Eugene Hasenfus, an instrumental figure whose capture revealed the Iran-Contra affair, has passed away. His demise occurred on November 26 in Menominee, Michigan, following a prolonged nine-year struggle with cancer, as stated in his obituary by the Hansen-Onion-Martell Funeral Home in Marinette, Wisconsin. He was 84 years old.

Born on January 22, 1941, in Marinette, Hasenfus served in the Vietnam War as a Marine. After his military service, he pursued a career in aviation, which eventually led to his involvement in the pivotal Cold War Iran-Contra scandal of 1986.

In 1981, President Ronald Reagan gave the CIA the green light to support the Contras, a right-wing rebel group opposing the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. However, Congress halted all military aid to the Contras in 1984.

Anticipating the funding cut, Reagan’s administration secretly expanded a White House-managed supply operation for the Contras. Spearheaded by National Security Council aide Oliver North, the initiative aimed to sustain the Contras until Congress could be convinced to reinstate CIA support.

Months before the cutoff, top officials in Reagan’s administration ramped up a secret White House-directed supply network to the Contras. The operation’s day-to-day activities were handled by National Security Council aide Oliver North. The goal was to keep the Contras operating until Congress could be persuaded to resume CIA funding.

The secrecy of North’s network unraveled after one of its planes with Hasenfus on board was shot down over Nicaragua in October 1986. Three other crew members died, but Hasenfus parachuted into the jungle and evaded authorities for more than 24 hours.

He was captured by the leftist Nicaraguan government and charged with several crimes, including terrorism.

Hasenfus said after his capture that the CIA was supervising the supply flights to the Contras. At first, Reagan administration officials lied by saying that the plane had no connection to the U.S. government.

Congress, spurred by controversy over the Hasenfus flight, eventually launched an investigation.

Hasenfus was convicted in Nicaragua of charges related to his role in delivering arms to the Contras and sentenced to 30 years in prison. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega pardoned Hasenfus a month later and he returned to his home in northern Wisconsin.

In 1988, he filed an unsuccessful lawsuit seeking $135 million in damages against two men and two companies linked to the Iran-Contra arms deals.

In 2003, he pleaded guilty in Brown County Circuit Court to a charge of lewd, lascivious behavior after he exposed himself in the parking lot of a grocery store. His probation was revoked in 2005 and he spent time in jail, according to online court records.

He is survived by his four children and eight grandchildren.