Captured: Eric Matthew Frein, alleged cop killer and ‘most wanted’ fugitive
Pennsylvania police have suspected cop killer Eric Frein in custody
(35 minutes later)
A massive 48-day manhunt for suspected trooper shooter Eric Matthew Frein ended Thursday evening at an abandoned rural airport, some 40 miles from the state police barracks in Blooming Grove, Pa., where he allegedly ambushed two troopers, killing one and injuring the other.
Suspected cop killer Eric Frein is in custody, Pennsylvania state police said on Thursday, ending a lengthy manhunt for one of the FBI’s most-wanted fugitives.
After Frein was captured, he was taken back to the barracks and turned over to state police. Officers used the handcuffs of slain Cpl. Bryon Dickson to secure him and then loaded him into Dickson’s squad car.
In a brief, emailed statement to The Post, Trooper Connie Devens confirmed that police have taken Eric Frein into custody. Police will release further information at “a later time.” Devens declined to confirm other details pertaining to Frein’s capture.
“He was placed under arrest and handcuffed with the handcuffs of Cpl. Dickson, which I think is very appropriate,” Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett (R) said Thursday at a late-night news conference.
Two law enforcement officials speaking to the Associated Press said that Frein was captured Thursday by U.S. Marshals in an abandoned airplane hangar.
The U.S. Marshals Service had a team at the now-defunct Birchwood-Pocono Airpark as part of a regular routine in the search for 31-year-old Frein. Marshals spotted him in an open field near an old hangar and ordered him to surrender. He knelt down, raised his hands and admitted his identity. Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan said the suspect was “taken by surprise” and arrested without incident.
A reporter at WBRE tweeted what is reportedly the first photo of Frein in custody:
Authorities found a rifle and a pistol at the hangar.
“He has been stripped of his guns, his bombs, and now his freedom,” Sam Rabadi, chief of the Philadelphia office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, told reporters.
Frein’s FBI’s wanted poster now reads: “Captured.”
A WBRE-TV reporter tweeted what was said to be the first photo of Frein in custody.
Frein photo from State Police source. pic.twitter.com/Usa7DRH2jc — Andy Mehalshick (@AndyMehalshick) October 30, 2014
Frein photo from State Police source. pic.twitter.com/Usa7DRH2jc — Andy Mehalshick (@AndyMehalshick) October 30, 2014
Frein photo from State Police source. pic.twitter.com/Usa7DRH2jc — Andy Mehalshick (@AndyMehalshick) October 30, 2014
Frein photo from State Police source. pic.twitter.com/Usa7DRH2jc
Frein, a self-styled survivalist, is charged with ambushing two troopers outside the barracks Sept. 12, killing Dickson and wounding trooper Alex Douglass. Since then, he has been hiding in the dense woods in the Pocono Mountains.
— Andy Mehalshick (@AndyMehalshick) October 30, 2014
More than 1,000 law enforcement officers were involved in the manhunt. Thursday night, Noonan said the reason Frein’s capture took so long was because the wooded search area was vast and Frein was familiar with it. He said police “had to be very careful” how they searched.
Frein’s listing on the FBI’s most wanted site now reads, “Captured.” “Our thanks to the public and our partners,” the FBI said in a tweeted statement.
Noonan said police knew that at one point Frein had a sniper rifle, handgun and explosive charges with him.
The capture ends a 48-day search for the man accused of killing a Pennsylvania state trooper, Bryon Dickson, and wounding another, Alex Douglass, on Sept. 12 in an ambush outside of Blooming Grove state police barracks.
“I can’t think of a more dangerous occupation than going into the woods after this individual,” Noonan said. “Eric Frein had a mission and that was to attack law enforcement. If he got out of those woods, we were very concerned that he would then kill other law enforcement and, if not them, civilians. That’s why we had to keep the pressure on.”
More than 1,000 Pennsylvania officers have participated in the search for Frein in the dense woods of the Pocono Mountains.
At one point, police suspected Frein was treating the massive manhunt as a game with law enforcement officers, who would catch glimpses of him before he would disappear again into the woods. Police found several items he reportedly left behind, including military-style food packs, pipe bombs, ammunition and clothing.
Frein, 31, is a survivalist who eluded capture for weeks, despite several reports of sightings. However, authorities found several items believed to belong to Frein in the mountains, including military-style food packs, pipe bombs, ammunition and clothing.
Police also found his trash, including some empty packs of cigarettes and soiled diapers. The FBI later said DNA testing on the diapers was inconclusive since they had been exposed to the elements.
Police also found a handwritten journal, which included what police described as a “cold-blooded” account of the Sept. 12 ambush.
Later, officers discovered a handwritten journal, reportedly written by Frein, that included what police described as a “cold-blooded and absolutely chilling account” of the Sept. 12 ambush. Earlier this month, State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens read passages from the pages at a news conference, starting with a description of Dickson’s death.
The lengthy hunt unnerved nearby communities. Several schools closed in northeastern Pennsylvania last week as police investigated a possible sighting of the suspect.
“Got a shot around 11 p.m. and took it,” Bivens read. “He dropped. I was surprised at how quick. I took a follow-up shot on his head, neck area. He was still and quiet after that.
Barrett Township authorities cancelled Halloween. According to NBC’s Philadelphia affiliate, Halloween is now back on after Frein’s capture.
“Another cop approached the one I just shot,” he continued, explaining how Douglass entered the scene. “As he went to kneel, I took a shot at him and he jumped in the door. His legs were visible and still.”
Abby Phillip contributed to this report.
Frein, of Canadensis, Pa., is charged with first-degree murder, homicide of a law enforcement officer, first-degree attempted murder, possession of weapons of mass destruction, discharging a firearm into an occupied structure and reckless endangerment. Authorities said they would seek the death penalty.
[This post has been updated multiple times]
“Let me assure you from everybody here, justice will be served,” Corbett said.
The manhunt unnerved nearby communities. A local resident claimed this month he has been mistaken for Frein by state troopers more than 20 times. Last week, several schools in the area closed as police investigated a possible sighting of the suspect. And this week, Barrett Township authorities canceled Halloween. It’s back on now.
“Trick-or-treating is on tomorrow night,” the township’s board chairman Ralph Megliola said Thursday night. “We as a town think the kids have gone through enough.”
Helen Blackmore, who lives in nearby Cresco, said she’s glad it’s all over.
“It was very crazy here. The helicopters were out all the time. Nobody was sleeping. Even today they were out,” she told the Associated Press. “We’re relieved. We’re very relieved. We want things to get back to normal.”
Abby Phillip contributed to this report.
RELATED: “Survivalism: The stark ideology that may have led to killing of a Pennsylvania state trooper“
