Topline
Police are once again searching for a “very dangerous” man suspected of murder who escaped jail on Friday morning in Pennsylvania, where he was being held on charges of kidnapping and burglary.
Key Facts
Michael Charles Burham, who is suspected of killing a woman in the western New York town of Jamestown, escaped from Warren County jail in Warren, Pennsylvania—where he was being held on separate charges—late Thursday night or early Friday morning and is on the run, officials said, after guards at the rural jail found his cell empty Friday morning.
Burham was last seen around 11:20 p.m. Thursday night wearing an orange and white striped jumpsuit, a blue denim jacket and Crocs, according to the Jamestown, New York, Police Department.
In addition to being a murder suspect, Burham was associated with an arson at the home of ex-girlfriend—not the woman he’s accused of murdering.
Burham was also accused of kidnapped an elderly couple in May when he allegedly stole their SUV at gunpoint to drive to South Carolina after local police issued a warrant for his arrest for allegedly raping the 34-year-old woman he is suspected of killing and after the body of that woman was foundin New York—the elderly couple was later found unharmed in South Carolina.
Police released a statement on Friday asking for tips on Burham’s whereabouts and urging residents to lock their doors and “stay vigilant,” calling Burham “very dangerous.”
Surprising Fact
According to police, Burham, a Pennsylvania resident, escaped by tying bed sheets together as a rope, rappelling off the roof of the jail in downtown Warren, roughly 50 miles southeast of Erie, Pennsylvania.
Key Background
Burham had been in Warren County Jail for less than a month, after he was caught in South Carolina following a multi-state manhunt after the body of 34-year-old Kala Hodgkin was discovered fatally shot in Jamestown, New York. He was arrested by FBI agents on a federal arrest warrant on May 24, and later extradited to New York, where the FBI charged him with unlawfully avoiding prosecution.
Further Reading
Police say homicide suspect escaped from Warren County Prison using sheets tied together (Go Erie)
NY fugitive caught in SC on lam again after escaping jail (Charleston Post and Courier)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/07/07/murder-suspect-escapes-pennsylvania-jail-using-bed-sheets—sparking-manhunt/