Prison Worker Joyce Mitchell Did Not Give Inmates Power Tools, Prosecutor Says

June 12, 2015, 12:45 PM UTC / Updated June 12, 2015, 7:16 PM UTC

By John Yang, Stephanie Gosk and Erin McClam

Joyce Mitchell, the prison worker who has fallen under suspicion in the escape of two killers in New York, did not provide the two men power tools, but she did take contraband into the prison, the local prosecutor said Friday.

Andrew Wylie, the Clinton County district attorney, declined to say what the contraband was. Speaking generally, he said that contraband could be anything from toothpaste to blades and drugs.

Asked whether bringing in contraband would be considered criminal activity, he said: “Of course it is.”

Wylie also said that Mitchell was previously investigated because of a complaint that she was too close to one of the escaped inmates, David Sweat, but he said there was no evidence to discipline her.

Sweat and Richard Matt escaped almost a week ago from maximum-security Clinton Correctional Facility in the town of Dannemora, sawing out of their cells with power tools before clambering through the works of the building and out through a manhole.

On Friday, the hunt expanded to include more than 800 law enforcement officers, working with search dogs and helicopters. More than 700 leads have been called in, the New York State Police said.

Sources close to the investigation told NBC News on Thursday that Mitchell was charmed by Matt, to the point that “she thought it was love,” and planned to be the men's getaway driver before she got cold feet.

Wylie said that investigators are still questioning Mitchell, who is a supervisor in the prison’s tailor shop. He said that she is under surveillance but not in protective custody. He said that she does not have a lawyer.

John Yang

John Yang is an NBC News correspondent based in Chicago, where he covers a variety of stories for “Nightly News with Brian Williams,” “TODAY” and MSNBC.

Since being assigned to Chicago in 2009, Yang has covered a number of major stories, including the deadly April 2011 outbreak of tornadoes in Alabama. His coverage was part of a "Nightly News with Brian Williams” honored with the prestigious Edward R. Murrow Award for “Best Newscast.” In 2012, he was the lead correspondent for NBC News’ coverage of the sex abuse trial of former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky. He also reported from Afghanistan.

Previously, Yang was based in Washington, where he was White House correspondent. He was part of the NBC News team honored with an Emmy for coverage of Election Night 2008.

In September 2007, Yang was the only television correspondent to accompany President Bush on his surprise visit to a U.S. airbase in Anbar Province in Iraq, west of Baghdad. During the visit, he conducted a one-on-one interview with the president.

Yang joined NBC in January 2007 from ABC News, where he worked in Washington and Jerusalem. As ABC News’s Middle East correspondent, Yang covered many major events in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including the 2002 Israeli military operation in the West Bank and the final days of the standoff at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Yang also spent extensive time in Iraq and was the first American broadcast reporter to interview captured al Qaeda fighters imprisoned along the Iran-Iraq border.

In 2000, he covered the presidential campaign of then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush during the Republican primaries. That fall, he covered then-Vice President Al Gore’s campaign through Election Day and the Florida recount.

In the days following the 9/11 terror attacks, Yang reported from the Pentagon and was part of the ABC News team honored with both the George Foster Peabody Award and an Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award. Yang was also part of the ABC News team honored with an Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award for coverage of the death of Pope John Paul II.

Prior to joining ABC News, Yang was a reporter and editor at The Washington Post for nearly ten years. As a reporter, he covered Congress and the White House. As an editor, he directed coverage of economic policy in the paper’s business section and oversaw political features in The Post’s Style section. Throughout his print career, he covered Congress and national politics. He had previously worked for The Boston Globe, Time magazine and The Wall Street Journal.

Yang was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, and graduated cum laude from Wesleyan University.

Stephanie Gosk

Stephanie Gosk is an NBC News correspondent based in New York City. She contributes to "Nightly News with Lester Holt," "TODAY" and MSNBC.

Erin McClam

Erin McClam is a senior writer for NBC News, responsible for reporting, writing and editing general news for NBCNews.com. Prior to joining the site in January 2013, McClam worked at The Associated Press, where he spent 13 years and was most recently financial markets editor. In that role, McClam was responsible for a team of five reporters and a deputy editor that covered the stock and bond markets, financial regulation and the nation's largest banks.

Prior to that role, McClam held a variety of jobs at AP, including being a national correspondent and an original member of its Top Stories Desk editing operation.

McClam lives in New York.