Peter Manfredonia’s mug shot, released by state police Thursday morning.
MIDDLETOWN — State police Thursday held a press conference that shed some light on the moments leading up to 23-year-old Peter Manfredonia’s arrest Wednesday night in Hagerstown, Maryland.
Two state police detectives from a multi-jurisdictional team tracking down the double homicide suspect received a tip Wednesday night that took them to a truck stop in Hagerstown.
One of the detectives was going over Manfredonia’s description with a U.S. Marshall, according to Connecticut State Police Lt. Michael Pendleton.
“As they were talking about his height, 6’ 3”, 6’ 4”, one of the team members turned, and approximately 20 feet away from him, was a gentleman who was 6‑foot‑4,” Pendleton said.
State Police Detective Michael Zella noticed the man was wearing red sneakers, and realized the man’s profile matched that of Manfredonia.
He was right.
The police drew their guns and ordered Manfredonia to the ground. He was taken into custody without incident, ending a manhunt that started last Friday.
Afterward, Manfredonia, according to Pendleton, walked police over to a bag containing a gun.
State police said Wednesday that gun may have been used in a homicide in Derby.
Police have yet to file charges against Manfredonia, and have not speculated on what motivated Manfredonia’s crimes. Police did not answer many follow-up questions Thursday, saying they wanted to protect the investigation.
Connecticut State Police Lt. Michael Pendleton addresses the media Thursday.
Willington
Manfredonia’s crime spree began at 9 a.m. Friday (May 22), when state police received a 911 call reporting a “disturbance” on Mirtl Road in Willington.
Troopers on the scene at 9:08 a.m. found two men badly injured in the road.
Manfredonia allegedly attacked 62-year-old Theodore Demers with a machete or small sword, according to The Hartford Courant, killing him. Demers had stopped to help Manfredonia, according to the Courant, thinking that the UConn student’s motorcycle had broken down.
The scene was horrific, according to various news accounts.
Manfredonia allegedly attacked an 80-year-old man who had come to Demers’ aid. That man was badly injured, but is recovering in a hospital.
Below is a news report from FOX 61. In it, Demers’ surviving family members remember the former U.S. Marine.
According to the Courant, Manfredonia was in Wilington because he knew a woman in the area and may have been on his way to her residence.
State police identified Manfredonia as a suspect in the attack by 11:38 a.m. Friday and began a manhunt in Willington that involved police dogs and the help of local, state and federal law enforcement.
The search for Manfredonia extended through the night and into Saturday.
State police released Manfredonia’s photo to the public at 11:26 a.m. Saturday.
State police released Manfredonia’s photo to the public 11:26 a.m. Saturday, May 23.
The search continued all day Saturday in the Willington area, with state police releasing an updated photo at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
As police searched, Manfredonia had allegedly been hiding out in a home he forced his way into on Turnpike Road in Willington where state police said he held a man against his will. He stole guns, food, and the man’s vehicle, and left Sunday morning.
Derby
At 6:43 a.m. Sunday, Derby police found an abandoned vehicle near Cullens Hill Road and Hawthorne Avenue, next to the 350-acre Osbornedale State Park. Police believed Manfredonia stole the vehicle and drove about 70 miles to Derby.
The vehicle was “lodged on an elevated embankment,” according to Derby police.
A Google map showing the area of Roosevelt Drive, Cullens Hill Road, and Hawthorne Avenue in Derby.
The discovery of the vehicle set off a massive manhunt that employed helicopters and drones, and concentrated on the woods of the state park.
The subsequent investigation revealed that Manfredonia likely left his vehicle and then walked about a mile to 404 Roosevelt Drive, where Nicholas Eisele, 23, an acquaintance from Manfredonia’s hometown of Sandy Hook, lived in a second-floor apartment.
Police said “Ring” surveillance video from Roosevelt Drive shows Manfredonia heading toward the two-story apartment house between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. Sunday.
Once inside the apartment, Manfredonia shot Eisele in the head, killing him.
Nick Eisele, 23, graduated from Newtown High School. He lived in an apartment on Roosevelt Drive (Route 34) in Derby.
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(A GoFundMe was created to help Eisele’s family cover funeral expenses. It had raised more than $36,000 as of May 28.)
According to the GoFundMe page:
“Nick is survived by his parents, John Eisele and Michele Krasowski; his twin brother Michael; and two sisters, Jessica and Gianna. He is also survived by a girlfriend, to whom he was devoted. “He really loved her, and made it his mission in life to protect her,” Michael said.
Nick was living in Derby, Conn. A former Sandy Hook resident, he was a 2016 Newtown High School graduate.”
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Manfredonia allegedly forced Eisele’s girlfriend into her car, a Jetta, and headed south through New York and into New Jersey.
Police learned of Manfredonia’s activity at 11 a.m., when authorities received a 911 call after Eisele’s body was discovered. Initially, an ambulance was sent to the scene for a suspected stabbing. The medical examiner’s office later released information to the public saying Eisele had been shot.
Police responded to the scene thinking that Manfredonia might be hiding in the residence.
The brief video below shows police officers heading up a staircase into the second-floor apartment while another set of police officers enter the first-floor apartment as a third set of officers sets up a perimeter to keep the public away.
At 11:25 p.m. Saturday, state police sent an alert to area law enforcement telling them to be on the lookout for the Jetta Manfredonia allegedly took. The public was alerted at about 1 p.m.
At 1:30 p.m. Sunday, the Jetta and the woman were found in New Jersey, near the Pennsylvania border. The woman was not injured.
“The victim confirmed that the suspect was (her) captor,” state police said.
Pennsylvania And Maryland
At some point Sunday (May 25) afternoon, police believe Manfredonia ordered a ride-share and was dropped off at a Walmart in East Stroudsburg, PA. Pennsylvania state police eventually released an image from surveillance video showing Manfredonia walking along rail tracks behind the store. State police believed him to still be carrying weapons.
On Memorial Day (May 25) at about 9 p.m. a Hyundai SUV was reported stolen. Police said the SUV was taken from the area where Manfredonia had been last seen. This information was released to the public Tuesday, May 26.
On Wednesday, May 27 at about 2:30 p.m., police announced the SUV was found near a “Sheetz” convenience store in Chambersburg, PA. Police released an image from a surveillance camera of a man who matched Manfredonia’s description.
On May 27 authorities released an image showing a man matching Manfredonia’s description at a store in Chambersburg, PA.
Police said Manfredonia managed to order an UBER car to take him to Hagerstown, Maryland, where he was taken into custody at a truck stop about 9 p.m. Wednesday.
Maryland state police a team of law enforcement had been tracking Manfredonia and following up leads Wednesday. The investigation took them to a travel area/truck stop off Halfway Boulevard.
“While at the travel center continuing their investigation tonight, Manfredonia was spotted coming out of a wooded area behind the center,” police said in a statement Wednesday.
“We’re extremely relieved that he’s off the streets, and happy that he’s coming home to face the justice that he deserves,” Derby Police Lt. Justin Stanko said Wednesday. “We feel for all the families whose lives he affected, and hope that they can start to get some closure not that he is in custody.”
The area in Maryland where Manfredonia was captured.
