Author following manhunt in ‘Hillerman’ country
Copyright © 1998 The Durango Herald. All rights reserved.

July 12, 1998

By Charlie Langdon
Herald Arts & Entertainment Editor

Inspectors Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee may not be participating in the six-week manhunt for the suspected cop-killers near Bluff, Utah, but their creator, author Tony Hillerman, is giving the case some attention.

"I haven’t been following it too closely, but I have been talking to some of my friends on the Navajo Tribal Police," the celebrated mystery writer said in a Saturday morning telephone interview from his Albuquerque home. And he believes that the Navajo trackers will find the two fugitives.

Alan Monte Pilon, 30, of Dove Creek and Jason Wayne McVean, 26, of Durango have eluded authorities for more than six weeks after allegedly shooting Cortez police officer Dale Claxton and wounding two deputies before fleeing into Cross Creek Canyon May 29. A third suspect, Robert Mason, 26, of Durango was found dead of a self-inflicted wound after he allegedly shot and wounded another deputy on June 4 near Bluff.

A former newsman and college dean, Hillerman is internationally acclaimed for his best-selling mystery novels featuring Lt. Joe Leaphorn and officer Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police. He is respected by the Navajo people, and – in recent years – the Southwest has often been referred to as "Hillerman country."

"That’s tough country out there, so I don’t like being critical," Hillerman said. However, the 73-year old author sounded both disturbed and amused by the methods used by law officers, particularly the Federal Bureau of Investigation. "There’s a Keystone Kops element in some of this. It’s often that way with the FBI. They’re big city guys in suits who show up and take over. They’re like CPAs. They’re okay if they stick to their financial accounts and record keeping."

Hillerman cited the turmoil near Bluff during the first weekend of June, when the search party numbered about 500. "They get a lead or find footprints and before you know it, there are hundreds of guys running around out there and several helicopters overhead. And so it all comes to nothing."

Some law officers have surmised that the two fugitives might be monitoring their pursuers over police radio frequencies. Did Hillerman think that was likely? "Who knows?" he answered laughing, "but I’ll bet they felt reassured by what they heard if they were listening!"

Hillerman is particularly bothered by what he perceives as the authorities’ cavalier attitude toward the citizens of Bluff. "They didn’t seem to talk much with them or confide in them. You know, small-town people know their area. They know where you can hide or hang out. And," he added, "those folks are probably better armed than the fugitives. They’re not afraid of those guys. So, what do the police do? They evacuate the people, force them out of their own homes. Don’t they have any rights?"

Still, Hillerman believes the fugitives will be flushed out. "Those Navajo trackers are darned good. So are the guys from the INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service). They’re old hands at running people down. They’ll find them."

Hillerman’s next book The First Eagle will be published at the end of July.

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