Bannon, David Race 1963(?)-

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BANNON, David Race 1963(?)-

PERSONAL:

Born c. 1963, in Spokane, WA; married; wife's name Lane; children: Jessica. Education: Earned Ph.D. in history and M.S. in computer science. Hobbies and other interests: Has black belts in hapkido and kendo.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Charlotte, NC. Agent—c/o Author Mail, New Horizon Press Publishers, P.O. Box 669, Far Hills, NJ 07931.

CAREER:

Former Interpol agent and college science instructor. Worked as computer trainer for Information Architects; previously taught at Duke University, University of South Carolina, and Wake Technical College. Has appeared on cable television on the Discovery Channel, A&E, and the History Channel.

WRITINGS:

Race against Evil: The Secret Missions of the Interpol Agent Who Tracked the World's Most Sinister Criminals, New Horizon Press (Far Hills, NJ), 2003.

Has published articles and books on the martial arts, Korean history, and computers.

SIDELIGHTS:

David Race Bannon has written about the fifteen years he spent as a secret agent in Race against Evil: The Secret Mission of the Interpol Agent Who Tracked the World's Most Sinister Criminals. More recently, he has worked as a science educator and computer trainer in North Carolina. He has also been making appearances promoting and defending his book, which has been denounced by Interpol as "deceptive and irresponsible fantasy," according to the Charlotte Observer. But as Bannon points out, the organization could not possibly admit to his claims of working outside of the law. He advises readers to judge for themselves.

According to Bannon, he was recruited by Interpol at age nineteen. Having come to South Korea as a Mormon missionary, he killed a man in self-defense during student riots. Bannon next became involved in petty smuggling, which led to a fight that landed him in prison. Interpol Commissaire Jacques Defferre arranged for an early release, on the condition that the young man would use his connections to assist the international agency. Bannon says that his subsequent cases involved slave houses in Thailand, a London child pornographer, and the KAL 858 bombing. He also became engaged to a French agent, who would die in his arms during combat with terrorists, and taught close combat techniques to Belgian officers. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly found that Bannon "never misses an opportunity to share the moral and emotional torment" and, despite the author's penchant for puns and clichés, judged that the book "should appeal to fans of fast-paced thrillers."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Charlotte Observer, February 25, 2003, Olivia Fortson, "Interpol: Bannon Was Not an Agent."

Publishers Weekly, December 16, 2002, review of Race against Evil: The Secret Missions of the Interpol Agent Who Tracked the World's Most Sinister Criminals, p. 54.