UConn student on the run stalked young woman before killing spree, neighbor heard screams during 2nd murder
A 23-year-old senior student of the University of Connecticut, who allegedly killed two people, reportedly also stalked a woman living near his first victim. Latest reports state that a neighbor also recalled hearing screams on the night Peter Manfredonia's second victim was brutally killed.
Authorities have launched a three-state hunt for Manfredonia, who has been on the run ever since the killings. The 23-year-old's family has since pleaded for the finance and mechanical engineering major to turn himself to the police. The university student is accused of killing 62-year-old Ted DeMers and 23-year-old Nicholas J. Eisele, an acquaintance of Manfredonia. Investigators have revealed that he was last seen entering a Walmart in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, May 24.
Manfredonia is accused of killing DeMers and assaulting another man with DeMers in Willington, Connecticut. The pair had reportedly offered the student a ride till his motorcycle after they found him walking along a road on Friday, May 22. State police described the wounds inflicted on DeMers' passenger as sword or machete wounds.
Authorities informed DeMers' wife, Cynthia, that Manfredonia was on their street because he had been stalking a neighbor's daughter, the New York Times reported. No details of the woman whom he was talking have been provided yet. Manfredonia is also accused of killing 23-year-old Nicholas J. Eisele, who was found dead at his home in Derby. Police say they spotted Manfredonia on surveillance footage walking directly toward Eisele’s home between 5 am and 6 am on Sunday.
Eisele's neighbor, while talking to WTNH, said that he first heard arguing, loud banging, screams and then silence from the apartment above him on Sunday. The neighbor, however, said that he felt guilty for not calling the authorities then.
"I feel guilty for not making that phone call. Maybe it wouldn’t have saved them, but it would have caught him at least. That’s my guilt. I have to live with that," the neighbor told the outlet.
Manfredonia, ever since the killing, has been on the run and the Connecticut state police, along with the FBI have been desperately searching for the student across three states: Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New Jersey. The authorities said that the 23-year-old is considered to be heavily armed with multiple guns and is dangerous. He has been described as a 6 feet 3 inches white man.
Meanwhile, Manfredonia's parents have issued a plea for him to turn himself in to authorities, according to their lawyer Mike Dolan. "We love you. Please turn yourself in," they said in a statement. "You have your parents' and your sisters' and your family's entire support. It is time to let the healing process begin," the lawyer added.
The lawyer said that the 23-year-old had been struggling with mental health issues and had "sought the help of a number of therapists." A motive for the killings has not yet been determined.
Manfredonia is reportedly suspected of murdering Eisele and forcing the victim's girlfriend into her car and fleeing the state with her. The woman, who has not been identified, was later located in Volkswagen Jetta near Paterson, New Jersey on Sunday. She was not harmed.