Suspected plane thief dies from crash injuries | UPDATE

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The Richland man suspected of stealing an aircraft from the Jefferson County International Airport, and then later crashing it near LaPush, has died of his injuries according to officials at Harborview Medical Center.

A spokesperson for the hospital said Richard Rasmussen Jordal succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the crash sometime in the morning of Thursday, Aug. 27.

At the time of his death, Jordal was facing charges for the theft of the aircraft from the airport in Port Townsend, but Detective Sergeant Brett Anglin of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said the case was now closed.

“Due to the fact that there are no other known actors in the case, the case is closed. There will be no further investigation on our end,” Anglin said in an email. 

“The case may continue civilly,” Anglin added, “but that will be between the victims and the estate and not involve law enforcement.”

Jordal was also facing charges ranging from trespassing to harassment and second-degree burglary in Franklin and Yakima counties and was also being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration following a hazardous landing at Richland Airport in Benton County. The Port of Port Townsend banned Jordal from all Port facilities in 2017 after a series of outbursts and aggressive and threatening behavior toward tenants and staff.

Officials with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said Jordal was suspected to have stolen the Cessna 150
from the airport on the evening of Tuesday, Aug. 18.

According to Anglin, police received a call Aug. 18 about a suspicious man at the airport who had allegedly approached a plane owner wanting to rent an aircraft.

The man failed to produce any license or insurance when asked, and the plane owner refused to give him an aircraft and called police to report the incident.

The caller also told police that at the time the man asked to rent the aircraft, another plane was parked nearby; a blue-and-white Cessna 150.

The Cessna was later discovered missing.

Police were able to track the missing aircraft using its GPS signal as it flew west.

Anglin said the plane may have stopped briefly at the Bremerton National Airport before continuing west.

The GPS signal was lost about 20 miles north of Hoquiam and police were then unable to track or locate the plane. At about 10:30 p.m. Aug. 18, a witness reported a possible plane crash near the La Push area. A morning search
Aug. 19, by a Navy helicopter crew based out of Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, found a downed plane. Jordal was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for medical treatment.