Sighting reported in search for escaped prisoners in US

State police have shifted the focus of their manhunt for two convicted murderers to an area west of the New York prison from which they escaped more than two weeks ago, following a new reported sighting.

Investigators and military trucks converged on Mountain View, a hamlet in Franklin County, late last night.

Just hours earlier, hundreds of people had searched two towns more than 350 miles (563km) away, following an unconfirmed but credible report of another sighting.

[comment] Escaped prisoner David Sweat[/comment]

Acting Franklin County District Attorney Glenn MacNeill told WPTZ-TV that a person had been seen fleeing from a hunting camp in the area.

Inmates David Sweat and Richard Matt broke out of maximum-security Clinton Correctional Facility on June 6.

Up to 800 law enforcement officers have gone door to door checking houses, wooded areas and campgrounds.