To purchase photos visit http://photos.newtownbee.com Cynthia Herbert-Bruschi Adams presented “First He Killed the Minuteman,” a program on the killings perpetrated by Peter Manfredonia in May 2020 Herbert-Bruschi Adams is a Professor Emerita from the University of Connecticut She is also a psychologist and studied this case very closely The program’s title came from the book of the same name Herbert-Bruschi Adams published in January Manfredonia’s crime spree started Memorial Day weekend and lasted six days It started when he killed 62-year-old Ted DeMers of Willington who posed for the creation of Connecticut’s Minuteman Statue was a well-known and extremely well-respected individual He was killed by Manfredonia with a katana a type of sword traditionally used by the samurai of Japan Manfredonia also wounded an 80-year-old neighbor of DeMers with that sword and then held another Willington homeowner hostage overnight Manfredonia traveled to the home of childhood friend and former Sandy Hook resident Nicholas Eisele Manfredonia killed Eisele with a handgun he had stolen from DeMers Police eventually captured Manfredonia in Maryland He is currently serving a 55-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the two murders Family members of Nicholas Eisele were among those to attend the presentation Herbert-Bruschi Adams shared a series of statements Manfredonia reportedly wrote on his apartment wall prior to his crime spree Among the statements were references to the perpetrator of 12/14; and to Thanos the violent character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe film series You must be logged in to post a comment BURTON—Independence freshman Lila Manfredonia had a high school debut for the ages when she led the Blue Devils to a 4-1 extra-inning win at Berkshire on Thursday Manfredonia allowed one unearned run on eight hits and struck out 19 in eight innings of work “I’m just confident in myself,” Manfredonia said After both teams scored a run in the sixth the Blue Devils broke through for three runs in the top of the eighth to seal their season-opening win “It took everything to win that game,” said Independence coach Troy Keegan We even got thrown out the plate a couple of times Their freshman pitcher was awesome as well; hats off to her and it was just going to be one of those games to see who can outlast the other.” The Blue Devils threatened early when Paige Priebe drew a leadoff walk and moved to second on a passed ball and both runners advanced on a Manfredonia groundout but Berkshire freshman pitcher Moira Wonders coaxed a groundout out of the next batter to end the threat Berkshire drew a pair of walks in the bottom of the third Alexa Johnson hit a one-out single in the Independence fourth but was gunned down at the plate on a perfect throw from Berkshire’s left fielder The Blue Devils made another attempt to break the scoreless tie in the fifth Genna Gallucci drew a one-out walk and moved to third on Priebe’s single Wonders struck out the next two batters to preserve the scoreless tie Independence finally broke through in the top of the sixth and Brooke Vollman singled but Johnson was thrown out at the plate on an outstanding throw from outfielder Julia Young Rebecca Gibson came through with a clutch two-out single to give the Blue Devils a 1-0 lead That lead was short-lived as the Badgers answered with a run in the bottom half of the inning when Whitney Davis led off with a laser shot single to left Davis scored on Mal Durosko’s sacrifice fly Manfredonia hit a one-out double to start the Independence eighth Gibson followed with another clutch two-out hit this one a bases-clearing double to center Mia Whieldon followed with an RBI single to close out the scoring “Rebecca swung the bat really good all game,” Keegan said I’m really proud of all the girls because they all did something to help win this game tonight Manfredonia issued a leadoff walk to Bailey Jokinen but struck out two of the next three batters to seal the victory Gibson led the Blue Devils at the plate as she finished 3-for-4 with a run scored and three runs batted in and Whieldon also had hits for the Blue Devils and Wonders allowed four runs—just one of them earned—on nine hits and struck out 10 in eight innings of work “You learn more from losses than you do from wins for sure,” said Berkshire coach Joe Medlen it might have been 15-0 and we would have just collapsed and that pitcher is just unbelievable over there but I’m very proud of the growth with our girls.” .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } The Chagrin Valley Conference features 25 schools spanning five counties Contact us: info@chagrinvalleyconference.com © Copyright - Chagrin Valley Conference This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page   LITTLE EGG HARBOR – A Township man has pled guilty to robbery but his attempted murder charges are pending pled guilty to Robbery in connection with an incident that occurred in Little Egg Harbor Township on September 9   At the time of his sentencing on August 9 the State will be seeking a term of ten years in prison subject to the terms of the No Early Release Act which means he has to serve 85% of his term before being eligible for parole   Police were called to a home on East Hudson Drive around 4:30 a.m Officers found a 36-year-old victim who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds He was transported to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Pomona for treatment and subsequently released the victim visited Manfredonia and Christopher Miller at the East Hudson Drive home where they were staying Miller and Manfredonia physically forced the victim out of the home and demanded money from him and told the victim he would shoot him if he did not transfer money through a mobile app   Officials said the victim sent transactions however Miller and Manfredonia demanded more money and the victim refused   A physical altercation ensured and Miller fired four gunshots   Officials said Manfredonia and Miller continued to physically assault the victim before going back inside the home the victim ran to a nearby home and called the police   Miller and Manfredonia were taken into custody without incident at the home and transported to the Ocean County Jail where they were subsequently released as a consequence of New Jersey Bail Reform   The charges against Miller for Attempted Murder Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose Billhimer acknowledged the diligent efforts of Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Mara Brater who is handling the case on behalf of the State and commended the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department Detective Bureau Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit and Mystic Island Volunteer Fire Department for their combined and collective assistance in connection with this investigation McNamara today sentenced Peter Manfredonia and the wounding of John Franco in Willington and a home invasion in Willington in which Manfredonia held the homeowner hostage Manfredonia’s prison sentence follows his guilty plea on February 8 2023 in Rockville Superior Court to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a Assault in the First Degree in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-59(a) and Home Invasion in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-100(a)(a) Judge McNamara sentenced Manfredonia to 55 years in prison on the murder charge 20 years in prison on the assault charge and 25 years in prison on the home invasion charge All sentences will run concurrently for a total effective sentence of 55 years to serve.  DeMers addressed the Court about the tremendous impact the loss of Mr who was seriously wounded in the attack and Donald Hipsky who was held hostage for more than 24 hours by Manfredonia before the defendant fled the state also addressed the court about what impact the crimes have had on their lives State’s Attorney Gedansky expressed his gratitude to the family of Mr Hipsky for their courage in taking part in pre-trial discussions about the case “We would like to acknowledge the strength of character of the victims and Mr DeMers’ family members for taking active roles in the resolution of this case,” State’s Attorney Gedansky said State’s Attorney Gedansky also expressed his gratitude to law enforcement authorities who helped capture Manfredonia after he fled Connecticut state and federal authorities arrested Manfredonia in Maryland after a six-day search “If not for the extraordinary efforts of the Connecticut State Police and law enforcement officers in New Jersey the defendant’s crime spree may have continued on,” State’s Attorney Gedansky said Eisele’s girlfriend, Shannon Spies Spies unharmed at a rest stop in New Jersey 2023 to 55 years in prison for those crimes Ansonia/Milford State’s Attorney Margaret E © 2025 CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website Since Summer 2022, Darian Totten Associate Professor in the Department of History and Classical Studies has been leading a team of undergraduate and graduate students on a six-week long excavation of Sipontum a Late Antique and Roman site located in the commune of Manfredonia CLAS 349: Archaeology Fieldwork: Italy, brings together students and scholars from McGill University and the Università di Foggia a collaborative Italo-American initiative that started back in 2008 as Totten was pursuing her dissertation research on the economic connections in Roman and Late Antique Southern Italy After joining an excavation team in 2008 led by Professor Giuliano Volpe head of the Archeology Department at the Università di Foggia Totten became fast friends with her now colleague one of the field directors and a former student of Volpe’s “Roberto and I worked very well together,” says Totten “We decided that once I had completed my PhD and my career launched we would find our own project and be the Principal Investigators.” CLAS 349: Archaeology Fieldwork was conceptualized as a field school an important experience to train students with little to no experience in archaeology on how to dig collect artifacts and perform laboratory methods students take part in the physical work of excavation on site drawing and documenting archeological contexts students meticulously document every step of the excavation sorting and interpreting finds from the site Field work is labour-intensive and with 8-hour work days most students tell Totten that they’ve never worked so hard in their lives But that hard work is always met with students recognizing the value of the labour and effort they dedicated to the dig “There was one day when we took over one hundred elevations in a single afternoon because we had to document a layer with several cuts and their fills,” Nikolay says I would say that I learned a lot about documentation and careful meticulous excavation.” giving everyone a chance at working on different skills The excavation work is complimented by weekly seminars on assigned readings as well as guest lectures by faculty from the Università di Foggia One aspect of the field course is the integration of community engagement “It is central to any project that archaeology is not done in a vacuum,” says Totten “That the pasts we work so hard to bring to the surface have not just intellectual meaning and relevance to us as researchers but also to the communities that live in the same landscapes and sometimes with the monuments built by earlier generations of residents in the places that we work.” Some challenges faced by archaeologists include illicit excavations and the sale of stolen artifacts on the black market which creates the task of demonstrating to communities the value of their past beyond the profit of selling these artifacts “We have had some interesting exchanges where either old men or their younger family members bring us bags of artifacts that they found or looted decades ago ‘so we can study them’,” says Totten “This is difficult with so much time and distance and without any sense of archaeological context we take this as an indication that we are getting through to people and the culture is changing.” students and researchers interact with locals daily and many students find the time to improve their Italian language skills sample local cuisines and use their free weekends to travel within Italy Totten also organizes a weekend group trip for the students to the Bay of Naples to see the Vesuvius and visit the site of Pompeii Totten’s team has developed a special relationship with nearby landowner Antonio Rinaldi who provides the team space on his farm for the storing of tools and findings during the field season The dig coincides with the “fioroni” season an Italian fig that proved to be a great hit with the students Antonio arrives with a heaping basket of figs for the students They are always so grateful because a team of 25 students frankly eats a lot of fruit But they also feel the care and concern of Antonio and they appreciate that.” Although many students coming onto the project arrive with little to no experience in field work and excavation their six-week long stay in Manfredonia affords them ample time to learn the necessary skills from Totten and her team “It is deeply satisfying to watch students who have had no experience in the field by the end of the six weeks actually know how to engage archaeological methods,” says Totten CLAS 349 was a far cry from the 1-hour lectures she was used to she was able to witness firsthand just how meticulous archeology can be The importance of documenting each layer– even small pits and divots beside the wall needing to be photographed “It was an opportunity to build a great community with those I was digging with and a great chance to act on what I’ve learned so far in my degree,” she says and everything I’d ever seen on a PowerPoint presentation was then in front of me.” An important part of the work on site is the documenting and interpreting of finds Unexpected finds can also prove to be a surprising and important lesson in approaching one’s research through a different lens found a few infant burials in the room they were helping to excavate the discovery inspired a deep sense of empathy within them “I think the most important research skill I developed when excavating a burial is greater empathy for past people,” Carys says and so some historians have suggested that the loss of a child would not have impacted people then as much as it does now But it's evident from the care put into very simple burials that such a loss would have impacted people greatly.” “While "empathy" might not sound like a research skill archaeology involves trying to interpret people's lives from what few things are left to us hundreds or even thousands of years later,” Carys adds requires making an effort to imagine the world from an ancient person's perspective.” despite the demanding work schedule and physical labor of excavating under the sun students reflect fondly on their experience “The work is challenging in the best way possible,” says Nikolay it made me feel invincible at times because of how much we accomplished I was entirely in the present moment because the whole experience was so very engaging not to mention that I learned a whole lot about archaeology too and I improved my Italian quite a bit as well.” The 2025 Field course will run for six weeks from 18 May Applications for the Summer 2025 field season are due by Saturday 1 February 2025, and application details can be found here Please contact Professor Totten at darian.totten [at] mcgill.ca for questions regarding the application process Manfredonia was sentenced for the fatal shooting of Nicholas John Eisele Court records show Manfredonia fled Connecticut with Ms Spies and held her captive at gunpoint for more than seven hours before authorities found her unharmed at a rest stop in New Jersey state and federal authorities searched for Manfredonia before arresting him in Maryland on May 27 Manfredonia pleaded guilty in Milford Superior Court on February 16 2023 to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes Section § 53a-54a and Kidnapping in the First Degree with a Firearm in violation of Connecticut General Statutes Section § 53a-92a “This was a horrific crime that shattered so many lives,” State’s Attorney Kelley said “The pain and anguish suffered by Ms Spies and the family of Nicholas John Eisele is unfathomable Spies worked thoughtfully with the state to achieve this disposition." State’s Attorney Kelley would like to thank Inspector Patrick Dooling Connecticut State Police Detective Brian Connolly and Victim Advocates Jennie Abutu and Ramika Fountain Manfredonia pleaded pleaded guilty in Rockville Superior Court to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes Section § 53a-54a Assault in the First Degree in violation of Connecticut General Statutes Section § 53a-59(a) and Home Invasion in violation of Connecticut General Statutes Section § 53a-100(a)(a) and a home invasion in Willington in which Manfredonia held the homeowner hostage for 24 hours before fleeing with the man’s truck and firearms to Mr Manfredonia faces a total effective sentence of 55 years in prison when he is sentenced in Rockville Superior Court on April 20 That case is being prosecuted by Tolland State’s Attorney Matthew C The two prison sentences are to run concurrently (AP) — A former University of Connecticut student pleaded guilty to murder and other charges Wednesday for killing a man and severely wounding another with a sword in 2020 — one of two deadly attacks that led to a six-day manhunt in several states that ended with his capture in Maryland agreed to a 55-year prison sentence during a hearing at Rockville Superior Court He also is expected to plead guilty in connection with the second attack next week in state court in Milford Manfredonia answered questions from the judge about the plea agreement during the hearing State's Attorney Matthew Gedansky said the victims and their families in both cases supported the plea bargain which was the result of months of discussions “It was a global resolution plea agreement between everybody — a lot of discussion between the two state’s attorneys and the two judges," Gedansky said in a phone interview called the plea agreement “a fair resolution” based on the evidence and seriousness of the charges He said Manfredonia will plead guilty in the second case on Feb to run concurrently with the sentence in the other case Police and prosecutors said Manfredonia killed Ted DeMers and seriously wounded an 80-year-old man who lost several fingers and part of his ear in a Samurai sword attack in Willington on May 22 It's not clear why Manfredonia attacked the men But an acquaintance of Manfredonia's lived near DeMers' home and told police she stopped seeing him recently police said Manfredonia broke into another man’s house in Willington and held him hostage for about 24 hours before taking off with his truck and firearms The man later told police that Manfredonia told him “he just flipped.” Manfredonia went to the Derby home of a high school friend Manfredonia then forced Eisele's girlfriend into her car and fled the state After Manfredonia let the woman go near Columbia where police said he took an Uber to a Walmart in East Stroudsburg Authorities searched the area but didn’t find him A man fitting his description was later spotted near Scranton Police believe Manfredonia stole a car and abandoned it in Chambersburg where he was captured without incident when police spotted him near a truck stop said Manfredonia was having mental health problems at the time and it was difficult for him to get help during the first months of the coronavirus pandemic “His mental health issues weren’t being addressed and unfortunately he had a psychotic episode,” Dolan told The Associated Press Wednesday Receive daily news and talk from Connecticut Public Radio directly to your inbox « Back A 33-year-old Little Egg Harbor man admitted to robbing an acquaintance in September with another man who was charged with shooting the victim Marc Manfredonia pleaded guilty to the Sept 2023 robbery Monday before Superior Court Judge Guy P Prosecutors will seek a prison term of 10 years for Manfredonia at his sentencing Police in Little Egg Harbor went to an East Hudson Drive home at 4:30 a.m 9 after receiving a report of shots fired in the area Officers found a 36 year-old man with several gunshot wounds The victim was taken to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Pomona where he was treated and released More: Neptune man, 41, found guilty of armed robbery at 7-Eleven Detectives found that the unnamed victim went to see Manfredonia and his co-defendant Manfredonia and Miller threw the victim out and demanded money from him Miller threatened the victim with a handgun saying he would shoot him if he didn't turn over the money through a mobile cash app The victim refused and struggled with his assailants Manfredonia and Miller continued to assault him and then went back inside the home The victim managed to run to a nearby home where the police were called with Miller being charged with attempted murder They were both released on summonses to appear in court The Major Crime Unit of the prosecutor's office Little Egg Harbor police officers and detectives and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit investigated The Mystic Island Volunteer Fire Company helped save the victim Ken Serrano covers breaking news Reach him at 732-643-4029 or kserrano@gannettnj.com pleaded guilty today in Rockville Superior Court to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a Manfredonia faces additional charges in connection with the murder of Nicholas Eisele and the kidnapping of Eisele’s girlfriend in Derby on May 24 Police found the girlfriend unharmed at a rest stop in New Jersey The charges related to those victims are being prosecuted by Ansonia/Milford State’s Attorney Margaret E Manfredonia is scheduled to appear in Milford Superior Court on February 16 state and federal authorities captured him in Maryland after a six-day search This case is being prosecuted by State’s Attorney Gedansky Peter Manfredonia was sentenced to 55 years in prison for killing two people holding a man hostage and kidnapping a woman in 2020 A Connecticut court issued a second 55-year prison sentence to a man who attacked two people with a samurai sword killing one and severely injuring the other It's the second sentence — and identical in length — for Peter Manfredonia who also fatally shot a man and kidnapped his girlfriend before leading police on a six-day manhunt across several states in 2020 Manfredonia was a senior studying finance and mechanical engineering at the University of Connecticut when he "just flipped," according to his arrest warrant and fatally struck 62-year-old Theodore DeMers with a sword on May 22 Manfredonia then attacked the man who came to DeMers' rescue leaving him with severe injuries to his hands Manfredonia broke into a nearby home and took a third man hostage for 24 hours he drove across the state to Derby and fatally shot a former classmate and kidnapped that classmate's girlfriend After a six-day search police arrested Manfredonia at a truck stop in Hagerstown the defendant was sentenced to 55 years in prison for the second killing and the kidnapping he was sentenced to an additional 55 years in prison for the sword attacks The victims and their families in both cases agreed to the plea bargain after months of discussion, according to reporting from Connecticut Public Radio This weeks' sentencing hearings came with several days of emotional testimony from victims and eyewitnesses the widow of the man killed by samurai sword told the court she believed her husband's killer deserved the death penalty even though Connecticut outlawed capital punishment in 2016 "It was like being in a war zone," she said, according to the Associated Press. "All I could focus on was reassuring Ted that he was going to be OK and we would put his body back together We had gotten through so much together up until this point "He was still alive when he was taken away "My husband's life was stolen from him viciously State Attorney Matthew Gedansky said that Manfredonia was in DeMers' neighborhood because he planned to kill his ex-girlfriend said his client has bipolar disease and anxiety and was actually planning to commit suicide in front of the woman as part of a psychotic episode Witnesses said DeMers thought Manfredonia had crashed his motorcycle and was offering to help when he was attacked according to several media accounts of the trial Manfredonia apologized twice in court this week directing separate comments to each of the victims and their families An earlier version of this story misspelled Willington Become an NPR sponsor Get important news about your town as it happens Get the top stories from across our network Are you sure you want to unsubscribe from daily updates A Little Egg Harbor man will spend about a decade in prison for his role in an armed robbery Marc Manfredonia, 33, was sentenced on Friday, Aug. 9 to 10 years in state prison, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a news release on Monday, Aug. 12. He previously pleaded guilty to robbery on Monday Little Egg Harbor police responded to a shooting report at a home on East Hudson Drive at around 4:30 a.m and officers found a 36-year-old man with four gunshot wounds He was treated at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center Investigators said Manfredonia and 36-year-old Christopher Miller of Paterson visited with the victim at the East Hudson Drive home where the two men were staying Manfredonia and Miller forced the victim out of the home and demanded money from him Miller pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot him if he didn't send him money on a mobile cash app The victim sent the men money on the app but the two demanded more from him The victim refused to pay them again and Miller fired four shots Manfredonia and Miller continued to assault the victim until they went back inside the home The victim ran into another nearby home and called the police Police arrested Manfredonia and Miller at the home They were brought to the Ocean County Jail and released on bail According to the state Department of Corrections records Manfredonia was convicted on a second-degree weapons charge in Passaic County on Wednesday He has been held in state prison since Friday possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose His charges remained pending as of press time For his sentence in the Little Egg Harbor robbery Manfredonia must serve at least eight-and-a-half years in prison before he's eligible for parole under the No Early Release Act pleaded guilty today in Milford Superior Court to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a and Kidnapping in the First Degree with a Firearm in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-92a Manfredonia’s plea follows his arrest in connection with the fatal shooting of Nicholas Eisele Court records show Manfredonia fled Connecticut with the girlfriend and held her captive at gunpoint for more than seven hours before authorities found her unharmed at a rest stop in New Jersey Manfredonia faces a total effective sentence of 55 years in prison when he is sentenced in Milford Superior Court on April 19 The case is being prosecuted by State’s Attorney Kelley Manfredonia pleaded pleaded guilty in Rockville Superior Court to Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a 2020 fatal sword attack of Theodore DeMers and a home invasion in Willington in which Manfredonia held the homeowner hostage for 24 hours before fleeing with the man’s truck and firearms to Eisele’s home in Derby.  the 23-year-old University of Connecticut student accused of killing two men in that state waived extradition Thursday afternoon following a brief hearing in Washington County District Court Manfredonia was the subject of an intensive manhunt through the Northeast since the May 22 machete killing of 62-year-old Ted DeMers in Willington He is accused of then holding another man hostage and stealing his guns and truck before driving to Derby Manfredonia fatally shot a high school friend whom he forced into her car and left unharmed at a rest stop near Columbia At Thursday's hearing before Washington County District Court Judge Terry A Manfredonia appeared by closed-circuit television from the county detention center Seven members of the media were in the courtroom while other news organizations listened in by teleconference Manfredonia was handcuffed and wearing a green garment indicative of inmates who are believed to pose a danger to themselves or others Myers explained to Manfredonia that he could ask for a warrant of extradition file a writ of habeas corpus to challenge extradition or waive extradition and be returned to Willington Law enforcement had been following Manfredonia's trail for six days before he was captured Wednesday night as he emerged from a wooded area near the Pilot truck stop on Halfway Boulevard west of Hagerstown the Washington County Sheriff's Office and the U.S Marshals Service were also present when Manfredonia was captured Manfredonia is believed to have stolen a Hyundai Santa Fe on Monday in northeastern Pennsylvania abandoned near a Sheetz convenience store in the Chambersburg Manfredonia summoned an Uber driver to take him to Hagerstown where law enforcement authorities were able to track him down Numerous sightings of Manfredonia were reported to law enforcement as they tracked him southwest from Connecticut This undated photo provided by the Connecticut State Police shows Peter Manfredonia A woman who said she was abducted by Manfredonia a college student suspected of killing two people in Connecticut Manfredonia was last seen Sunday walking along railroad tracks in East Stroudsburg had been the subject of a six-day search involving several police agencies and the FBI He was found in the area of a truck stop in Hagerstown He was not injured and no officers were hurt during the arrest “The suspect will face justice and this will bring closure This is what is important for the families of the victims,” said Trooper First Class Christine Jeltema a spokeswoman for Connecticut State Police The University of Connecticut senior also went to another man’s home stole his guns and truck and drove about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southwest to Derby police found Manfredonia’s high school friend Authorities believe Manfredonia then forced Eisele’s girlfriend into her car and fled the state The girlfriend was found unharmed with her car at a rest stop near near Columbia A gun that police believe was used in the slaying of Eisele was recovered near where Manfredonia was taken into custody Authorities have not offered a possible motive for the crimes Investigators tracked Manfredonia to Pennsylvania Police discovered through interviews with the driver and from security camera footage that Manfredonia walked behind the store and onto railroad tracks A man fitting his description was spotted Tuesday night near Scranton And police later suspected Manfredonia to be in the Hagerstown where a ride-hailing service dropped off someone matching his description Wednesday said they were relieved the search had ended peacefully was an honors engineering student at UConn who had a history of depression and anxiety but had not shown signs of violence “This came as a total surprise to everybody based on Peter’s past,” he said “He’s been a kind-hearted person who has no history of violence or any trouble with the law.” Ned Lamont offered thanks to police agencies including those in other states that were involved in the search “We are appreciative of their unified approach to this disturbing situation,” Lamont said on Twitter Associated Press writer Dave Collins contributed to this report This story has been corrected to show that Eisele’s girlfriend was found in Columbia Peter Manfredonia stands during his sentencing hearing in Milford Superior Court Manfredonia was sentenced to 55 years in prison Wednesday for the 2020 murder of his former high school classmate in Derby and the kidnapping of Eisele’s girlfriend Shannon Spies Manfredonia is seen here with his defense attorney Michael Dolan (Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP Peter Manfredonia reads a statement during his sentencing hearing in Milford Superior Court FILE — Peter Manfredonia appears in Superior Court who has admitted wielding a sword in a fatal attack in Eastern Connecticut was sentenced to 55 years in prison Wednesday for killing a former classmate and kidnapping a woman during a multi-state manhunt reads a victim’s impact statement during the sentencing hearing for Peter Manfredonia in Milford Superior Court Manfredonia was sentenced to 55 years in prison Wednesday for the 2020 murder of Eisele (AP) — A Connecticut man who viciously and randomly attacked two people with a Samurai-style sword killing one and severely wounding the other was sentenced Thursday to 55 years in prison the same sentence he received for a fatal shooting and kidnapping that occurred two days after the attack Although Connecticut no longer has capital punishment and Franco told the judge they believed Manfredonia deserved the death penalty Cindy Demers described rushing to the scene of carnage outside her home that day “It was like being in a war zone,” she said “All I could focus on was reassuring Ted that he was going to be OK and we would put his body back together I couldn’t even imagine that was a possibility My husband’s life was stolen from him viciously especially in a situation such as this.” Franco was called a hero for coming to DeMers’ aid when he saw the attack Family and friends described DeMers as a kind and generous man who coached Little League in town and would help anybody who needed it He tried to help Manfredonia that day because he thought Manfredonia had crashed his motorcycle It was the second straight day that victims of Manfredonia’s violent spree offered emotional testimony in court He was sentenced on Wednesday for shooting 23-year-old Nicholas Eisele to death in Derby and kidnapping Eisele’s girlfriend whom he released unharmed a few hours later in New Jersey Tolland State’s Attorney Matthew Gedansky said Thursday that Manfredonia went to DeMers’ neighborhood that day to see his ex-girlfriend Gedansky said it appeared Manfredonia had plans to kill the woman but was interrupted by Demers who had approached him on the street to see if he needed help said Manfredonia’s actual plan was to commit suicide in front of his ex-girlfriend Dolan said Manfredonia has bipolar disease and anxiety and was having a psychotic episode at the time of the killings Gedansky said he believed Manfredonia was desperate when he went to Eisele’s apartment two days later Manfredonia and Eisele grew up together in Newtown Manfredonia’s apology on Thursday was similar to the one he made on Wednesday He directed separate comments to DeMers’ family the man whose home Manfredonia broke into after the sword attack and who was held hostage for 24 hours but not physically hurt “There are no words that can possibly atone for what I have done Know that I am sorry nonetheless,” he said to DeMers’ family “You have done nothing to deserve the pain that I have caused My actions were nothing short of reprehensible I do not expect forgiveness for my actions and I will regret them every day for the rest of my life.” Manfredonia agreed not see seek early release through requests for parole or sentence modification A multi-state manhunt is underway for a Connecticut man accused of killing two people and abducting another in Connecticut before forcing Eisele’s girlfriend into her car and fleeing the state with her Your parents and friends all want a peaceful resolution to this," said Lt John Aiello of the Connecticut state police at a news conference on Tuesday addressing Manfredonia directly in an attempt to get him to surrender said Manfredonia has struggled with mental health issues and has “sought the help of a number of therapists.” in Willington on Friday after DeMers found Manfredonia walking along a road and offered him a ride back to his motorcycle Eisele was found dead at his home Sunday in Derby which is about 60 miles southwest of Willington and just west of New Haven Connecticut State police described him as an "acquaintance" of Manfredonia’s a Willington man reported being held against his will by Manfredonia which was later found abandoned near a state park about a mile from Eisele’s home GRADUATIONS: NJ schools can hold in-person high school, college graduations starting July 6 REOPENING PLAN: What businesses will reopen next in New Jersey? Here's the plan Manfredonia was last spotted in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, after he took an Uber ride to a Walmart He was seen on surveillance footage walking behind the Walmart carrying what police believe is a duffle bag full of guns stolen from the Willington man Connecticut authorities said that he is armed and dangerous and should not be approached if seen was found safe at a rest stop in Paterson along with her car that authorities had told the public to be on the lookout for The FBI is assisting Connecticut authorities in their investigation into the killings where no motive has been announced by police.  you are loved,” Dolan said at a news conference Monday. "So This article contains reporting from the Norwich Bulletin Staff writer Nicholas Katzban contributed to the article Anthony Zurita is a breaking news reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to all the major news happening in North Jersey, subscribe here. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter Email: zuritaa@northjersey.com Twitter: @AnthonyRZurita