Frank Camper
Joseph Franklin Camper Jr (born 1946) is a former soldier, self-described mercenary, author, and owner of a paramilitary training camp near the Black Warrior River in western Jefferson County that has been linked to terrorism.
Camper served with the 4th Infantry Division's Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) during the Vietnam War. Afterward he worked as a mercenary, and possibly as a covert agent. He claims to have infiltrated leftist groups on behalf of the FBI, to have trained local forces in Saudi Arabia and Panama, and to have carried out covert operations in El Salvador and Guatemala. For at least some time in 1979 he was officially employed as a mechanic by Saudi Arabian Airlines.
In 1980 he moved to Hueytown and opened a 77-acre paramilitary training camp, known as "The Bunker" with his wife, Mavis. He claimed the training center attracted people from all walks of life who were interested in learning survival and fighting skills. He was motivated, in part, by fear of Communist threat to the United States from Mexico, and with frustration over what he perceived as deficiencies in U.S. military training.
Some individuals who sought training at "The Bunker" have been involved, or alleged to be involved, in a range of criminal and terrorist activities. Four Sikh extremists trained there in 1985 and were suspected of involvement in the downing of Air India Flight 182 over Ireland in 1985, killing 329 people, and in a failed plot to assassinate Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Other graduates or former instructors have been involved in supporting Contras in Nicaragua,
Camper claimed his training program was strictly practical and non-political. He tipped off federal officials to a plot to smuggle weapons into Nigeria and testified against the defendants at trial. He also claims to have assisted the FBI in the capture of the Sikh conspirators in New Orleans before Gandhi's arrival. In 1981 he testified against a former instructor at the Bunker, Robert Lisenby, whom he had accompanied to Miami in an alleged murder-for-hire scheme involving rival drug gang leaders.
Camper is also a prolific author, having published several pulp novels, as well as training manuals and non-fiction accounts of his activities.
On May 21, 1986 Camper was arrested at his home in Hueytown for aiding two California women in a plot to plant bombs in the cars of disgruntled employees at a school they operated. Camper was convicted and sentenced to serve 14 years in prison, while his associates William Hedgcorth, Paul Johnson and James Cuneo received sentences ranging from 5 years to 18 months. Camper's then-girlfriend, Lee Ann Faulk, was also charged with conspiracy, but was acquitted at trial.
Publications
- Camper, Frank (1979) The Mission. Manor Books. ISBN 0532172434
- Camper, Frank (1980) Sandcastles. Manor Books. ISBN 0532231325
- Camper, Frank (1986) Mercenary Operations Manual. Desert Publications. ISBN ISBN 0879472413
- Camper, Frank (1988) L.R.R.P.: The Professional. Dell Books. ISBN 0440200091
- Camper, Frank (1989) MERC: The Professional. Dell Books. ISBN 0440202159
- Camper, Frank (1989) Special Operations. Dell Books. ISBN 044020302
- Camper, Frank (1990) The Mercenary. Japan: Namiki Shobo ISBN 4890630112
- Camper, Frank (1990) Long Range Recon Patrol. Japan: Namiki Shobo ISBN 4890630139
- Camper, Frank (1991) Covert Operations. Japan: Ashai Sonarama ISBN 4257033045
- Camper, Frank (1991) Special Operations Group. Japan: Ashai Sonarama ISBN 4257033258
- Camper, Frank (1992) Shamal. Japan: Ashai Sonarama ISBN 425703338X
- Camper, Frank (1993) High Seas Security. Loompanics Inc. ISBN 1559501022
- Camper, Frank (1994) Live to Spend It: A Mercenary Guide for the 90s Delta Press. ISBN 0879470720
- Camper, Frank (1997) The MK/Ultra Secret. CS Publishing. ISBN 1889149020
- Camper, Frank (1999) Mindbenders. Zinn Communications. ISBN 9780935016659
References
- Carlson, Peter and Joyce Leviton (August 5, 1985) "Two Suspected Sikh Terrorists Honed Their Combat Skills at An Alabama War School" People magazine, Vol. 24, No. 6
- Applegate, Jane (June 9, 1987) "Ex-Teacher Is Given 2 Years in Bombings" The Los Angeles Times