Hunt for escaped prisoners enters 11th day

Search teams headed back into the northern New York woods Tuesday for an 11th day of trying to track down two convicted murderers who broke out of a maximum-security prison using tools that authorities

News 12 Staff

Jun 16, 2015, 9:18 PM

Updated 3,244 days ago

Share:

Hunt for escaped prisoners enters 11th day
Search teams headed back into the northern New York woods Tuesday for an 11th day of trying to track down two convicted murderers who broke out of a maximum-security prison using tools that authorities say were provided by a woman who worked there.
More than 800 law enforcement officers who are searching for David Sweat and Richard Matt have steadily shifted their focus eastward along Route 374 leading from the village of Dannemora, home of Clinton Correctional Facility.
Officers, some with search dogs, made their way through woods in the neighboring town of Plattsburgh, about 5 miles east of the prison.
Matt, 48, and Sweat, who turned 35 on Sunday, escaped June 6 from the Clinton Correctional Facility near the Canadian border.
Sweat was serving a life sentence without parole for killing a sheriff's deputy. Matt was doing 25 years to life for the 1997 kidnap, torture and hacksaw dismemberment of his former boss.
Meanwhile, the woman charged with helping the killers flee by providing them with hacksaw blades, chisels and other tools made a second appearance in court Monday.
Prosecutors say Joyce Mitchell, a prison tailoring shop instructor who had befriended the inmates, had agreed to be the getaway driver but backed out because she still loved her husband and felt guilty for participating.
Mitchell, 51, made her second court appearance in Plattsburgh wearing a striped prison jumpsuit and a bulletproof vest. She waived a preliminary hearing, allowing the case to proceed to a county court.
Wylie said there was no evidence the men had a Plan B once Mitchell backed out, and no vehicles have been reported stolen in the area. That has led searchers to believe the men are still near the prison in Dannemora.
Mitchell was charged Friday with also supplying a punch and a screwdriver to the two inmates. Her lawyer entered a not-guilty plea for her. She has been suspended without pay from her $57,000-a-year job overseeing inmates who sew clothes and learn to repair sewing machines at the prison.
Authorities say the convicts used power tools to cut through the back of their adjacent cells, broke through a brick wall, then cut into a steam pipe and slithered through it, finally emerging outside the prison walls through a manhole. Wylie says they apparently used tools stored by prison contractors, taking care to return them to their toolboxes after each night's work.
Workers have welded shut three manholes, including the one from which the convicts climbed out.
 


More from News 12
2:13
FDNY: 1 critical, firefighter injured in East Flatbush apartment fire

FDNY: 1 critical, firefighter injured in East Flatbush apartment fire

1:23
Paddlers take on Bronx River during ‘Amazing Bronx River Flotilla’

Paddlers take on Bronx River during ‘Amazing Bronx River Flotilla’

1:26
Mostly dry, cloudy Saturday in New York City; widespread rain Sunday

Mostly dry, cloudy Saturday in New York City; widespread rain Sunday

2:00
Families devastated after learning 2 Brooklyn Catholic schools will be shutting down

Families devastated after learning 2 Brooklyn Catholic schools will be shutting down

1:57
NYPD, DOT officials launch plan aimed to keep motorcyclists, drivers safe

NYPD, DOT officials launch plan aimed to keep motorcyclists, drivers safe

2:05
New COVID memorial featured at entrance to Green-Wood Cemetery

New COVID memorial featured at entrance to Green-Wood Cemetery

1:37
Bushwick man who lives near site of fire expresses concerns about air pollution

Bushwick man who lives near site of fire expresses concerns about air pollution

1:22
Weather and road closures: What to Know About The TD Five Boro Bike Tour

Weather and road closures: What to Know About The TD Five Boro Bike Tour

1:40
NYPD: 1 person dead, another injured in overnight double shooting in Brownsville

NYPD: 1 person dead, another injured in overnight double shooting in Brownsville

1:53
Brooklyn-based program helps teens stay away from trouble by teaching life skills

Brooklyn-based program helps teens stay away from trouble by teaching life skills

1:33
Bushwick resident expresses concern about air pollution following Bushwick supermarket fire

Bushwick resident expresses concern about air pollution following Bushwick supermarket fire

0:29
Video captures moment NYPD officer rescues kitten in Brooklyn

Video captures moment NYPD officer rescues kitten in Brooklyn

0:33
Experts fear 'catastrophic' college declines thanks to botched FAFSA rollout

Experts fear 'catastrophic' college declines thanks to botched FAFSA rollout

2:11
Garden Guide: Is it safe to plant your summer garden?

Garden Guide: Is it safe to plant your summer garden?

1:44
The Real Deal: Now may be the time for a job change

The Real Deal: Now may be the time for a job change

10 organizations to donate to in support of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities

10 organizations to donate to in support of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities

1:55
Large fire at 2-story Bensonhurst building leaves home destroyed

Large fire at 2-story Bensonhurst building leaves home destroyed

1:59
Community members affected by Bushwick fire regroup, attempt to move forward

Community members affected by Bushwick fire regroup, attempt to move forward

1:41
New survey highlights challenges for migrants

New survey highlights challenges for migrants

1:55
PS 331 in Borough Park to be renamed in honor of slain Detective WenJian Liu

PS 331 in Borough Park to be renamed in honor of slain Detective WenJian Liu