By Brendan J. Lyons
Times Union
ALBANY, NY — The state Inspector General’s Office will investigate the breakdowns that led to the escape of two inmates from a maximum security prison in Dannemora on June 6.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for the investigation Monday as the search for the escapees was in its second week with no confirmed sightings of the pair, Richard W. Matt, 48, and David Sweat, 35, both of whom are convicted murderers.
“Capturing these killers and returning them to state custody remains our top priority — however, it’s critically important to examine the circumstances that enabled these inmates to escape in the first place,” Cuomo said.
A mix of poor supervision of correction officers and lax checkpoints for employees entering state prisons are among the factors that may have contributed to the unmatched escape from Clinton Correctional Facility. The Times Union reported Sunday that the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision’s own inspector general’s office — which is a separate office from that of state Inspector GeneralCatherine Leahy Scott — mishandled an internal investigation into a female employee’s personal relationship with one of the inmates.
The woman, Joyce E. Mitchell, 51, smuggled tools into the prison that the inmates used along with power tools to cut through a steel wall in the back of their adjacent cells, law enforcement officials said. Mitchell also allegedly provided access to a cellphone that was used to contact one of the inmates’ relatives or friends, and had planned to be their getaway driver until she panicked and abandoned the plan, law enforcement officials said.
“I will follow the evidence wherever it leads,” Leahy Scott said. “Apprehension of the two fugitives from Clinton Correctional Facility is the highest priority and nothing will stand in the way of this primary mission. At the request of the governor, I’m committing all resources necessary to conduct an expedient and comprehensive investigation into all of the circumstances that led to the escape of the two inmates.”
The Inspector General’s Office investigates misconduct and criminal allegations in state agencies. The office has subpoena power, can compel employees to give statements and often refers cases for prosecution if criminal wrongdoing is suspected.
Mitchell worked in a prison tailor shop with the two inmates who escaped. She was arrested Friday and charged with aiding their escape and promoting prison contraband.
The primary search has focused on an area several miles east of the village of Dannemora, where the escape took place. But the governor on Sunday acknowledged the two men may have slipped through the police gantlets and could be anywhere, including Mexico.