William H. Russell arrested in New York City for plundering more than $800,000 in Indian Trust Funds

Godard Bailey, a clerk in the Department of the Interior and a relative of Secretary of War Floyd, admitted to ransacking the Indian Trust Fund of up to $870,000 to support the transportation business of William Hepburn Russell, one of the founders of the Pony Express.  Alabamian Bailey admitted his guilt and was arrested. Russell was arrested in his New York office on Christmas Day.  Floyd, also financially involved with Russell, was forced to resign.  No-one was ever tried for the crime and the U.S. Government replaced the funds. (By John Osborne)   
Source Citation
Raymond W. Settle and Mary Lund Settle, Saddles and Spurs: The Pony Express Saga (Harrisburg, PA: The Telegraph Press, 1955), 171-176. 
    Date Certainty
    Exact
    Type
    Crime/Disasters
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