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BLOOMING GROVE, Pa. (AP) — Two school districts in northeastern Pennsylvania are closed today because of safety concerns for students and staff. This, as authorities continue their search for a man they describe as a heavily-armed survivalist with a vendetta against law enforcement.
Eric Frein (freen) is the suspect in an ambush last week that killed a state police trooper and wounded another. Police say he's dangerous, and that he has talked about committing mass murder.
According to authorities, after he opened fire on troopers at a barracks in the Pocono Mountains Friday night, Frein evidently tried to make his escape in a Jeep Cherokee. Instead, he drove into a swamp about two miles away. The SUV was found there three days later by a man walking his dog.
That was the break police were looking for. It set off a massive manhunt by more than 200 law enforcement officials over miles of thick woods. It's a setting where Frein is believed to feel at home.
Authorities say Frein has held anti-law-enforcement views for many years. His father, who spent 28 years in the Army, says two weapons are missing from his home, where Frein lived -- an AK-47 and a rifle with a scope. He also says his son is an excellent marksman who "doesn't miss."
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140-a-09-(Commissioner Frank Noonan, Pennsylvania State Police, at news conference)-"has survivalist training"-Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan says the suspect is considered armed and dangerous. COURTESY: WFMZ ((mandatory on-air credit)) (17 Sep 2014)
<<CUT *140 (09/17/14)££ 00:09 "has survivalist training"
141-a-13-(Commissioner Frank Noonan, Pennsylvania State Police, at news conference)-"a retention pond"-Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan says authorities got a break in the case that tied an abandoned Jeep to the suspect. COURTESY: WFMZ ((mandatory on-air credit)) (17 Sep 2014)
<<CUT *141 (09/17/14)££ 00:13 "a retention pond"
APPHOTO PASTR201: Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan, speaks during a news conference in Blooming Grove Twp, Pa. Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2014. Noonan identified Eric Matthew Frein, 31, as the gunman who killed one trooper and injured another in a late-night ambush outside a state police barracks. Frein was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder, homicide of a law enforcement officer and other offenses. The gunman killed Cpl. Bryon Dickson, 38, and critically wounded Trooper Alex Douglass outside the barracks during a Friday night shift change, then slipped away. (AP Photo/Pocono Record, Melissa Evanko) (16 Sep 2014)
<<APPHOTO PASTR201 (09/16/14)££
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