WILLINGTON, CT — The State of Connecticut has released hours of body-worn camera footage, 911 recordings, and surveillance video tied to the 2020 multistate manhunt involving former UConn student Peter Manfredonia.
The newly public materials document the chaotic series of events beginning with two killings in Willington and Derby, a kidnapping, and the days-long pursuit that ended in Maryland.
On May 22, 2020, emergency calls poured in from Mirtl Road in Willington. Callers reported two severely injured men, one of whom had been “beaten with a bat” by a man on a red motorcycle. Police identified Manfredonia as the assailant. Ted Demers, a local husband and father, died in the attack. An 86-year-old neighbor also suffered serious injuries.
Bodycam footage shows first responders arriving at the scene. Two days later, police discovered a Willington man tied to a chair inside his home. Authorities said Manfredonia held him hostage for 24 hours before stealing firearms and fleeing to Derby.
On May 24, Manfredonia fatally shot his childhood friend, Nick Eisele, and kidnapped Eisele’s girlfriend. He forced her to drive to New Jersey, where he later asked a bystander to summon an Uber. Once Manfredonia left in the vehicle, the bystander and the kidnapped woman both called 911. That tip helped lead to his capture.
Manfredonia was arrested in Maryland on May 27 and returned to Connecticut on June 12. The newly released surveillance footage shows him in police custody, answering questions about his mental state and claiming memory gaps.
He pled guilty in 2023 and received two concurrent 55-year sentences.
