NY prison escapee killed by police, accomplice at large

A convicted killer who broke out of a maximum-security New York prison three weeks ago was shot dead by authorities on Friday, police said, as they continued to hunt for his fellow escapee.

A convicted killer who broke out of a maximum-security New York prison three weeks ago was shot dead by authorities on Friday, police said, as they continued to hunt for his fellow escapee.

Killers-Matt-above-and-David-Sweat-had-escaped-on-June-6-File-Photo

Richard Matt, 49, was killed in the upstate town of Malone, less than 16 kilometres from the Canadian border, officials said.

Authorities found Matt near a cabin after he apparently fired at a van attempting to carry out a carjacking.

The men had broken out of Clinton Correctional Facility, about 65 kilometres from Malone, on June 6 in a Hollywood-style prison break. They had used power tools to cut their way out of their cells, triggering an intense manhunt involving 1,100 personnel backed by helicopters.afp