Richard Matt

On June 6, 2015, while serving a 25 years to life sentence for Rickerson’s murder, the 48-year-old Matt and 34-year-old David Sweat executed an elaborate escape from the maximum security Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York and became the subjects of a trans-national manhunt. The escape, which has been compared to Stephen King’s The Shawshank Redemption and brought New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to survey their escape route, involved the use of tools to tunnel out of the facility to an “external breach” approximately 500 feet (150 m) outside of the prison wall. The two men had first earned privileged housing in Honor Block, a unit with larger cells available only to prisoners with years without a disciplinary infraction.

On June 26, 2015, Matt was shot and killed by U.S. Border Patrol Supervisory Agent Chris Voss in Franklin County, New York, near the town of Malone. Sweat was caught 2 days later. Sweat began to run and an officer shot him twice, one in his right shoulder and the other in his left arm.

After assaulting Perreault, Matt attempted to flee the scene of the crime, but was apprehended by police shortly after. Matt provided the name of his half-brother, Wayne M. Schimpf, when questioned by the officers. Matt was convicted of murder in a Mexican court and received a 23-year sentence. In 2007, he was extradited back to the United States, where Bates, who pled guilty to a lesser charge, testified against him for Rickerson’s murder; Matt received the maximum 25 years to life in prison.

Prior to 2007, Matt nearly escaped from a prison in Mexico, climbing to the roof before being shot by guards. According to his son, “He’s been shot like nine times. It’s like they can’t kill him.” Matt was turned over to U.S. authorities in 2007. According to court reporter Rick Pfeiffer, the Mexican government placed him without explanation on a plane with a drug kingpin they had agreed to extradite because he had “been such a difficult prisoner.”

After fleeing, Matt crossed the U.S.-Mexican border and entered the city of Matamoros. On February 20, 1998, Matt murdered Charles Arnold Perreault, an American engineer employed at Ranco de Mexico, a local factory. According to news reports, Matt and Perreault were in a bar, and when Perreault went to the restroom, Matt stabbed him nine times in the back and abdomen in an attempt to rob him of $300 USD.

On December 3, 1997, Richard Matt and his accomplice Lee Bates kidnapped his 72-year-old former boss, William Rickerson, in his North Tonawanda home. After attacking him, Matt forced Rickerson into the trunk of Bates’ car. Matt believed Rickerson had access to a large sum of money and demanded to know its location. They drove for more than 24 hours with Rickerson in the trunk to Ohio and back, periodically stopping to beat him. Later, Matt broke Rickerson’s neck with his bare hands. He then dismembered the body and threw the parts into a river and fled New York State to avoid capture.

In 1991, Matt convinced fellow prisoner David Telstar to pay $15,000 bail to get him released while awaiting trial for rape and assault. Matt then informed on Telstar, who pleaded guilty to promising Matt an additional $100,000 in a murder-for-hire scheme. Matt did not receive a reduced sentence for informing.

In June 1986, he climbed a fence to escape from the Erie County Correctional Facility, where he was serving a one-year sentence for assault. According to retired Tonawanda policeman David Bently, Matt evaded police for four days, hopping a freight train to his brother’s house in Tonawanda where he was ultimately apprehended.

Richard William Matt (June 25, 1966 – June 26, 2015) was an American murderer known for several prison escapes, most notably the 2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape.