Manhunt for escaped inmates expands to Vermont

Law enforcement officials have expanded their search to Vermont for a pair of convicted murderers who escaped from an upstate New York prison this weekend.

New York State Police Superintendent Joseph D'Amico said they are looking for Richard Matt, 48, and David Sweat, 34, "behind every tree, under every rock, and inside every structure." The men escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora after they were able to make their way through pipes, tunnels, and walls. There are 400 law enforcement officers looking for the pair, with authorities in New York going door to door and conducting checkpoints in the towns surrounding Dannemora and officers in Vermont searching campsites, campgrounds, and areas around Lake Champlain, CNN reports.

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin (D) said the search now includes Vermont because the inmates may have believed "New York was going to be hot and Vermont...cooler in terms of law enforcement," but D'Amico said there is no hard evidence that the men left New York. D'Amico also said that a prison employee, Joyce Mitchell, befriended the men and "may have had some sort of role in assisting them," but has not been arrested or charged in connection with the escape. There is a $100,000 reward for the capture of Matt and Sweat.

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