Police Arrest New York Prison Instructor for Allegedly Helping Two Murderers Escape

A worker at an upstate New York maximum-security prison has been arrested on charges she helped two convicted killers escape.

State police said Friday prison tailor shop worker Joyce Mitchell will be arraigned on charges of first-degree promoting prison contraband and fourth-degree criminal facilitation, both felonies.

Joyce Mitchell

Mitchell is accused of befriending inmates David Sweat and Richard Matt at the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora and giving them contraband.

In this handout from New York State Police, convicted murderers David Sweat (L) and Richard Matt are shown i n this composite image. Matt, 48, and Sweat, 34, escaped from the maximum security prison June 6, 2015 using power tools and going through a manhole. (Photo by New York State Police via Getty Images)

District Attorney Andrew Wylie said earlier the contraband didn't include power tools used by the men as they cut holes in their cell walls and a steam pipe to escape through a manhole last weekend.

Law enforcement officers continue to search for the escapees, concentrating Friday in a rural area near the prison.

Mitchell's family has said she wouldn't have helped the convicts break out.

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