THE CASE OF THE INDIAN TRADER [SOLD]

THE CASE OF THE INDIAN TRADER Bill Malone and the National Park Service Investigation at Hubbell Trading Post 

by Paul D. Berkowitz

Publisher: University of New Mexico Press

Hardback with slip cover, first edition, 2011. 354 pages, new

This is a true story, not a novel.  “Americans have grown accustomed to hearing about scandal and corruption in government.  But few people are aware that such problems exist in the National Park Service. This account of a NPS criminal investigation at the Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site exposes for the first time the unique culture of the service—how it operates and how it went wrong in one disturbing case.

“The Indian trader in the story is Billy Malone, who spent most of his working life among the Navajo Indians in northeastern Arizona.  Malone was the last of a breed, the last genuine Indian trader to work at Hubbell. His story as Paul Berowitz tells it marks the end of an era.  In 2004 the Park Service launched an investigation targeting Malone, who was simultaneously fired from his job at the Western National Parks Association and subjected to an early morning raid at his home, during which federal agents seized what amounted to his life savings: his treasured possessions including hundreds of rugs and thousands of pieces of jewelry he had collected over his nearly fifty-year career.  These events brought to an end a 130-year tradition of genuine Indian trading at Hubbell Trading Post, the oldest and most authentic place of its kind in America. For the next two and a half years, with his job lost, his reputation destroyed, and his spirit crushed, Billy Malone was forced to wait as the NPS conducted its criminal investigation into an amazing series of allegations leveled against him, allegations that literally equated him with the likes of Al Cpone.

“In 2005, federal agent Paul Berkowitz was assigned to take over the case.  His investigation uncovered serious problems with the original allegations, raising questions about the integrity of National Park Service officials at every level.  This book, Berkowitz’s account of blowing the whistle on the NPS, describes how and why he bypassed his chain of command and delivered his findings directly to the Office of the Inspector General.  A thorough provoking story of the dark side of a respected branch of the American government. The Case of the Indian Traer will open the eyes of a wide audience.”