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Published 08:41 IST, September 13th 2019

Area 51: Men arrested for trespassing, following a Facebook invite

Area 51: Two men from the Netherlands have been arrested on suspicion of trespassing into a secure U.S. government reservation. The two men followed a FB invite

Reported by: Pritesh Kamath
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Two men from the Netherlands have been arrested on suspicion of trespassing into a secure US government reservation, sheriff’s officials said Thursday, September 12. They said they wanted to post an internet video of the once-secret Area 51 military base in Nevada. Area 51, popularly known as the alleged site for government studies of space aliens, is the United States Air Force Facility and it most likely supports the development and testing of experimental aircraft and weapons systems. The intense mystery surrounding the base has made it the frequent subject of conspiracy theories of tests and experiments being conducted on alien species of the captured unidentified flying objects (UFOs).

READ | 'Area 51' memes were most popular on social media during summer: Study

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Arrived on Facebook post invite

Govert Charles Wilhelmus Jacob Savage and Ties Granzier, the two men who were arrested told Nye County sheriff’s deputies they were in the remote area to attend events next week near the top-secret U.S. Air Force test area. A Facebook post inviting people to see aliens next weekend in the tiny towns of Rachel and Hiko made the Area 51 once again the focus of next weekend’s events.

“That’s why they said they were here,” Nye County Sheriff’s Capt. David Boruchowitz said. 

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Savage, 21, and Granzier, 20, were arrested on Tuesday, September 10, after they were found in a car near a gate inside the Nevada National Security Site, authorities said. 

READ | Storm Loch Ness: After Area 51 & Bermuda Triangle, Scotland lake next target as 'Nessie can’t hide from us all'

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The men were released on Thursday on a $500 bail with no order to remain in the U.S. ahead of scheduled court appearances on Monday, Boruchowitz said. 

READ | US Air Force warns against joke event to ‘storm Area 51’

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Disregarded "No Trespassing" signs

As per the Sheriff’s deputies, Savage and Granzier were found with a drone, computer and camera equipment, and accepted that they had disregarded the “No Trespassing” signs, whereas The Air Force has posted warnings that people who try to enter the Nellis Air Force Base bombing range surrounding Area 51 will be arrested. Nellis spokesman Nick Janeway said that the land surrounding the range is a harsh desert area, with little to no life-sustaining services like water, food, gas or medical centres.

READ | After 'Storm Area 51', US citizens call for 'Storm The Bermuda Triangle, It Can’t Swallow All Of Us'

Reports say that the originator of the “Storm Area 51” viral hoax is citing concerns about organization and funding and has withdrawn from an event called “Alienstock” scheduled next week in the remote Nevada desert.

06:15 IST, September 13th 2019