New York, Jun 27 (IANS/EFE): Police on Friday gunned down one of the two convicted killers who escaped from a prison in northern New York state, The New York Times said, citing unnamed official sources.

While Richard Matt is dead, the manhunt continues for fellow escapee David Sweat, Efe news agency reported.

Authorities tracked down Matt in a wooded area of Franklin County, which borders Canada, where investigators earlier found evidence inside hunting cabins indicating the presence of the two escapees.

Police continued to search for Sweat in the same general area, located 43 km northwest of the Clinton Correctional Facility, from where the pair escaped in the early hours of June 6.

Hundreds of local, state and federal law enforcement personnel have been involved in the search for the two fugitives.

Matt, 49, received a sentence of 25 years to life for torturing, killing and dismembering his boss in Tonawanda, New York, in 1997.

The 35-year-old Sweat was serving a life sentence for the July 2002 fatal shooting of sheriff's deputy in Broome County, New York.