Mercenary Camp Instructor Attacked by Prison Inmates

Former Alabama mercenary school instructor Frank Camper was attacked in Leavenworth’s federal prison and scalded with boiling water, forcing prison officials to isolate him, his sister said.

Camper, 41, is serving a 14-year sentence for playing a role in the August, 1985, firebombings of cars belonging to two disgruntled former teachers with a chain of prep schools in Orange and San Bernardino.

Two women who operated the schools were accused of hiring Camper to bomb the cars after the teachers complained to state agencies about their dismissals. The women pleaded guilty to related charges.

Frances Camper Freeman told the Birmingham (Ala.) News that her brother was attacked in early November by other inmates after he saw a note saying “merc” or “60 Minutes government rat” on his chair in the television room.

Based on letters and telephone calls, she says her brother was jumped by five other inmates when he left the room and one inmate poured boiling water on his back.

Camper was cleared of any wrongdoing in the incident, but is kept isolated from other prisoners and given few privileges for his safety, Freeman said. Prison officials would only acknowledge that Camper is confined there and his projected release date is Oct. 13, 1995.

But his lawyers and relatives say the former Jefferson County (Ala.) mercenary training camp operator has a high profile.

Birmingham attorney Bill DelGrusso said Camper’s run-in with the inmates was the result of a repeat presentation of a CBS “60 Minutes” news segment on Camper and his mercenary camp. DelGrusso said because the report characterized Camper as a snitch, he became a target in the prison.