A three-week manhunt that began when two convicted murderers staged a brazen prison break involving stolen power tools and hacksaw blades hidden in frozen beef ended on Sunday when a single state police officer spotted a suspicious man walking down a rural road near the Canadian border.
David Sweat’s capture came two days after his fellow escapee, Richard Matt, was killed in a confrontation with law enforcement officers while holding a shotgun. Sweat was unarmed when he was shot twice by Seargent Jay Cook as the fugitive ran for some trees.
Cook, a 21-year veteran, was alone and on routine patrol when he stumbled upon Sweat in the northern New York State town of Constable — northwest of the prison — and recognized him.
He gave chase when Sweat fled and decided to fire upon fearing he would lose him in the trees, state police said.
“I can only assume he was going for the border,” New York State Police Superintendent Joseph D’Amico said.
The arrest ended an ordeal that sent 1,300 law enforcement officers into the thickly forested northern reaches of New York State and forced residents to tolerate nerve-wracking armed checkpoints and property searches.
“The nightmare is finally over,” New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference.
Authorities said Sweat was struck in the torso and taken to a hospital in the New York State town of Malone before being transported to Albany Medical Center in New York, which has a trauma center.
Sweat, who was listed in critical condition, was being evaluated by a team of doctors including emergency medical physicians, trauma specialists and others who would determine whether surgery was necessary, doctor Dennis McKenna said.
Sweat had not been formally interviewed by investigators as of late on Sunday, but any information he provides could be critical to the investigation, Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie said.
Sweat is to be charged with escape, burglary and other charges, Wylie said. He and Matt are suspected of breaking into some of the region’s many cabins during their time on the run. Wylie said prosecutors would wait for Sweat to recover before charging him.
The men had been on the loose since June 6, when they cut their way out of a maximum-security prison about 50km away using power tools. Two prison workers have been charged with helping them.
D’Amico said the men might have used black pepper to throw off the scent of dogs that were tracking them. He said Sweat’s DNA was recovered from pepper shakers found at one camp where the fugitives may have spent time.
Cuomo said many questions remained unanswered in the case, including whether the inmates had other accomplices.
“We have already started a full investigation,” he said. “But today ends with good news. These were dangerous, dangerous men.”
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including