Final two Texas fugitives make first court appearance

Newbury, top and Murphy     WEB EXCLUSIVE CNN's Frank Buckley on the fate of the 'Texas Seven'

In this story: Judicial system has 'gone to the pits' 'Potentially dangerous situation' 'System is as corrupt as we are' Slain officer's gun recovered Cohorts in custody RELATED STORIES, SITES

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado (CNN) -- The last two "Texas Seven" fugitives captured early Wednesday made their first court appearances separately on Wednesday afternoon in an El Paso County, Colorado, courtroom.

Patrick Murphy Jr. and Donald Newbury were led in leg and wrist shackles into a room in the county jail that had been set up as a courtroom. They are being held without bond pending a January 29 extradition hearing.

El Paso County court clerk Lee Cole said no charges have been filed yet against the men. "They're just being held for extradition at this point," Cole said.

Murphy and Newbury surrendered peacefully before dawn at a hotel after police allowed them to be interviewed by KKTV in Colorado Springs.

VIDEO Watch the telephone interviews, which were set up in cooperation with police Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   RESOURCES Key dates in the Texas prison escape Texas Department of Criminal Justice report on the December 13 prison escape Profiles of the escapees     ALSO Captured convicts appear before judge; advised of rights and pending extradition     MESSAGE BOARD Violence in America

"They had their say by telephone and then we had them back out of the room, shirtless, hands in the air, no weapons on them," FBI agent Mark Mershon said. Inside the room, authorities found 10 handguns, two shotguns and ammunition.

Their arrest brought an end to an intensive, national manhunt that had gripped the law enforcement community after an Irving, Texas police officer was shot to death on Christmas Eve, a crime authorities pinned on the escapees.

Murphy and Newbury had checked in to a Holiday Inn on Monday evening, paying in cash and showing possibly false identification, hotel officials said. A suspicious employee called authorities.

Officers checking out the tip telephoned one room around 10 p.m. Tuesday and Murphy answered. "You got us. I don't know how you guys did it, but you got us," Deputy Police Chief Luis Velez quoted Murphy as saying.

Murphy and Newbury spoke with Singer for five minutes each, via telephone, before giving themselves up at 3:45 a.m. The two, both shirtless, were handcuffed in the chilly pre-dawn temperatures and put into separate patrol cars.

They were taken to the Colorado Springs Police Department and were to be transferred to the El Paso County jail, also in Colorado Springs. Their four surviving companions are being held in a detention center in Teller County about 20 miles away.

"We knew it was a potentially dangerous situation, but we also knew that we certainly were in a position of advantage here," said Colorado Springs Police Lt. Skip Arms. "Over the course of several hours, we were able to establish a strong degree of trust and credibility with them," he told CNN.

KKTV anchor Eric Singer talks to the escapees by phone

Singer and KKTV News Director Brian Rackham said they willingly agreed when police asked for the station's cooperation. Both men told CNN they did not believe their involvement with authorities violated their role as impartial journalists. "We felt like the thing to do was to try and save lives," said Rackham.

During his interview with KKTV, Newbury said the breakout was a statement against the judicial system in Texas. "We had a statement to make that the system is as corrupt as we are. You going to do something about us, well, do something about that system, too," he said.

Newbury complained that he had to "threaten to beat up" his attorney so he could get another lawyer, one who would see him in prison.

Singer calmly reminded both men of their promise to surrender. Afterward, he praised police negotiators, saying they made sure not to say anything that would anger the fugitives. "There were no hot buttons pushed," the anchorman told CNN. "This was, 'Let's talk about it.'"

The seven heavily armed convicts escaped December 13 from a maximum-security prison in south Texas.

Three of them were arrested peacefully Monday at a convenience store in Woodland Park, Colorado, about 20 miles northwest of Colorado Springs. A fourth man gave up at a nearby motor home. Authorities say the fifth escapee killed himself in the motor home as police closed in.

Authorities believe Murphy and Newbury split from the other five men last weekend.

The arrests brought to an end a frustrating multistate hunt for the seven convicts, whose crimes included murder, rape and armed robbery. The seven had bluffed their way out of the John B. Connally prison in Kenedy, Texas, southeast of San Antonio.

They also face murder charges in the killing of a Dallas-area police officer 11 days after the breakout. Officer Aubrey Hawkins was shot 11 times and his body was run over by a vehicle during the Christmas Eve robbery of a sporting goods store in Irving, Texas.

Hawkins' mother, who has launched a vocal one-woman campaign to reform Texas prison security since her son's death, said she was relieved by the final surrenders. "Now we can get down to business and get some changes in this lousy Texas penal system," said Jayne Hawkins. "My son will not die in vain."

Wednesday's development brings "tremendous relief," said Irving Police Chief Lowell Cannaday. "It's a bittersweet sort of a victory here because we still have an officer that we've lost," he told CNN.

In Colorado, a federal agent told CNN that Hawkins' police revolver was recovered in a stolen Jeep Cherokee used by the four fugitives arrested Monday in Woodland Park. "We did recover the slain officer's weapon," said Tom Mangan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Police believe the group of seven arrived in Colorado the last week in December, spending time in Pueblo, about 100 miles south of Denver, before renting a space for their motor home in the Coachlight Motel and RV Park in Woodland Park around January 1.

They led the park manager and neighbors to believe they were missionaries en route from Texas to California, while keeping as many as three dozen weapons, loaded and cocked, in the cramped motor home.

"We joked about it often, but it really was just by downplaying ourselves and changing our hair color and such," Murphy said during his interview with KKTV.

After the four were arrested Monday, police and FBI agents began to close the net around Murphy and Newbury.

On Tuesday, they found the two missing fugitives' van abandoned in a motel parking lot two blocks from the Holiday Inn. Since no vehicles had been reported stolen, officers went door to door in the area in search of the men.

They received a tip the two were at the Holiday Inn and surrounded the hotel, opening negotiations via telephone at about 10 p.m. Tuesday.

It was a weekend airing of the prison escapees' story on the television show "America's Most Wanted" that finally broke the case for authorities.

The show prompted several tips from residents that the fugitives may be in Woodland Park.

At the convenience store, authorities arrested suspected ringleader George Rivas, 30, serving a life sentence for aggravated robbery and kidnapping; Michael Rodriguez, 38, and Joseph Garcia, 29, both murderers.

At the same time, authorities surrounded the fugitives' motor home, leading Randy Halprin, 23, to surrender. He had been serving time for beating an infant. Larry Harper, 37, convicted of aggravated sexual assault, shot himself to death inside the motor home, authorities said.

CNN Correspondent Frank Buckley and The Associated Press contributed to this report, written by CNN Senior Writer Jim Morris.

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Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • Dallas - FBI's Most Wanted
Texas Department of Criminal Justice

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