--- description: Officials say the inmates escaped through sewer lines title: Convicted Murderers Escape New York Prison image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5c4f1df3143e206c/6988534735ba6f3967c0d9ae/ny-escape-composite.jpg?branch=production&width=1080&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Convicted Murderers Escape New York Prison by [Josh Sanburn](/author/josh-sanburn/) ## Josh Sanburn Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 6, 2015 7:25 PM CUT  (L) David Sweat, (R) Richard Matt (L) David Sweat, (R) Richard MattNew York State Police by [Josh Sanburn](/author/josh-sanburn/) ## Josh Sanburn Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 6, 2015 7:25 PM CUT A massive manhunt was underway Saturday for two convicted murders who escaped New York’s largest maximum-security prison Friday night or early Saturday morning. David Sweat, convicted in the 2002 murder of a sheriff’s deputy, and Richard Matt, 48, convicted in the 1997 homicide of a New York businessman, were found missing from the Clinton Correctional Facility, located in Dannemora, N.Y., near the Canadian border, during a routine bed check early Saturday morning, according to [Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/06/us-usa-newyork-prisoners-idUSKBN0OM0P720150606 "undefined") and the [Rochester (N.Y.) _Democrat and Chronicle_](http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/06/06/manhunt-underway-ny-escaped-killers/28604523/ "undefined"). Gov. Andrew Cuomo inspected the prison Saturday, posting a photo on Twitter showing him retracing their escape route. > [](https://twitter.com/NYGovCuomo/status/607252120425926656) Prison officials told [the Plattsburgh _Press-Republican_](http://www.pressrepublican.com/news/inmates-escape-from-prison-in-dannemora/article%5F77517746-0c4a-11e5-bce8-0b1cb70271ba.html "undefined") that the two men escaped through sewer lines. Officials say they found an “external breach” of the prison’s facilities that allowed the men to escape. Authorities said that Sweat and Matt are dangerous and [should not be approached](https://www.facebook.com/nyspolice/posts/661651107269970 "undefined"). ### See the Path 2 Killers Took to Escape From a Maximum Security Prison  Gov. Andrew Cuomo tours the Clinton Correctional Facility, where two inmates escaped on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  A man-made hole in the wall of the escaped inmates' cell at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  The industrial area where inmates escaped to from a hole in their cell at the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Gov. Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Gov. Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Gov. Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Governor Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Governor Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Gov. Andrew Cuomo tours the escape route taken by two prisoners at the Clinton Correctional Facility on Saturday, in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York  Gov. Andrew Cuomo surveys the manhole where two prisoners resurfaced after escaping from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y. on June 6, 2015. Darren McGee—Office of the Governor of New York ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3911713/new-york-prison-escape-manhunt/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3911713/new-york-prison-escape-manhunt/"},"headline":"Convicted Murderers Escape New York Prison","datePublished":"2015-06-06T19:25:57.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:03:10.553Z","description":"Officials say the inmates escaped through sewer lines","url":"https://time.com/3911713/new-york-prison-escape-manhunt/","keywords":["Murder","Crime","New York","homicide","Prison","escape"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5c4f1df3143e206c/6988534735ba6f3967c0d9ae/ny-escape-composite.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Josh Sanburn","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/josh-sanburn/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5c4f1df3143e206c/6988534735ba6f3967c0d9ae/ny-escape-composite.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"clinton correctional facility David Sweat Richard Matt","caption":"clinton correctional facility Richard Matt David Sweat","creditText":"New York State Police","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3911713/new-york-prison-escape-manhunt/","name":"Convicted Murderers Escape New York Prison"}}]}] ```