Into the Devil's Den: How an FBI Informant Got Inside the Aryan Nations and a Special Agent Got Him Out Alive Hardcover April 15, 2008

by Dave Hall

In 1996, the Aryan Nations was considered to be the most dangerous white supremacist group in the United States. This brutally violent neo-Nazi organization dreamed of carving an isolated homeland out of the American northwest–a dream they would finance by robbery, intimidation, and murder. For years, the FBI had sought to infiltrate the Aryan Nations, only to be thwarted by the group’s extreme paranoia of new members.Enter Dave Hall, a tattooed, 350-pound, six-foot-four former biker. A black belt in martial arts, he could fight, drink, and ride with the best–which is to say, the worst–of them. But Hall was no stereotypical biker. A thoughtful, articulate man blessed with a photographic memory and an unshakeable core of decency, Hall was looking for a new direction in life. After Hall was arrested for his minor involvement in a drug deal, FBI special agent Tym Burkey gave him a go to jail or become an informant. Hall didn’t go to jail.So began a most unlikely partnership, between a hell-raising former biker and a by-the-book FBI man. The oddest of odd couples, they would slowly forge a unique friendship based on trust and support–a friendship that Hall especially would come to value in the months and years ahead.For what was supposed to be a short-term assignment grew to something much longer, and bigger in scope, as Hall became the Ohio Aryan Nations leader’s right hand man. And more and more, Hall suspected that a significant terrorist action was being planned, something on the order of the Oklahoma City bombing.Yet with the clock ticking, Hall found his hold on reality crumbling as he was forced into behaviors and beliefs that repelled him. With the ever-present threat of discovery and death hanging over his head, he felt his psyche start to fragment, leading to estrangement from his family and friends, and vicious bouts of insomnia, night terrors, and panic attacks. But it was too late to back out. Together, Hall and Burkey would have to finish their dance with the Devil. Harrowing and intense, this true-life thriller is a testament to bravery, dedication, and friendship–and a timely reminder that America’s homegrown terrorists can be just as deadly as those from overseas.

Genres: Nonfiction, Crime, True Crime, American, Memoir, Religion

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freaking terrifying. I hope the FBI never asks me to be a "source". Dave, the source, gets put into some very, very dangerous situations with the Aryan Nations, and it takes a heavy toll on his body and psyche. He experiences panic attacks and nightmares, loses his girlfriend, loses his dog to cancer, has to stay estranged from his family, some of whom have biracial children, and he sort of starts believing some of the hatred the AN spews. To cope, he pops Xanax like candy (he must have had a VERY nice doctor) and drinks lots of alcohol.

I added the Alabama tag b/c a good portion of the book talks about an assassination plot on Morris Dees at the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery. And, another chapter talks about a KKK rally in Clanton. BTW, thanks Clanton. I'll remind myself not to buy your peaches when I pass your exit.

It's also really cool the way the book alternates between Dave's point of view and Tym, the FBI agent. I hope that one day Dave came come out of seclusion. We should all be thankful to him for helping to put away some very dangerous people.

[James Rosenzweig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just finished this one: the topic (growing white supremacism) is fascinating, and this guy's story is pretty intriguing, even compelling at times. But the fact that this fellow (and the FBI agent who writes a portion of the book) isn't a writer shows on almost every page. Sometimes the simplicity of the style and narration isn't an issue, but often I'm left with only limited impressions of his feelings, or a very vague sense of a key encounter. If the topic interests you, I'd say this is worth a read, but if you like your non-fiction to be almost as fluidly written as your fiction, I can see you getting irritated with this.

[Shara Ogilvie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a real surprise! I saw it on display at the library, and picked it up. It was a REAL EYE OPENER about what kinds of prejudices still exist in the USA. At the end of the book, I had a reverent gratitude for what this ex-biker/drug addict had done for his fellow men. I wrote a letter of thanks to him, but never sent it since he is in the witness protection program.

[Sarita]

My friend gave me this book because his aunt is Katherine Ramsland. I need to get some lighter fare. Yikes

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks Dave for your sacrifice.

[Fred Baerkircher · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a great premise. The writing, coordinated by author Katherine Ramsland, is terrible. Seemingly every entry from the informant is prefaced by disavowals saying how sickened he is by all that's going on around him. We only need to read that a couple times, though. There is little to no information about the investigation itself, and only a quick page or two about its results. This book has an incredibly anticlimactic ending.

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

a decent book written from the FBI agent and informant point of views. Not as "shocking" as I had expected.

[Avi · Rating 3 out of 5]

a six on a scale of 1-10, but certainly worth reading.

[Mary Schwarz Schwarz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was particulary interesting because the story happens very new my home. I will never understand hate groups. They certainly must be very unhappy people.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

A close friend has been studying various Christian and White Identity groups, inspiring me to read this account of "how an FBI informant got inside the Aryan nations and a special agent got him out alive". More exactly, this is an account of how, over thirty-six months, the confidential informant infiltrated the Church of Jesus Christ, Christian, becoming second in command to its pastor and how he and the FBI were able to prevent the assassination of Morris Dees, head of the Southern Poverty Law Center. In the course of this the informant also became acquainted with a wide variety of hate group members: Nazis, KKKs, Aryan Nations etc. Structurally, the book alternates between the recollections of the informant and those of his FBI handler.

[Shakur · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I didn't understand why they wrote it the way they did, in turns. But when i got comfortable with that, I always looked forward to what Dave would tell Tym or the other way. For the few times Dave was narrating his close calls, I almost couldn't breathe, because i never forgot it was based on a true story.
A well narrated story without unnecessary wording - good for us with not so rich grammar. It was an interesting read, and wherever Dave is now, i hope he's healed now.

[Sian Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow going, interesting story but I felt that the Tym Buckley FBI agent sections halted the flow of the story. It would just be picking up pace and getting interesting then bang you hit the FBI section to slow the whole thing down again. It was only near the end of the book that the FBI sections became an exciting part of the narrative.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating story about how Dave Hall infiltrated the ranks of the Aryan Nations, a white supremacist terrorist group, as an informant for the FBI. This book offers an appalling and at times frightening look at terrorism from the inside, but the whole time I was cheering Dave on for his bravery, dedication, and willingness to risk it all for the chance to save innocent lives. I found it very interesting that the Aryan Nations operates under a Christian moniker, and that they preach their dogma under the guise of Scripture.

[Pamela Beason · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating true story of an ordinary citizen who was asked (well, sort of coerced) into penetrating the Aryan Nations. Scary stuff, and I really felt for Dave Hall, who was forced into leading two lives for much longer than he bargained for, while suffering from anxiety attacks and losing his girlfriend and fearing he could be killed at any time.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

scary as hell, i can't believe how deep this guy got into the crazy aryan nations, good read

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was ok. It a gave a good overview wish it went into detail more.