Frein lottery.jpg

A Pennsylvania Lottery machine displays the photograph of Eric Matthew Frein, 31 of Canadensis, PA Sept. 17, 2014, in Northampton. Frein is wanted in connection with the shootings at State Police Barracks Blooming Grove. (Chris Post | lehighvalleylive.com)

(Chris Post)

David Singleton and Terrie Morgan-Besecker

Times-Shamrock writers

The face stares from posters, from video screens, from billboards — eyes straight ahead, jaw set, lips a tight line.

By now, everyone knows Eric Matthew Frein, the fugitive accused of the Sept. 12 ambush at the Blooming Grove state police barracks that killed Cpl. Bryon K. Dickson II and wounded Trooper Alex T. Douglass.

And yet no one does.

More than two weeks after the attack, and as the search for Frein methodically plods along in the quasi-wilderness of Monroe County, the 31-year-old suspected killer is still something of an enigma, an elusive man with an elusive past.

"He's a ghost," owner Nichole Pipiliangas said one day last week as she waited on lunchtime customers at Cole's Pizza in Canadensis, not far from the Barrett Township home where Frein lived with his parents.

Pipiliangas spoke in reference to the accused gunman's ability to evade the vast army of law enforcement officers scouring the woods for him. She could just as easily have been describing Frein's background.

The seemingly clean-cut, all-American boy who peers out from the FBI's 10 Most Wanted poster is a study in contrasts to the portrait painted by investigators of a self-taught survivalist and skilled marksman with a long-standing grudge against law enforcement and a deadly aim.

Little by little, authorities have released additional details about Frein's life, even as friends, family members and classmates speak of a remarkably average guy who simply had an intense interest in military re-enacting and history.

While the manhunt continues, many questions remain unanswered for the community, as well as Frein's family.

"I want this to be all over. At the same time, I don't want my brother to sit and rot in jail," his 18-year-old sister, Tiffany Frein, said. "If they do have enough evidence he did it, he should suffer the consequences."

Typical family

Born in New Jersey on May 3, 1983, Eric Frein is the son of Eugene Michael Frein, a retired U.S. Army major, and Deborah Frein, who worked as a dental hygienist.

Eric Frein

In addition to his sister, Eric Frein has a brother, Michael, 36, of Olyphant. He served as best man at Michael and wife Melissa's 2006 wedding.

Neither Michael Frein nor his parents responded to requests for interviews. Attempts to reach other relatives of Frein were also unsuccessful.

Public records show the Frein family lived in several states over the past several decades, including Indiana, Illinois and New Jersey, before moving to their current home at 308 Seneca Lane in August 1994.

The home, purchased for $130,000, sits along a gravel road in the Pocono Outpost development, a quiet, rustic neighborhood where residents are more likely to see deer than people in their yards.

Tiffany Frein said her family is much like any other. Everyone gets along for the most part. She had a strong relationship with Eric, despite the difference in their ages.

"We are a typical brother and sister. We fought and had our moments, but we bonded," she said.

At home, her brother mostly kept to himself but was always there for her if she needed him, she said.

"I'd knock on the door and we'd talk," she said. "When the family was fighting, we'd talk — just, 'Oh, you know how Dad is,' kind of stuff."

He does not have a girlfriend but years ago dated a woman who later became a police officer, she said.

One thing she did not share was her brother's fascination with firearms — he was "really into guns," she said.

It was an interest he had with his father, who told authorities he taught Eric Frein how to shoot. His son, the father told police, was the better marksman and "doesn't miss."

As a teenager, Eric Frein excelled in the sport as part of the rifle team at Pocono Mountain High School, where he graduated in 2002. The 2002 edition of the school's yearbook, The Cardinal, contains a picture of him demonstrating how to fire a rifle.

Eric Frein emerged as one of the team's best shooters, but that didn't prevent the squad from finishing with an 0-12 record in his final year.

"I feel we could have done a lot better in matches this year if it wasn't for the fact ... that the school cut funding," The Cardinal quoted the teenaged Frein as saying. "Most of the members on our team had rifles and equipment that were older than them."

Vincent Cardo of Blakeslee, who was on the rifle team with Eric Frein, said his teammate was big into conspiracy theories, such as the debate over who shot President John F. Kennedy. Other than that, he didn't recall much about him.

"He was a quiet person who kept to himself," Cardo said.

Lied about job

It is unclear what Eric Frein did immediately after high school, but he later attended East Stroudsburg University — first for one semester in 2005 as a history major and then for two semesters six years later as a chemistry major. He also took classes on and off at Northampton Community College, both at the main and Monroe County campuses, from 2008 to 2013.

He did not earn a degree at either school.

In this undated photo provided by the Pennsylvania State Police, Eric Frein is shown.

His life after college remains shrouded in mystery. He told his parents and others he worked at a major pharmaceutical company and had recently landed a job at a chemical plant in Delaware.

His sister said she has since learned that was not true.

"He told my parents lots of things," she said.

Eric Frein is not currently employed, said Trooper Tom Kelly, spokesman for the state police at Wyoming. Investigators believe he told his parents he got the job in Delaware so that he could prepare for the ambush.

After identifying Eric Frein as the suspect in the shooting, state police said he had not been back to the family home in a couple of weeks.

In any case, his employment history appears to have been sketchy. Investigators have said he bounced from odd job to odd job.

At Lewis' Supermarket in Cresco, a store manager confirmed Eric Frein had worked there in the past but refused to answer additional questions.

Eric Frein had two separate employment stints with the Boy Scouts of America's Lehigh Valley-based Minsi Trails Council, working as a part-time, seasonal employee in 2005-2006 and 2011-2013, council executive Craig Poland said in an email.

"He was one of a group of employees who worked at our archery and shooting ranges," Poland said, adding Eric Frein is no longer involved with Scouting and is banned from further participation.

Passion re-enacting

Eric Frein's real passion, all who know him say, was military simulation, or MilSim. Participants use real or authentic-looking uniforms and weapons to recreate battles.

Eric Frein was part of a MilSim group known as the Eastern Wolves, which engaged in re-enactments under a larger, umbrella organization known as the Red Alliance, with an emphasis on Eastern European armies from the Cold War era. Teams take part in Airsoft competitions, which are similar to paintball except the weapons fire multi-colored BBs.

Eric Frein is pictured repeatedly on the MySpace page of Istocni Vuk, a group that portrays Serbian Army soldiers. He went by the name "Vuchko" and favored an early 1990s, Serbian-style uniform. Law enforcement officials have described the accused gunman as having an obsession with the Serbian military, history and culture.

A photograph on his MySpace page, which has since been taken down, depicted him in front of the Church of St. Sava, a Serbian Orthodox church in Belgrade, Serbia.

He studied Serbian and Russian languages and claimed to have fought with Serbians in Africa, investigators said. A heavy smoker, he apparently liked Serbian cigarettes; searchers found empty packs of Serbian-produced Drina brand cigarettes during the manhunt.

The MilSim community is like any other hobby or enthusiast group — friendly, open, welcoming, said Jason Dunbar of Bangor,an Airsoft enthusiast who met Eric Frein at competitions in 2003 and 2004.

"Think of it as grown-ups 'playing army,'" Dunbar said. "It is mostly kids having fun and living a fantasy of sorts — almost like a real-life 'Call of Duty,' just with little plastic BBs."

Dunbar said he did not particularly care for Eric Frein, whom he described as having a "smugness" about him.

"He just acted like an arrogant ass," Dunbar said.

At the same time, Eric Frein displayed no propensity for the kind of violence he's now accused of committing, Dunbar said.

"He did not stand out as any different from anyone else," he said. "I am a rather cautious person and always look for things in people that make me leery, and other than being a jerk, he didn't give any reason to suspect this."

Roman Kamensky of New York City, who is part of the Red Alliance, said in an email he also never saw any behavior that would indicate Eric Frein was violent.

"I don't remember any anti-government or anti-cops statements," Kamensky said. "Since the incident, I've spoken to Eastern Wolves members. They were just as shocked."

Kamensky believes the police portrayal of Eric Frein living out some type of Eastern European soldier fantasy is "ridiculous," pointing out the fugitive also took part in Vietnam re-enactments.

"This is more reminiscent of the very first Rambo movie, where he takes on local authorities as a Vietnam veteran," Kamensky said, referring to "First Blood," the 1982 film starring Sylvester Stallone.

Eric Frein's interest in re-enacting helped him land a nonspeaking role in the 2007 short film, "Lustig," about a World War II concentration camp survivor. He portrayed a German soldier in the 16-minute film and is listed among the cast members on the IMDb online movie database.

More recently, his military knowledge led to an appearance in a still-unreleased documentary on the Vietnam War called "Vietnam Appreciation Day." In footage from the film obtained by NBC News, Eric Frein talks about teaching the public about military equipment and how it was used.

At one point, Eric Frein also addresses the difficulty of searching for re-enactors while on location in the woods of Pennsylvania, foreshadowing the police manhunt for him.

"We had to find them, and we just walked around for two days straight," he says.

'Well-spoken'

Jeremiah D. Hornbaker, who owns a company that provides props and set dressing for historical films, hired Eric Frein in 2009 to work behind the scenes on a World War I documentary.

Hornbaker, who lives in Franklin County, became acquainted with Eric Frein a few years earlier through mutual friends and their mutual interest in historic programs.

He described Eric Frein as "very knowledgeable, very well-read, very well-spoken."

"When he worked for me, he was kind of an average, everyday guy," Hornbaker said. "He had a kind of witty sense of humor. He liked to joke around a lot. ... Still, when I asked him to do things, he got the job done."

One of Eric Frein's best attributes was his directness, Hornbaker said. He had no problem about "calling me out on things I was doing that were wrong."

"Eric had a keenness about him, and when asked a question, he didn't hem and haw and pause. ... He didn't try to impress me or anybody else by trying to fit in. This is what he thought, and if you asked him, he told you. If you didn't like it, he would kind of smile politely and tell you that's your right," he said.

Hornbaker said he received a good report from the documentary's producers "about Eric's knowledge and his approach and his personality."

He tried to rehire Eric Frein several times after that, but they could never make their schedules work. They last spoke in June or July when Hornbaker called him about working on another documentary.

"He seemed real excited by it, but again the schedule wasn't working for him," Hornbaker said. "He told me he was getting ready to move to Delaware. He had gotten a new job, and he would have to move."

Although both of Eric Frein's parents are registered to vote in Monroe County — his father as nonpartisan, his mother as no affiliation — county election records, which date back to 1997, indicate Eric Frein has never registered or voted there.

Hornbaker said while Eric Frein had firmly held views — "He wasn't one to back-pedal or flip-flop on his opinion because of the crowd of people he was with" — he did not seem to have strong political leanings.

"He had some fairly liberal views, and he had some fairly conservative views. Some maybe were a little farther to the right than what most people would give. ... He didn't follow a line. He was his own person. He wasn't just a cookie cutter of another group or entity. He definitely had his own independent mind-set," Hornbaker said.

Small town

Fewer than 4,300 people live in Barrett Township, a rugged, densely forested municipality where almost a quarter of the homes are vacation or seasonal residences. The string of villages that hug Route 390 near the Frein home — Canadensis, Mountainhome and Cresco — are the kind of place where almost everyone knows everyone else.

But few people last week acknowledged being acquainted with the suspect, and most who did wouldn't talk about him.

At Starner's Quik Shoppe, a busy convenience store in Mountainhome, state police cruisers and unmarked cars jockeyed with the pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles of locals for a spot at the double pumps out front.

Cashier Katie Head recalled Eric Frein occasionally stopping at the store.

"He was a local guy, nothing special about him. I can't even tell you what he bought. I just remember seeing his face," she said. 'I don't think there's a person in town who hasn't been in here a few times."

Down the road at the Pour House Neighborhood Bar & Grille, bar manager Chris Aillet said he is good at remembering faces. Eric Frein's was not one he had seen before, he said. He certainly wasn't a Pour House regular.

"From what I've heard from the people who come through here is he didn't have a lot of friends," Aillet said. "It's bar banter, but I think he was a little off."

Authorities have repeatedly said Eric Frein had a grudge against police. Other than saying he has made anti-police comments online and to people he knows, they have not provided specifics.

Roger Smith, owner of Smitty's Sporting Goods in Canadensis, didn't know Eric Frein personally, but he certainly left an impression on him following a brief encounter at his store last summer.

Smith said he saw Eric Frein loitering outside as if he were waiting for someone. He entered and exited several times without buying anything. When Smith asked him what he was doing, he motioned to a police car that just drove by.

"Me and those boys don't get along," Eric Frein said.

Eric Frein had no record in Pennsylvania aside from a citation in 2012 for driving with an expired inspection sticker.

His only other prior involvement with the criminal justice system came in 2005, when police in New York charged him stealing $3,120 worth of clothing from a vendor at a World War II re-enactment. He pleaded guilty in 2006 and was sentenced to time served — 109 days.

Paperwork associated with his New York conviction was found on Eric Frein's nightstand when police searched his home. Authorities cannot say if that was the catalyst for him to act out on his disdain for police.

They are confident that they know this:

Sometime in the evening of Sept. 12, Eric Frein drove his parents' Jeep Cherokee to Pike County and crept into the woods across from the Blooming Grove barracks with a .308-caliber rifle.

Like the trained assassins he impersonated in war games, he waited for his targets. This time, the bullets were real.

Dickson and Douglass had no chance to defend themselves as the sniper's bullets pierced the night. Dickson, 38, of Dunmore, was struck twice and died at the scene. Douglass, 31, of Olyphant, was hit once in the pelvis.

Authorities say they believe Eric Frein planned the attack for at least a couple of years based on evidence recovered from the hard drive of a computer he had access to. The analysis showed he searched for information on how to avoid a police manhunt, the use of various law enforcement techniques and skills related to survival.

The neat haircut seen on Eric Frein's wanted poster is gone, replaced by a wide, mohawk-style cut associated with warriors, investigators said.

Police discovered a book, "Sniper Training and Employment," during a search of the Frein home. Inside the Jeep, abandoned in a retaining pond near the barracks, they found two empty rifle cases, military gear, camouflage face paint, a state Game Commission range permit, flash lights, a black hooded sweatshirt and information about foreign embassies.

Eric Frein now appears to be playing a "game," police said last week, allowing himself to be seen at a distance by officers searching the woods.

Whether Eric Frein is ultimately found to be the shooter, he has gained a measure of notoriety, if not infamy.

In the 2002 edition of The Cardinal, the Pocono Mountain yearbook, seniors were given the opportunity to memorialize their philosophy of life. Eric Frein did not participate in the exercise, but others did.

No one could predict what lay ahead for the teenaged Eric Frein as he and his classmates went their separate ways.

One classmate, perhaps embarrassed by his own misdeeds in high school, offered up a personal prophecy that in a far more serious and wholly tragic context could be Eric Matthew Frein's own.

"Face it, bud, you're a legend," the student wrote. "You do one stupid thing in high school and everybody knows your name."