Bucky Phillips Suspected Of Shooting Two More Officers

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Police believe this photo was taken of Bucky while he was on the run. Check out the Fu Manchu mustache he's adopted.

Since his jail escape on April 2, 2006,  Ralph "Bucky" Phillips has eluded police in upstate New York  --  leaving in his wake a trail of petty crimes that have kept the law one step behind him.  Police say Phillips is suspected of the June 10, 2006 shooting of an officer during a traffic stop. Now, police believe Bucky has raised the stakes and ambushed two state troopers near the Chautauqua County village of Fredonia, about 40 miles southwest of Buffalo. 

Late at night on Aug 31, 2006,  two troopers performing  surveillance near Phillips' former girlfriend's house were shot with a high-powered rifle by a gunman who fired from a heavily wooded area near the home. 

32-year-old Joseph Longobardo was shot in the leg and suffered massive blood loss from a severed artery. He died days later from his injuries. 38-year-old Donald Baker was hit in the side by a bullet that penetrated his bullet-resistant vest. He underwent surgery and remains in serious condition.

Cops: Fugitive Shoots Officer, Leaves Behind Major Clues

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At the time he escaped, Phillips had long hair and a beard.

According to officials, Ralph "Bucky" Phillips fled from Alden County Correctional Facility in Western New York on April 2, 2006 by using a can opener to pry his way through a kitchen ceiling and out to freedom.

Phillips has been in trouble with the law for most of his life. His criminal history is pages long, and documents a life of burglary, car theft, and stalking old girlfriends. But on June 10, 2006, police believe Philips upped the ante.

Two New York State Troopers were driving down a rural road in the small town of Veteran, N.Y., about 70 miles south of Syracuse. Around 1 a.m., they signaled a dark green Ford Mustang that matched the description of a vehicle stolen earlier that day in Chautauqua County. The driver pulled over to the side of the road before the troopers had even turned on their emergency lights. As the two troopers approached the car, the driver-- who police say was Bucky Phillips-- pulled out a gun and fired out shots. One of the troopers was hit in the abdomen and seriously injured. Luckily, after emergency surgery, the trooper survived.

Family Man?

At the time of his escape, Phillips was less than a week away from completing a 90-day sentence for a parole violation. Family members claim the 44-year-old fugitive escaped in order to be present at the birth of a grandchild. On the run, police claim Phillips' family has assisted him. Phillips' daughter, Petrina Wright, was arrested the week of August 27, and authorities removed her three children from her care, saying she had endangered their safety by letting her fugitive father spend time with them while armed.

Police offered up what they considered proof that Phillips had been to the home shared by Wright and her mother; they say they retreived  night-vision binoculars and a two-way radio, from the home. They also confiscated  pizza crust and beer cans that will be tested for Phillips' DNA.

Phillips On The Run

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Cops say Bucky is gaining misguided support from people in upstate New York

Since Phillips' escape, car thefts, break-ins, and foot chases have been recurring themes in his flight from justice. On June 25, 2006, a worker at a drilling company in Sheridan, N.Y., recognized a 2002 Dodge Caravan that was abandoned on company property, from local news as one allegedly stolen by Bucky Phillips. Meanwhile, the company's ATV was missing. Just after dusk, on June 27, 2006, a witness saw a man fitting Phillips' description riding an ATV in the woods near Chautauqua County and called police. Almost simultaneously, officials got calls about two nearby cabins being burglarized. It didn't take long to put the three incidents together Soon, Phillips and police were racing through the rural woods. Just when authorities thought they had their suspect cornered, he disappeared into the wilderness. But he left one important clue behind-- his backpack. Cops say in his bag was the gun used in the trooper's shooting, along with other weapons.

Later, officials recovered the ATV Phillips allegedly stole. Just as they had suspected, it had been painted another color, green, Philips' favorite hue. After investigating the burglaries, cops realized Phillips had left something there as well-- his fingerprints

On August 19, a trooper on Route 60 in Cassadaga, N.Y., spotted a motorcycle with invalid inspection tags. Cops believe this driver was none other than Bucky Phillips. When the trooper approached him, Bucky allegedly ran into an apartment building and then escaped out the back window. But the apartment held more than one surprise for the trooper-- inside were three people who had allegedly been hiding Bucky for several days. Two women and one man are now in police custody on charges of hindering prosecution.

More Bucky Sightings; Big Reward; Still No Bucky

On August 8, police got a tip that Bucky had been spotted on the Tuscarora Indian Reservation, near Lewiston, N.Y. After a foot chase through the brush, Phillips disappeared into the thick woods of the reservation.  Police recovered a stolen  2002 Ford Mustang GT nearby.

So far, law enforcement authorities have recovered six guns that Bucky is alleged to have stolen: four .22-caliber rifles, a .32-caliber revolver and a .38-caliber revolver. He also is alleged to steal preferrably Ford cars and then paint them black or green.

New York State Police, the FBI and the US Marshals have increased the reward in this case to $425,000.  In fact, Bucky's attorney and best friend have come forward and asked for Bucky to turn himself in to them.  If he does that -- they say -- they will give the reward money to Bucky's family. Knowing how close Bucky is to his family, they hope this will entice him to end this deadly game.

Bucky: "Guilty As Hell"

First Capture Photo?
A US Marshal snapped this photo of Bucky Phillips with his cell phone just after the infamous fugitive surrendered.
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»More capture photos

Ralph "Bucky" Phillips, a career criminal who was at the center of the largest manhunt in New York history, will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars for killing one police officer and wounding two others.

On November 29, 2006, Phillips pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder for killing Joseph Longobardo and shooting Donald Baker, Jr. Back in August, he fired on the troopers as they staked out a home where they believed he was hiding. Phillips also admitted shooting Trooper Sean Brown during a traffic stop outside of Elmira, N.Y. in June 2006. 

When a Chautauqua County judge asked Phillips if he knew the rifle he used to open fire on Longobardo and Baker was capable of killing, he said: "Indeed I did."

A day later, when prompted by a judge in Buffalo, NY as to how he would like to plead to charges that he escaped Erie County jail in April, Bucky replied, "Guilty as hell."

But Phillips hasn't done all his talking in the courtroom.  Police say that since being locked up, he may have decided that a pen is his best weapon.  He wrote a six page letter to The Buffalo News complaining about his treatment in jail. 

He has also dashed off notes to a state supreme court justice and a county district attorney threatening to withdraw his guilty plea. But officials say he has not followed through on these threats.

Bucky Behind Bars For Life

On December 19, 2006, Phillips was sentenced for his attacks on the officers. He received 40 years to life for shooting State Trooper Donald Baker, and life without the possibility of parole for the murder of Trooper Joseph Longobardo. 

Phillips was caught early on the evening of Friday, September 8, when four members of the New York-New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force spotted him in the woods that cops had been searching all day.

The members of the task force say that Phillips ran when he saw them, but investigators were able to follow him with a spotlight from a helicopter in the air above.  They say that when Phillips realized he had been pinpointed, he threw his hands in the air and surrendered to Pennsylvania State Police.