[1] Government agent Captain James Madison (Neil Hamilton) spots a man in Washington D.C. that he thinks is Otto Lieberman (Victor Varconi), a fugitive that caused an aircraft crash that killed eight people.

Lieberman has now assumed the identity of Dr. Frederic Haskell and is working with Bruce Lane (Charles C. Wilson), a wealthy lobbyist suspected of dealing with foreign agents.

The two men embark on a scheme to gain control of the aircraft plant owned by Henry Gregory (George M. Carleton).

Principal photography for Federal Fugitives under the working title of International Spy took place in two weeks from mid-February 1941.

[2] After a stint in Great Britain, director William "One Shot" Beaudine returned to America in 1937 but had trouble re-establishing himself at the major studios.