Eisele killed
⏩ Family ‘devastated’ after Newtown grad killed in exclassmate’s alleged crime spree.
DERBY — The 23-yearold man who police say was killed by his former Newtown High School classmate this weekend is being remembered as a loving son, brother and boyfriend.
Peter Manfredonia, the subject of a multi-state manhunt in connection with two Connecticut homicides, a kidnapping, home invasion and a serious assault in a spree that began Friday, is accused of killing Nicholas Eisele in his Derby home on Sunday morning. The state’s chief medical examiner said Tuesday Eisele was killed from gunshot wounds to the head.
A GoFundMe page created by a family friend said Eisele’s relatives were “devastated” after it “was delivered news that no family wants to ever receive.”
Eisele is survived by his parents, John and Michele; his twin brother Michael; and two sisters, Jessica and Gianna, according to the fundraiser, which had raised $25,000 as of Tuesday afternoon for funeral costs.
He is also survived by a girlfriend, who police say was kidnapped by Manfredonia and later found safe in New Jersey. Michael Eisele said his brother was devoted to his girlfriend.
“He really loved her, and made it his mission in life to protect her,” Michael Eisele said.
The organizer of the fundraiser, Shannon Will, said “the family would like their privacy for the time being.”
Eisele lived on Roosevelt Drive in Derby and was a former resident of Sandy Hook, where Manfredonia also grew up.
Eisele worked with his father, who owned a landscaping-irrigation company, according to the GoFundMe page.
“He was super interested in planting, and growing, which goes hand-inhand with working with my dad, who works in landscaping,” his brother said. “He threw himself into everything he loved.”
Nick Eisele was also known for his love of art and fashion, according to the page. He loved the way things looked, his brother said. “His space, he loved making sure everything had a home” and “loved ordering unique apparel.”
“He may not have had the best fashion,” Michael Eisele said, “but he loved clothing and the different brands he would represent.”
While he did not have any pets of his own, Nick Eisele also had a soft spot for his mother’s German shepherds, Trooper and Sandy, according to the page. “He just loved them, so so much,” Michael Eisele said.
Police described Nick Eisele as an “acquaintance” of Manfredonia, who remained at-large on Tuesday. He was last seen Sunday afternoon in eastern Pennsylvania and police say they were investigating whether he was responsible for a stolen car that was reported in the Poconos area.
Pennsylvania state police said Eisele’s girlfriend “escaped” and was by found by New Jersey state troopers near the Pennsylvania border.
Police say Manfredonia walked to Eisele’s home after crashing a truck he had stolen in a home invasion earlier on Sunday in Willington. Police said Manfredonia held a man captive, stealing guns, food and supplies, but did not harm him.
Police descended on Derby Sunday morning when they realized the truck they say Manfredonia stole was abandoned near Osbornedale State Park.
Video surveillance showed Manfredonia walking “directly” toward Eisele’s home on Roosevelt Drive between 5 and 6 a.m., Derby police said. The Roosevelt Drive residence is about 1 mile from the spot where the truck was abandoned.
Newtown Public Schools Superintendent Lorrie
Rodrigue said in a statement to Hearst Connecticut Media that the community was “deeply saddened to learn of the tragic events that unfolded over the weekend involving former Newtown students,” referring to Manfredonia and Eisele.
“This is heartbreaking for the entire community, and our thoughts and prayers go out to the Eisele family at this time, as well as other families in Connecticut who lost a loved one during this weekend’s incident,” Rodrigue said.
It remains unknown what sparked the alleged crime spree that began Friday when police say Manfredonia attacked two men with a type of machete in upstate Connecticut. Theodore DeMers was killed during the incident in Willington and another man was critically injured, police said.