A Real American Rambo in Canada
In 1981, an action movie premiered based on The Mad Trapper of Rat River. It was called Death Hunt. Then in 1982, we had First Blood which had a similar storyline. Both Rambo and Bronson’s Albert Johnson, like the real-life one, are mysterious characters, complete unknowns, who are hunted down for questionable reasons.
So, who was the real Albert Johnson? And was he a criminal or a victim? These issues and the identity of the fictional version are all dealt with in the film in less than two hours. We will also try to solve this in a couple of webpages.
We'll start by telling the story of what really happened and who The Mad Trapper really was by publishing, for the first time, the investigative field report of RCMP Constable William Carter, and the first news report accusing a North Dakota native as the real Mad Trapper, when we find them.
We have now found them.
The Ben Larson Article is now published here and the Carter Report is on the YouTube Channel. The complete report is now included in the paperback edition of Webhunt.
Left: Sketch of what the Mad Trapper may have looked like, based on his death photo, compared to
Right : Age-enhanced and adjusted image of Ben Larson of North Dakota (media.io)
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Ben Larson c.1910 "Albert Johnson"
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The story of the Mad Trapper of Rat River is one of the most legendary and mysterious manhunts in Canadian history. It’s a wild tale of isolation, violence, and survival that unfolded in the frozen wilderness of the Yukon and Northwest Territories during the winter of 1931–32.
📍 The Setting
It all began in a remote area near Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories—deep in the Arctic wilderness, where temperatures regularly plunge below -40°C and the landscape is a maze of rivers, mountains, and snow-covered forests.
🧍 The Stranger Arrives
A mysterious man arrived in the area in July 1931. He called himself Albert Johnson, though no one knows if that was his real name. He was quiet, refused to answer questions, and kept to himself in a small cabin he built on the Rat River. He didn’t have a trapping license but seemed to be tampering with other trappers’ lines—cutting them and stealing furs.
🚨 Trouble Begins
After several complaints, an RCMP officer visited Johnson to talk things over. Johnson refused to speak and even barricaded his door. The Mounties returned days later with a search warrant—and that’s when things turned deadly.
When they tried to enter his cabin, Johnson shot through the door, wounding one officer.
❄️ The Manhunt Begins
This kicked off a massive manhunt in the dead of Arctic winter. For more than seven weeks, Johnson evaded capture through some of the harshest terrain imaginable. He traveled on foot, sometimes using snowshoes, sometimes barefoot, over frozen rivers and mountains.
Despite being pursued by dozens of RCMP officers, First Nations and Inuit trackers, and eventually even airplanes, Johnson stayed ahead. He was incredibly resourceful—doubling back on his trail, climbing icy cliffs, and seemingly vanishing into thin air.
💀 Deadly Confrontations
During the pursuit, he shot and killed Constable Edgar Millen, making the chase even more intense. With temperatures around -40°C, Johnson still managed to survive in the wild with no support.
Eventually, after a 150-kilometer trek through treacherous terrain, the RCMP caught up with him near the Eagle River, close to the Yukon-Alaska border.
🔚 The Final Shootout
On February 17, 1932, a shootout broke out. Johnson was killed in a hail of bullets. When they examined his body, they were shocked—he was carrying over $2,000 in cash, gold, a high-powered rifle, ammunition, and had no ID.
Even more bizarre—despite a massive investigation, no one ever figured out who he really was. Fingerprints and photos were sent across Canada, the U.S., and Europe—nothing. To this day, his true identity remains a complete mystery.
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