Armed and Dangerous The Hunt for One of America's Most Wanted Criminals

From theNew York Timesbestselling author ofUnder and Alonecomes an intimate and riveting account of federal law-enforcement agent William Queen's relentless hunt for one of America's most cold-blooded criminals. As an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, William Queen must tackle a number of challenging cases, including going undercover to investigate a group of violent skinheads and infiltrating and busting a ring trafficking in high-powered explosives, drugs, and firearms. In the winter of 1985, he faces his toughest mission to date: he must apprehend Mark Stephens, a notorious narcotics trafficker who has been terrorizing the communities around Los Angeles with frequent rampages involving machine guns and hand grenades. A recluse living in the treacherous backwoods outside the city, Stephens is a cunning survivalist. Nobody has been able to catch him, but Queen is determined to take him down. Queen's unique expertise is not taught in any police academy or ATF training seminarhe honed his outdoorsman abilities as a kid. Stephens may have finally met his match in the unwavering Queen, who is adept at hunting and trapping and living for weeks in the wild. Queen will use these skillsalong with surveillance, confidential informants, and intelligence gatheringas he doggedly tracks his dangerous quarry, a chase that culminates in a gripping showdown high in the San Bernardino Mountains. A fascinating look into the daily life of an ATF agent and a taut portrayal of a monthlong manhunt,Armed and Dangerousdepicts a classic race against timelawman versus outlawin a harrowing true story of life-or-death suspense. From the Hardcover edition.

William Queen is the author of the New York Times bestseller Under and Alone. He spent twenty years as a special agent with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. A Vietnam War veteran, Queen served as an assistant operations and intelligence sergeant on a U.S. Army Special Forces A-Team and is a decorated soldier. Following his military service, Queen devoted his career to law enforcement, serving first as a local police officer and then as a U.S. Border Patrol agent before joining ATF. He is among the country’s foremost experts on the violent world of outlaw motorcycle gangs and has lectured widely to law-enforcement organizations in multiple countries. For his ground-breaking undercover work playing the part of biker “Billy St. John,” William Queen was awarded the 2001 Federal Bar Association’s Medal of Valor.

Douglas Century is the author of Barney Ross and Street Kingdom, the co-author of the New York Times bestsellers Under and Alone and Takedown, and a contributing writer for The New York Times. His nonfiction work has appeared in such publications as Details, Rolling Stone, Men’s Journal, New York, Vibe, Radar, Blender, Newsday, and The Guardian. Century is a cum laude graduate of Princeton University. He lives in New York City.


From the Hardcover edition.