A&E Announces The New Original Docu-Drama Series "FUGITIVE CHRONICLES"

Series Cinematically Reconstructs The Most Compelling Manhunts In Recent History Based On Documented Fugitive Testimony And Narrated By The Law Enforcement Officials Involved

Premiering Thursday, April 1 At 10PM ET/PT

A&E presents "Fugitive Chronicles," an original docu-drama series that cinematically brings to life the most compelling fugitive captures in recent history. Through gritty reconstructions, archival footage, fugitive narrative recreated from real testimony and exclusive taped interviews with law enforcement officials, each one-hour episode dramatically brings each infamous manhunt to life. "Fugitive Chronicles" premieres Thursday, April 1 at 10PM ET/PT on A&E.

At the heart of each gripping real-life manhunt will be the cinematic reconstruction of the exhaustive efforts that take place, often in very dangerous conditions, to find and bring a fugitive to justice. Told from the perspective of the hunter and the hunted, these dramatic true-life stories are told through exclusive interviews with law enforcement officials closest to the case and the fugitive's story based on real interrogation tapes, court transcripts and news footage. Officials will share exactly when they learned of the fugitive's flight, what their first course of action was and how they went about executing their heart-pounding takedown.

"This show pioneers a new genre of television because it artfully blends true-life narrative and scripted filmmaking," said Robert Sharenow, Senior Vice President of Nonfiction and Alternative Programming, A&E Network and BIO. "This innovative format will fit perfectly with A&E's slate of both real-life and scripted justice programming."

The nine-episode season of "Fugitive Chronicles" kicks off with prison escapee Ralph "Bucky" Philips, a career criminal who spent most of his life in and out of prison. His flight set off the most expensive manhunt in New York's history as Bucky led hundreds of state troopers on a cat and mouse chase through the towns and backwoods of western New York for the better part of five months. Captain Steve Nigrelli spearheaded the ground manhunt to catch him, and will never forget the horrific events of that summer. During his time on the run a host of extraordinarily lucky and reckless maneuvers allowed Bucky to remain free and the fugitive was able to thwart the high profile investigation for five months in 2006.

"Fugitive Chronicles" is produced by Raw Television/RDF USA for A&E Network. Executive Producers for Raw TV are Dimitri Doganis and Bart Layton, and for RDF Charles Tremayne and Chris Coelen. A&E Executive Producers are Robert Sharenow, Scott Lonker and Jordana Hochman.

The Episodes

Ralph "Bucky" Phillips - Premiering Thursday, April 1 at 10PM ET/PT
**SEASON PREMIERE**

Fugitive: Ralph "Bucky" Philips (43)
Year: 2006
Manhunt: 5 Months
The Hunter: Cpt. Steve Nigrelli (NY State Police)
Location: Chautauqua County, Western New York

* On April, 2, 2006 Ralph "Bucky" Phillips, a career criminal who spent 20 of the past 23 years in state prison, escaped from jail. His flight set off the most expensive manhunt in New York's history. Bucky led hundreds of state troopers on a cat and mouse chase through the towns and backwoods of western New York for the better part of five months. Captain Steve Nigrelli spearheaded the on the ground manhunt to catch the fugitive, and will never forget the horrific events of that summer. During his time on the run a host of extraordinarily lucky and reckless maneuvers allowed Bucky to remain free and the fugitive was able to thwart the high profile investigation. But, the chase turned ugly after three state troopers were shot and the stakes were raised for Captain Nigrelli and his team as they fought to bring the dangerous fugitive in before any more lives were lost.


Larry Davis - Premiering Thursday, April 8 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: Larry Davis (20)
Year: 1985
Manhunt: 11 Days
The Hunter: Detective Sergeant Victor Cruz and Detective Robert Waters, NYPD (Bronx), Homicide.
Location: The Bronx, NY.

* November 19th 1985 will haunt Detective Sergeant Victor Cruz and Detective Robert Waters forever. That night, a team of armed detectives and officers approached an apartment building in the Bronx looking for suspected quadruple murderer Larry Davis. Six of the officers entered the building and surrounded the apartment, while the rest took positions outside and on the roof. Without warning Davis emerged, gun blazing and a shoot-out of epic proportions ensued. Six officers were hit in the apartment and somehow in the confusion of gunfire Larry Davis managed to slip past the rest, and out into the night. All six officers survive, but a citywide manhunt is on for this armed and ruthless fugitive.



Danny Ray Horning - Premiering Thursday, April 15 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: Danny Ray Horning (33)
Year: 1992
Manhunt: 54 Days
The Hunter: Sheriff Joe Richardson (Retired)
Location: Arizona

* Danny Ray Horning called himself a "freedom fighter". Arizona locals called him "Rambo", but to Sheriff Joe Richards, tasked with hunting him down, he was nothing more than a dangerous fugitive. On May 12, 1992, at the age of 33, Horning managed to escape from Arizona State Prison, where he was serving a life sentence, and went on the run putting his military survival skills to the test. He headed to the one place he thought he'd never be found: The Grand Canyon. Living off the landscape he managed to evade capture for 54 days in what was to become the longest and largest manhunt in Arizona State history.


John B. Hawkins - Premiering Thursday, April 22 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: John Hawkins (28)
Year: 1991
Manhunt: 3 years, 3 months
The Hunter: Detective Jon Perkins, Glendale Police, Homicide, CA
Location: California & Europe

* The tireless work of one Californian homicide detective Jon Perkins, finally led authorities to a playboy fugitive who had been on the run for three years. John Hawkins had been living the high life and managing to dodge arrest, much to the chagrin of Perkins, the lone police officer who doggedly pursued him. On April 16, 1988, Hawkins, his business partner Melvin Hanson, and a LA doctor, conspired to kill a young man as part of a scam to collect $2 million in life insurance. Initially, authorities fell for the scam and Hawkins was able to collect $1.5 million. But, the scheme began to unravel when a routine check of the dead man's fingerprints found the body was not that of the man it claimed to be. Hawkins and Hanson went on the run, Hanson even underwent plastic surgery in Mexico to try and avoid arrest. But he was caught after a few months. Hawkins, a master of disguise and reinvention, changed his looks and story, and began roaming the globe. Living the life of the rich and famous he conned his way into people's hearts and purses, usually leaving them heartbroken and considerably poorer when he departed. He might have gotten away with it if it wasn't for the efforts of Jon Perkins who pursued Hawkins relentlessly, chasing leads across the world, until finally in 1991 the fugitives luck ran out and Perkins finally caught up with his criminal nemesis.
*

Dan & Don Nichols - Premiering Thursday, April 29 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: Don (53) & Dan Nichols (19) - "The Mountain Men"
Year: 1984
Manhunt: 5 months
The Hunter: Sheriff Johnny France (Madison County, Montana)
Location: Montana

* Sheriff Johnny France will forever be defined by this case. The rugged high country of the Rocky Mountains is perhaps the last remnant of the great American wilderness. This wild land was home to mountain men Don and Dan Nichols. Unable or unwilling to cope with modern life, they had chosen to live outside society and wrest their survival directly from the land, drawing sustenance from the region they called "our country". But their country was not quite complete. Suffering from loneliness they decided to kidnap a woman and make her Dan's wilderness bride. On a July summers day, Kari Swenson, a world-class athlete, was jogging in the Rocky Mountains. Lying in wait for her were the Nichols. They captured Swenson and tried to persuade her to become Dan's "wife". But their plan went terribly wrong. In the following eighteen hours, the duo killed a man and left Swenson for dead. Then they disappeared, back into the wild. The crime provoked a five-month dragnet that ended on a snow-choked mountainside when Madison County Sheriff, Johnny France single-handedly captured the two fugitives.


William Burkhart - Premiering Thursday, May 6 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: William "Wild Willy" Burkhart (39)
Year: 1995
Manhunt: 34 days
The Hunter: Sheriff Bob Harrison, Park County, Colorado.
Location: Colorado

* Sheriff Bob Harrison will never forget the name William Burkhart. Burkhart, a religious fanatic with a history of mental illness, managed to elude Harrison and a formidable law enforcement posse for 34 days in the snow-capped Colorado Mountains. It all began, with a local investigation into a string of peculiar burglaries of unoccupied summer cabins; but the manhunt escalated on November 29, 1994 when three local park county deputies surrounded Burkhart in a cabin he had broken into. The standoff was punctuated by screams from Burkhart who called the deputies the "Anti-Christ". After about 40 minutes, Burkhart suddenly burst out of the cabin, and shot deputy John Holler with a homemade 12-gauge cartridge. He then fled into the dark woods, setting off a manhunt like nothing Park County had ever seen.


Darli Velazquez Armas - Premiering Thursday, May 13 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: Darli Velazquez Armas
Year: 2007
Manhunt: 5 Months
Hunter: Rolando Betancourt (Bounty Hunter)
Location: Miami FL, Spain

* Bounty Hunter Rolando Betancourt had made a career of capturing fugitives but some are much more elusive than others. As was the case with Cuban Darli Velazquez-Armas, a key player in Miami's drug underworld. Velazquez had been caught red-handed in a D.E.A sting operation, and was out on house arrest awaiting trial when he decided to take his chances on the road. Rolando Betancourt was assigned the case, and an incredible international manhunt ensued. Betancourt was determined to catch the target no matter what and would not stop until the job was done. What followed was a high-octane international search, with several near misses and incredible high-speed car chases. Betancourt worked every hour he could on the case for five long months, flying back and forth across the Atlantic following every lead. Finally, his tireless work was rewarded and after an epic chase, Betancourt was able to bring the fugitive in.


Christopher Dimeo - Premiering Thursday, May 27 at 10PM ET/PT

Fugitive: Christopher Dimeo (23)
Year: 2004-2005
Manhunt: 2 months
The Hunter: Det. Billy Brosnan (Nassau County Police, Homicide Unit) & Det. Lt. Dennis Farrell
Location: Long Island, NY/Fairfield, CT/Atlantic City, NJ

* Detective Billy Brosnan likes to be busy, but when he's busy someone dies. In September 2004, Chris Dimeo fled his grandmothers California home, violating the conditions of his parole. He stole her car, credit cards, and cash, and headed across the country with his girlfriend, and soon to be partner-in-crime, Nicole Pearce. When they reached the east coast, the pair joined forces with Dimeo's mother Maryann Taylor-Casey and the three of them embarked on a deadly, heroin-fueled crime spree. Dimeo stole over $350,000 worth of jewelry and left three dead victims in his wake. These brutal slayings in sleepy suburbs set off one of the most intense manhunts the New York metropolitan area had seen in years culminating in a SWAT take down in Atlantic City.


Craig Pritchert - Premiering Thursday, June 3 at 10PM ET/PT
**SEASON FINALE**

Fugitive: Craig Pritchert (25) & Nova Guthrie (24) "Bonnie & Clyde"
Year: 1997 -2003
Manhunt: 6 Years
The Hunter: Det. Tom Vanmeter, SA Mike Sanborn FBI, SA Alvie Price, FBI
Location: AZ, and the world.

Craig Pritchert and his girlfriend Nova Guthrie were the modern day "Bonnie and Clyde". After meeting and falling in love, the couple embarked on a crime spree that lasted from 1997 to 2003. They committed six known bank robberies in the USA, and made off with over $500,000 in cash. But with Detective Tom Van Meter and the FBI hot on their trail the couple fled the US for good traveling the world in search of a safe haven before settling in Cape Town, South Africa. VanMeter and FBI Special Agent Sanborn pursued the couple across the US, and from country to country, tracking them from place to place. When a tip off came in that Pritchert and Gutherie were in South Africa, the FBI sent a team there to see if it was really them, and after six years on the run, the fugitives luck finally ran out.