A US FUGITIVE and his cousin-fiancée are on the run in the US since his escape from prison nearly two weeks ago. John McCluskey, 45, and Casslyn Welch, 44, have been chased by police across six states.
Two other prisoners who escaped alongside McCluskey have already been captured. Welch allegedly helped the trio to break out of Arizona State Prison by providing tools to cut the prison fence.
McCluskey was serving a 15-year sentence for attempted second-degree murder at the time of his escape. He and Welch are suspected of murdering a couple whose burned remains were discovered in a camper on a remote ranch in Oklahoma.
The couple, who are believed to style themselves on the notorious outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, are believed to have left their hiding spot in the Yellowstone National Park area of Wyoming.
Unconventional appeal
US authorities say they don’t believe McCluskey and Welch may not be willing to “go down lightly” if confronted by authorities. In an extraordinary public appeal, McCluskey’s stepfather called for him to give himself up.
In his plea, Jack Washburn threatened to shoot McCluskey if he ever saw him again and said:
I know what you guys are doing. You think you’re Bonnie and Clyde: you’re not. You’re no comparison, you’re scum.
The Toronto Sun today reported that the couple may be heading for the Canadian border.
The prison break has exposed security flaws at the complex. AP reports that no alarms rang as the three men made their getaway from the medium-security institution.
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