AUTHORITIES FOLLOWING TIPS ON ESCAPEES

No Link To Body Found In Burlington

Authorities have received tips about two dangerous Iowa prison
escapees being seen in Kansas City, Chicago, St. Louis and New York
City, but none of the reports have been confirmed, officials said today.

The missing inmates are Martin Shane Moon, 34, serving a life
sentence for a murder in Clarke County, and Robert Jospeh Legendre,
27, who was serving a life sentence for attempted murder and
kidnapping in the state of Nevada.

They escaped about 6 p.m. Monday from the Iowa State Penitentiary at
Fort Madison by using a hand-fashioned rope with a grappling hook to
climb over a limestone prison wall where a guard tower was left
unstaffed because of a cost-cutting move.

Gene Meyer, director of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation,
said today it's not surprising that suspected sightings of the
inmates are being reported because of national media attention given
to the escapes.

Investigators are pursuing leads about the escapees' possible
whereabouts, but both men remain at large, Meyer said.

The body of a woman slain in Burlington, about 20 miles north of Fort
Madison, was found this morning, prompting speculation the death
could be linked to the missing inmates. However, Meyer said there is
no indication the two convicts killed the woman.

"We are investigating the death of a female in Burlington, Iowa, and
at this point we have some very good investigative leads in the
case," Meyer said. "We have no reason to suspect that our escapees
are involved in that investigation in Burlington."

Shortly after the escape, a bicycle was stolen near the prison and it
was found in Fort Madison near a car that had been stolen, said Jim
Saunders, a spokesman for the Iowa Department of Public Safety. The
1995 gold Pontiac Bonneville with Iowa license plates 776 NOW has not
been recovered and the fugitives may be traveling in the vehicle, he said.

The car had a half-tank of gasoline and $12 inside, Meyer said. "With
no other resources .... and $12 to buy a bit more gas, that can get
you 250 miles pretty quickly," he said.

However, he added that he can't say with certainty that the two
inmates have fled the Fort Madison area.

A search by authorities is still underway in southeast Iowa for the
inmates. The Fort Madison police, the Lee County Sheriff's
Department, the Iowa State Patrol and the Iowa Division of Criminal
Investigation all are involved. Authorities in Missouri and Illinois
also have been contacted.

The Fort Madison prison is only about two blocks from a bridge that
crosses the Mississippi River into Illinois, and about 25 miles from
the Missouri border.

"Officers are certainly patrolling rural parts of southeast Iowa ...
but we have been prohibited from any kind of air search just because
of yesterday's weather and high winds today," Meyer said. State
officials have considered using helicopters from the Iowa National
Guard and airplanes from the Iowa State Patrol for the search.

Staffing at prison guard towers at Fort Madison, Anamosa and Mount
Pleasant was reduced under budget plans proposed by Gov. Tom Vilsack
in 2002 and approved by the Iowa Legislature.

State prison officials said at the time they planned to acquire new
high-tech security gear to prevent escapes that would require a
one-time expense of $3.5 million.

The equipment was subsequently installed at the three state prisons,
and state officials estimated they would save at least $1.5 million
annually in operating costs by eliminating a total of 38 correctional
officers' positions at the three prisons through attrition.