It is named after Mateo Capinpin, a Filipino military officer and brigadier general who fought in the Battle of Bataan during the Second World War.

It is currently the headquarters of the Philippine Army's 2nd Infantry Division,[1] which is regarded as the AFP's primary anti-coup strike force because of its proximity to the capital Manila.

[2] Former President Joseph Estrada was detained in the camp in 2003 during his trial on corruption charges before he was moved to his nearby private villa in 2004.

[3][4] The camp also housed dissident military officers detained for their role in an alleged coup plot against Estrada's successor as president, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, in 2006.

[5] Among those detained were Brigadier-General Danilo Lim and Colonel Ariel Querubin, who were later court-martialed there.