planning something bigger any day?

A 2004 analysis of 20 patients with

symptoms remarkably similar to EL

concluded that whatever ailed them

“is still prevalent.” As such, history’s

so-called sleeping sickness remains

the stuff of nightmares.

the perfect crime

Vanishing Hijacker

On the night before Thanksgiving

1971, a middle-aged man wearing a

business suit boarded a commercial

flight headed from Portland, Oregon,

to Seattle. He ordered a bourbon and

soda, then calmly informed a flight

attendant that he had a bomb in his

attaché case. Having gotten her atten-

tion, he dictated the following mes-

sage to the cockpit: “I want $200,000

by 5:00 p.m. in cash. Put it in a knap-

sack. I want two back parachutes and

two front parachutes. When we land,

I want a fuel truck ready to refuel. No

funny stuff, or I’ll do the job.”

His boarding pass read “Dan Coo-

per,” but thanks to a communication

error, the newspapers identified him

more cryptically as “D. B.” Over the

next two hours, D. B. Cooper never

took off his dark glasses. He nursed a

second bourbon and waited patiently

while the plane circled Puget Sound.

(“He seemed rather nice,” one of the

hijacked flight attendants later said.)

On the ground, authorities scrambled

to assemble the cash, parachutes, and

fuel truck while the 36 passengers on

board were led to believe the delay

was entirely routine.

Upon landing in Seattle and receiv-

ing a knapsack full of $20 bills and

Flight attendants noted that

Cooper was very well dressed and

never took off his sunglasses (1).

Before announcing he had a

bomb in his attaché case, he

calmly ordered a bourbon (2),

then later asked for a second one.

After his ransom demands were

met, Cooper removed his tie (3),

opened the door at the rear of the

plane (4), and parachuted into the

night (5), never to be seen again.

D. B. Cooper

rd.com 67

Cover Story Reader’s Digest

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