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The "Cammo Dudes" are members of the anonymous, camouflage-clad security force that patrols the outer boundary of the Groom Lake complex and adjoining public lands. They are a mixture of Air Force personnel and employees of a private contractor, probably EG&G. They are protected by the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department, the only local police force in the U.S. that acts in proxy for a secret Federal entity. Cammo Dudes detain tourists who wander across the poorly marked military border near the "E.T. Highway," State Route 375. Regardless of the circumstances, these tourists are turned over to the Sheriff's Department for the typical $600 local fine. By dealing only with the local authorities instead of federal ones, the Cammo Dudes avoid having to identify themselves or appear in court.

Local Documents

• Cammo Dude Gallery. Photos of the Dudes in action.
• List of Dudes Deputized by Sheriff's Department, as originally reported in DR#35. Includes how this information was found and authenticated.
• Business office for AFFTC in Las Vegas, reported in DR#35. Establishes a link between Groom Lake and the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB.
• Email report of a Cammo Dudette.
• Related Organizations
  Area 51 is the top secret facility where the forces are based. Air Force Flight Test Center based at Edwards Air Force base is probably the controlling authority. Supervisors are said to be Air Force officers. Nellis Air Force Base controls the area patrolled. EG&G is the probable employer of many of the civilian guards Wackenhut was earlier thought to be their employer, but this rumor is largely dismissed. Lincoln County Sheriff's Department, the nation's only public police force representing a secret federal entity.
• Official Documents
  • Groom Lake Security Manual: A 29-page manual of general information for security guards at the Groom Lake base. Includes facsimile pages of original document. (6/20/95)

The Mission It is the position of the Research Center that any federal employee or contractor who patrols public lands or interacts with a public police force must be identified. This page is an attempt to assemble a roster of Cammo Dudes and sufficient information about each of them to assure that civil rights will be respected. I work on the Cammo Dude investigation only when I am motivated to do so. Motivation usually takes the form of another innocent tourist arrested at the border. I have no objection to the arrest of those who truly intend to violate the border, but the security guards who detain the prisoner must identify themselves at the scene and be prepared appear in court to testify. I do object to the needless arrest of those who have only innocently crossed the border because of insufficient marking or the state's "E.T. Highway" promotion. As long as needless arrests continue and Cammo Dudes do not identify themselves at the time of arrest, I will continue my effort to identify all of these security guards from secondary sources. Unfortunately, this could also result in unintended side effects: Because all other avenues are blocked, I am forced to identify these people in a more public forum than would normally be required. My investigation may also result in the unintentional identification of other base personnel not affiliated with the Cammo Dudes. -- Glenn Campbell

Names of Dudes

This information comes from this public records, mostly in Clark County:

• Recent and previous issues of the Las Vegas phone book.
• Voter lists
• Recorded documents from real estate transactions
• Property plats
• Property tax records

Notes on the list below:

1. The part of the name in bold is as it appeared on the official duputization of that person in the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department (recorded in the Oath of Office book in the Lincoln County recorders office). Additional letters, usually for the middle name, were filled in from other public records.Unlike other deputies in Lincoln County, these ones were sworn in by notary publics in Clark County working for the Air Force Flight Test Center. [See original list.]

2. In most of the cases below, there was only one exact match in public records of Clark or Lincoln counties for each of these people. The only multiple candidates were for "Robert R. Armstrong" and "Kenneth Learned," both of whom had both a "Junior" and "Senior" on record. Robert R. Armstrong, Sr., was born in 1918 and died in 1993. The other, Jr., was born in 1941, making him the likely candidate. Although his age is right, I am less than completely certain it is the right one, since "Robert R. Armstrong" is a common name, and Boulder City is a longer commute to the Janet terminal than most of the others. Kenneth Learned, Jr., was born in 1964, making him younger than most other Dudes, so the father seems a more likely candidate, born in 1940.

3. There was no "Lars N. Larson", with an "o", but I did find a "Lars N. Larsen", with an "e". I assume this was a clerical error at the time of duputization. Lars Larson gave a written warning to a tourist at the border in 1993, including his signature (one of only two times I am aware of when a Dude identified himself). Although "o" or "e" is not clear in the signature, it does match Lars Larson's signature or real estate records in the Clark County Recorder's Office.

4. Most of these duputies were hastily de-deputized by the Lincoln County Sheriff on August 24, 1994. In my opinion, this does not restore their anonymity, since they remain publically accountable for their past actions as deputies. Only two Cammo Dudes sponsored by the Air Force Flight Test Center have not been de-deputized: Robert R. Armstrong and Donald Ray Domkowski. Presumeably, they continue to represent the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department at Area 51, but this cannot be confirmed.

5. I have been unable to find a match for only a single Cammo Dude Deputy: Hubert E. Sides. I encourage investigation by others to help find this person. Presumably he lived in Lincoln, Clark or Nye County in the early 1990s. I have not yet checked Nye County or all records in Lincoln County. I also did not check Clark County Recorder's documents prior to computerization (before 1988). I consulted previous editions of the Las Vegas phone book dating back to the mid 1980s and could not find him.

6. This list was current as of the early 1990s, but there is no guarantee that these people still work for the Cammo Dude Force, and some current members do not appear on this list. Nonetheless, the CDF appears to be stable, and I would expect the majority of these people to still be patrolling the border.

7. From public records, I have the social security numbers, dates of birth, state of birth, party affiliations and phone numbers (even when "unlisted") for at least 80% of these people. By driving by their houses, one can record their license plate numbers. VA home loans recorded for several of these men suggest their previous military service. There are many other public records that I have yet to explore, but further inquiries will be linked to behavior of the Cammo Dudes themselves. If civil rights continue to be violated at the border, then I will have to take a more in-depth look at individual Dudes and their backgrounds.

8. All I has to start with is a name (shown in bold below), so it is possible that I am confusing a real Cammo Dude with someone else in Las Vegas who has the same name. This is more likely with common names like Robert R. Armstrong, than with uncommon ones like Clorne Filkins. If there are errors like this, it is only with one or two of these people (as detailed above), since there was only one candidate for most of them.

Cammo Dude Gallery, photos of the Dudes in action!

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General Links

• Anonymous mailer claims A51 security knowledge+ - With skepticism from moderator (72 lines) - Message - Published: 7/23/97 - Source: Area 51 (Mailing List) <7/23/97 #2>
• DoD Directives on Use of Deadly Force+ (22 lines) - Message - Published: 8/1/97 - Source: Area 51 (Mailing List) [Posted by Randy Haskin] <8/1/97 #3>
• Cannot Find /area51/org/egg/index.link <Imported #5>
• Nevada Notaries and Cammo Dude Deputies+ - Some background on public records, from a Nevada Notary (66 lines) - Message - By Anon - Published: 8/20/97 - Source: Area 51 (Mailing List) [Posted by Glenn Campbell] <8/20/97 #6>
• Cammo-Dudes Page - A Website Devoted To The Paranormal, With A Huge Selection Of Area 51 Images, Information, and SECURITY Of The Base.. Follow The Links and Check It Out. - By DJBeirne@home.com - Source: The Ultimate Page to the Unexplained <8/5/99 #8>

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Reader Comments

Regarding "Cammo Dudes" - Latest First

Area 51 I think there's much more than only foreign technology on Area 51.Perhaps there are also tested some chemical and biological weapons. Bye, your "Ufointrestedguy" -- "Ufointrestedguy" 10/22/99 (#3)

"Larsen" is not necessarily wrong Comment to list note no. 3: "Lars Nils Larsen" is a very typical Danish name, although it is often changed to "Larson" in English. It is likely that he is a rather recent generation immigrant from Denmark, and I'd like to be informed if someone has any further info on the Dude. -- C. I. Sar (cisar@get2net.dk ) 4/14/99 (#2)

AREA 49 I live in the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area and was driving around with friends a week or two ago. They took me to Area 49, where there were quite a few security signs up. Area 49 is supposed to be similar to Area 51. Anyone know about it? Please write me at KingArioch@aol.com -- KingArioch (KingArioch@aol.com ) 5/3/97 (#1)

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Original Text Copyrighted © 1994-99 Glenn Campbell PO Box 30303, Las Vegas, NV 89173 Note: The above page has been frozen as of Jan. 1, 2000. It is retained only for archive purposes. Broken links will not be repaired and some information may be out of date. The former webmaster, Glenn Campbell, is still active at Glenn-Campbell.com