911 calls released in incident where co-pilot exited plane that later made emergency landing at RDU

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Wednesday, August 10, 2022
911 calls released in incident where co-pilot exited plane
Cary Police released 911 calls on Wednesday detailing the moments a co-pilot exited a plane shortly before it made an emergency landing at RDU

CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- Cary Police released 911 calls on Wednesday detailing the moments a co-pilot exited a small cargo plane shortly before it made an emergency landing at Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

The shaky landing happened on July 29.

Authorities later found Charles Crooks, 23, dead in a Fuquay-Varina neighborhood.

The calls reveal the pilot telling emergency dispatch that "the co-pilot jumped out."

"The co-pilot jumped out?" Dispatch responded.

"Yes."

"Where?"

"About a one-mile radius of West Lake Middle."

After that, communications from RDU, Raleigh, Cary and Fuquay-Varina can all be heard coming together to piece together what happened.

The pilot that made the emergency landing told responders that the area where Crooks jumped was near James Slaughter Road in southern Wake County.

A short time later, they found his body.

"We have one subject and at this time we do not need the recovery team ... I have a description of the clothing. Deep-black shirt and khaki pants," a responder says on the calls.

The co-pilot that landed the plane was not seriously hurt.

The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to release its preliminary report of the crash sometime this week.