PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — Richard Matt, one of two escaped murderers from an upstate New York prison, was shot and killed as officers closed in on him and fellow fugitive David Sweat on Friday, a law enforcement source briefed on the investigation said.
Officers were still pursuing fugitive David Sweat Friday afternoon, but don’t have eyes on the convict, two law enforcement sources said.
“Matt has been shot, he’s down,” Lenny DePaul, a former U.S. Marshal told CNN. DePaul said he believes the shooting occurred in Malone, New York, but had no confirmation. “They stuck together,” he said.”They needed each other.”
Matt apparently shot at a driver in a camper near Malone, N.Y., a federal law enforcement source said. The driver called 911. When officers arrived, gunfire erupted and Matt was shot dead.
The shooting occurred on a day the New York State Police reported that Matt and Sweat might have been headed to Canada. Law enforcement officials have been involved in a nearly three-week manhunt for the two escaped inmates.
A reported burglary initially led police to a cabin Thursday in the town of Malone, State Police spokesman Beau Duffy told CNN. Conclusive evidence was found in the cabin, which was being tested Friday, he added.
More than 1,100 law enforcement officers were pursuing new leads Friday with a “high degree of confidence,” Guess said.
Two prison employees have been charged in connection with the men’s elaborate June 6 breakout, and the accusations against them highlight a series of apparent security lapses.