Escapees still on the loose.

Two convicts, David Sweat, 34, and Richard “Rick” Matt, 48, allegedly used power tools to break out of the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York late Friday night. David Sweat is known for killing police Deputy Kevin Tarsia back in 2002, and was serving out a life sentence without parole at the prison. The other escapee, “Rick” Matt dismembered and murdered his 76 year-old boss, William Rickerson, in 1997. Matt's sentence was 25 years to life, which is highest possible sentence for the second-degree murder of which he was convicted. Immediately after the murder of his boss, Matt killed a man in Mexico and ended up serving nine years of prison time there before being returned to the US in 2007.

             the convicts: Richard Matt, left and David Sweat, right

Their escape was highly elaborate. The men had put what appeared to be dummies with clothes on in their beds. Their bunk area was supposed to be checked every two hours, so the dummies fooled guards until locals began calling about suspicious-looking men in the area. Late Friday night or early Saturday morning, two locals who declined to be named reportedly saw the two men who then fled from them in the street. A separate resident dialed 911 claiming to see two strange men in his backyard, and that one of them appeared to be carrying some kind of guitar case, which authorities now think housed the power tools that were used in the escape.

Authorities say that the mens' plan was very well executed. A hole was discovered in the concrete wall in their cell, and the two men reportedly walked across a 6-story-high catwalk and traveled through an elaborate maze of pipes before shimmying through tunnels. Later, in the tunnels, authorities found an odd note that said “Have a nice day!” with an odd smiley face that some say looks like a racist, Asian caricature.

               the note, found by authorities in one of the tunnels

No prisoner has ever before escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility, which opened in 1865. So, to keep citizens safe, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has promised to return the note to the killers and bring them to justice. He is offering a $100,000 ($50,000 per fugitive) reward leading to their capture saying that “the first order of business is to get these killers back.”

Some citizens still aren't happy, and many are scared for their lives. Dannemora is a small community of 2,000 so local authorities have instructed the citizens to stay inside tonight because the men are reportedly still on foot, and might be still in the area. But most of the townspeople are wondering just how two convicts escaped using loud power tools without anyone hearing? How would they have obtained the tools in the first place?

Fingers are pointing to 51 year-old, Joyce “Tillie” Mitchell, a public official, town tax collector; and prison worker. The convicts lived in a part of the facility for prisoners with good behavior. As part of their rewards, they were allowed to wear regular clothing and work as assistants to prison contractors like electricians and plumbers. Mitchell had apparently known the guys from tailoring clothes with them as part of the convict's special privileges. However, although Mitchell was questioned by authorities, she wasn't charged or arrested. Her alibi is that she checked into the hospital on the same day with a 'case of nerves.'

                 Joyce Mitchell, a suspected accomplice

NBC News later talked with Mitchell's son, who denied that his mother could have been involved in the crime. He told NBC news,“She's not going to risk her life or other people's lives to help these guys escape. She's always been a good person, and anyone will tell you, they are the nicest people.”

David Bentley, who was part of the team that jailed Matt in 1977 believes that Mitchell could have been romantically or physically attracted to Matt, which led to her being an accomplice. He said, “When [Matt's cleaned up, he's very handsome and, in all frankness, very well endowed. He gets girlfriends any place he goes.”

CNN has since reported that the woman's cellphone has been linked to the killers although no arrests have been made. Her husband Lyle also works at the facility.

Despite suspected accomplices, the search is still underway for the murders. Since Dannemora is just 25 miles south of Canada, authorities think that the men might have fled the country. However, the two mens' plan was supposed to involve a vehicle which never showed to pick them up. Locals think that since the area is 2 hours away from a ferry in Vermont, the men, now on foot, might have decided to go in the opposite direction to throw off authorities.

-Matre' Grant