Cold Case North: The Search for James Brady and Absolom Halkett, Nest Michael, Reder Deanna, Bell Eric

Missing persons. Double murder? M tis leader James Brady was one of the most famous Indigenous activists in Canada. A communist, strategist, and bibliophile, he led M tis and First Nations to rebel against government and church oppression. Bradys success made politicians and clergy fear him; he had enemies everywhere. In 1967, while prospecting in Saskatchewan with Cree Band Councillor and fellow activist, Absolom Halkett, both men vanished from their remote lakeside camp. For 50 years rumours swirled of secret mining interests, political intrigue, and murder. Cold Case North is the story of how a small team, with the help of the Indigenous community, exposed police failure in the original investigation, discovered new clues and testimony, and gathered the pieces of the Norths most enduring missing persons puzzle.

Like too many cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous people, authorities failed to ensure that Brady and Halketts deaths were properly investigated. This book helps get to the bottom of the fate of these two men, and demonstrates why investigators should never dismiss the knowledge of Indigenous peoples. --Darren Prefontaine, author of Gabriel Dumont