Back Trail (1948)

Rancher Terry Dugan returns to Brentwood, ans is met by his sweetheart Helen Frazer and Cahoose. Unknown to Helen, her dad, town banker Bob Frazer is being blackmailed by Frank Gilmore into revealing routes of stages carrying payrolls. Johnny Mack, working for the State Protective League, fools the outlaws by filling a paybox with old newspapers and foils two attacks on him and Cahoose. Johnny is suspicious of Frazer, but the latter admits nothing. Gilmore's henchmen Pacos is jailed by Johnny after he is caught attacking a freighter. Gilmore forces Frazer to sneak a gun to Pacos. Johnny prevents Frazer from shooting Gilmore from ambush and Frazer reveals that he had once been a partner of Gilmore, and the latter had embezzled money from a client, for which Frazer was blamed and jailed. Helen, unaware of his past, overhears his confession and forgives him. As a ruse, Frazer is jailed, and gets Gilmore to go to the bank for a phony confession note.