Major manhunt for escaped prisoners underway in New York after reported sighting

Richard Matt and David Sweat
(Image credit: Reuters)

Authorities are closing in on Friendship, New York, after a witness reported seeing escaped inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat along a railroad line Saturday, according to New York State Police.

The convicted murderers have been on the run for 16 days after using power tools to escape from Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York. Friendship, a small town near the Pennsylvania border, is more than 300 miles southwest of the prison.

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Julie Kliegman

Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.