The trail of a self-styled Bonnie and Clyde appeared to be running cold today after police hunting two of America's most wanted fugitives admitted they were struggling to find firm leads on the pair.
John McCluskey and Casslyn Welch pulled off a brazen prison escape last month and allegedly went on to kill a holidaying couple in New Mexico.
McCluskey was serving a 15-year prison term for attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault and discharge of a firearm. He escaped from Arizona state prison along with two others. Welch, who is McCluskey's cousin and fiancee, is thought to have helped the men escape by throwing wire cutters over the fence.
The two other escapees were later caught. New Mexico authorities have linked the group to the deaths of Linda and Gary Hass, whose bodies were found in their charred campervan a week ago.
Police have been inundated with possible tip-offs from the public about McCluskey and Welch's whereabouts, but the last credible sighting was on Sunday when the pair were seen in Montana, possibly heading for the Canadian border.
Since then there has been much speculation about where they have fled to, but McCluskey and Welch have continued to evade capture.
Speaking about the tip-offs, Rod Ostermiller, Montana's acting marshall said: "They're continuing to come in. It's a matter of prioritising them. The problem with the sheer number is it may take a little while to get to a certain lead."
Interpol has issued an international alert for the pair after a request from the US authorities. The agency's Lyon headquarters in France sent out a so-called orange notice yesterday to 188 member countries warning that McCluskey and Welch pose a risk to public safety.
Meanwhile, the US marshall service said the pair may have changed their appearance. It issued new photo-fit images showing McCluskey with a dark beard and Welch with dyed blonde hair.
The two have been the object of a widespread and high-profile search that has ranged from Arizona to Montana and most recently Arkansas, where two people reportedly resembling them were spotted yesterdayon Wednesday.
According to police sources, the search is currently focused on western Montana and south-west Canada, where the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are involved. It had shifted briefly to a tiny town in Arkansas where McCluskey and Welch were briefly suspected of robbing a beauty salon. Investigators later said they believe someone else carried out the heist.
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