Video After The Jump
(Syracuse.com) An Upstate New York prison worker has officially been described as an accessory to the escape of two convicted killers, and more details about their relationship have emerged.
Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie told the Plattsburgh Press-Republican on Thursday that Clinton Correctional Facility employee Joyce Mitchell"has been very cooperative since she was identified as an accessory to the escape."
Mitchell, 51, also known as "Tillie," was a supervisor in the Dannemora prison's tailoring department, where inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat worked. The Albany Times-Union reports she admitted smuggling in power tools for them to cut through steel walls and provided access to a cell phone.
Wylie told NBC News on Friday, however, that Mitchell did not provide power tools. The prosecutor said she did bring in contraband, but wouldn't specify what it was.
Mitchell is believed to have also agreed to drive a getaway car for the pair, but changed her mind at the last minute and was hospitalized with panic attacks.
A CNN source said Mitchell, who's married to another prison employee, told investigators that Matt, 48, made her feel "special." But she may have also had an affair with the younger Sweat, 34.
A state official said the State Department of Corrections received a complaint within the past year about a relationship between Mitchell and one of the two escapees. ABC sources said the man was Sweat, but the DOC's internal investigation didn't lead to any discipline for her.
According to the Times-Union, prison employees and correction officers are prohibited from having relationships with inmates or doing them favors, including contacting family members.
It's unclear what charges Mitchell may face, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday: "Anyone who we find cooperated with the escape or facilitated the escape, that is a crime in and of itself and we will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law."
Matt and Sweat escaped "Shawshank Redemption"-style overnight Friday from the maximum security prison, which previously housed Tupac Shakur, Lucky Luciano and "Son of Sam" serial killer David Berkowitz, located about 20 miles south of the Canadian border. New York State Police closed a stretch of Route 374 east of Dannemora on Wednesday night to search for the pair.
Authorities said they may have "contained" the criminals in the small North Country town of Cadyville, between Plattsburgh and Dannemora. WFFF-TV reports a bedding spot was found in the woods where they may have slept after bloodhounds picked up the pair's scent at a nearby gas station and Subway restaurant.
Matt is described as a white male, 6-feet tall, 210 pounds, with black hair and hazel eyes. He has tattoos on his back that say "Mexico Forever", a heart on his chest and left shoulder, and a Marine Corps insignia on his right shoulder.
Sweat is described as a white male, 5-feet, 11-inches tall, 165 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes. He has tattoos on his left bicep and his right fingers.
Both escapees are considered extremely dangerous. Sweat was serving a life sentence for shooting the sheriff's deputy 15 times in 2002. Matt was in prison for the kidnapping, murder and dismemberment of a man who had fired him from his job at a food warehouse.
The state has offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the capture of both men. People with information can call 1-800-GIVE-TIP.
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