Penn. fugitive’s ex-girlfriend warns manhunt could play out longer than people expect
Fox News’ CB Cotton reports on the ongoing manhunt for escaped Pennsylvania murder suspect Michael Burham.
More than 150 officers from state, local and federal law enforcement bodies scoured the woods of Pennsylvania and New York this week for signs of Michael Burham, an escaped murder suspect wanted for a slew of crimes from the Empire State down to South Carolina.
Among the charges, Burham, an Army Reserve veteran and skilled survivalist, is the prime suspect in the shooting death of 34-year-old Kala Hodgkin in Jamestown, New York.
While in custody in Pennsylvania on kidnapping and burglary charges, police say the 35-year-old climbed to freedom from the jailhouse gym with a rope made from bedsheets and took off into the woods.
Over the following days, police said they found campsites they believed he used and other indications that he may be receiving assistance as the manhunt continues. Here's a timeline of events:
This booking photo provided by the Warren, Pennsylvania, City Police Department shows Michael Burham. Authorities searching for the inmate described by police as "very dangerous" who used bedsheets to escape from a northwestern Pennsylvania jail on Thursday, July 6, 2023, say they believe he is still in the area and have found stockpiles or campsites in the woods he may have been using. Burham was a suspect in a homicide investigation and was being held on $1 million bail on kidnapping, burglary and other charges, authorities said. (Warren City Police Department via AP)
May 11
Jamestown police found Kala Hodgkin, 34, shot dead in her home early on May 11, according to federal court filings. She was the mother of three children, ages 8, 11 and 14.
At the time of her death, Burham was already wanted on accusations that he raped Hodgkin, according to the federal criminal complaint.
WATCH: Pennsylvania jail escapee Michael Burham seen in Ring doorbell video
On the day of the murder, prosecutors allege that Burham also appeared on another woman's Ring doorbell camera attempting to break into her house and then lighting her car on fire.
MANHUNT LAUNCHED AFTER MURDER SUSPECT WHO WROTE HE'S 'NOT SORRY' ESCAPES PENNSYLVANIA JAIL
Michael Burham is accused of a sexual assault in Jamestown, New York, and the kidnapping of an elderly couple in Pennsylvania, whom he allegedly drove to South Carolina before releasing them unharmed, the FBI said. (FBI)
May 20
Burham is believed to have traveled south into Pennsylvania, where a couple was reported missing along with their car on May 20.
Pennsylvania police sent out a missing persons alert to their counterparts in multiple states, which authorities in South Carolina responded to on May 22 – when they found the kidnapping victims alive.
May 22
South Carolina police recovered the Pennsylvania couple and their car, along with a note from Burham to his father.
"I'm not sorry for what I did, however I do feel terrible about the children," the note read, according to court filings.
An image taken from court filings shows the note murder suspect Michael Burham allegedly left for his father during an interstate manhunt. (US District Court, Western District of New York)
He wrote that he had "quit drinking" on May 10 and apologized "for all the problems" he caused his family.
The kidnapping victims told police they had been taken at gunpoint from their home and identified Burham as their alleged abductor, according to authorities.
May 23
South Carolina resident Anthony Phillips, his Jack Russell terrier Sadie and his girlfriend were patrolling their property when they spotted a suspicious pair of shoes and a shirt near their shed.
"Our sheriff made sure that the community knew…check your property," Phillips told Fox News Digital. "We went around to the back. I had my pistol on me just in case anything happened."
The Berkeley County Sheriff's Office in South Carolina shared this image after Michael Burham's capture on May 23, following a manhunt that began with violent crimes in New York and Pennsylvania. (Berkeley County Sheriff's Office)
As they rounded the corner, Sadie started growling, he said, then he saw Burham wrapped in a Tyvek sheet – the kind used for building insulation and waterproofing.
"He said he wasn't gonna hurt anybody and just wanted to leave," Phillips recalled. "I was too busy hollering at him…I didn't want him to get to my old lady."
Burham took off running into the woods, he said, and he went inside with his girlfriend to call 911.
Deputies arrived in about five minutes, he said, and less than two hours later, they captured Burham in the woods.
The search took officers through portions of the Francis Marion National Forest.
July 6
Burham escaped the Warren County jail in Pennsylvania around 11:20 p.m., after authorities say he used gym equipment to climb to the roof and then a rope made from bedsheets to climb down the exterior.
He was being held there on kidnapping, burglary and other charges as the investigation into Hodgkin's murder continued in New York.
MANHUNT FOR ESCAPED PENNSYLVANIA JAIL INMATE, MURDER SUSPECT CONTINUES
Burham spent more than 11 years in the Army Reserve as a water treatment specialist and utilities equipment repairer, from February 2008 to December 2020, Fox News learned. He was never deployed and was a sergeant at the end of his service, according to the Army.
The escapee has tattoos on his left forearm and right bicep and was last seen wearing a denim jacket above an orange-striped jail jumpsuit and orange "Crocs-style" shoes.
July 8
U.S. Marshals joined the manhunt, announcing a reward of up to $9,500 for information leading to his capture.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Cattaraugus County Sheriff's Office at 716-938-2217 or 911.
July 10
Michael Burham, left, is accused of shooting Kala Hodgkin to death in New York before lighting another woman's care on fire and then kidnapping a Pennsylvania couple, according to police. He escaped custody Thursday night, prompting a new manhunt. (Cattaraugus County Sheriff's Office, Kala Hodgkin/Facebook)
Chautauqua County District Attorney Jason Schmidt told Fox News that Burham will face a second-degree murder charge in New York if he is recaptured.
The DA added that some of Hodgkin's family members, witnesses in the case, have been relocated for their safety as the hunt for Burham continues and investigators believe he has not left the immediate area including Warren County in Pennsylvania and Jamestown in western New York.
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He says the public is at risk and this is desperate situation for a man who could be facing life in prison.
July 11
Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens announces the reward has been increased to $19,500 and tips should be called into a new command post going forward at 717-265-9650. Police continue to monitor the other hotline and anyone who encounters Burham can also call 911.
While police still believe Burham is in the surrounding area, Bivens also asked people around the country to "familiarize" themselves with Burham's photograph and to report possible sightings.
Police were also using rapid DNA testing in an effort to try and confirm or rule out Burham's presence at several locations of possible sightings and reported burglaries.
Pennsylvania State Police released this image of hidden supplies stashed outside Warren, Pennsylvania, which included food, clothes and other supplies. Police recovered the cache in the search for escaped murder suspect Michael Burham, who broke out of the Warren County jail on July 6. They believe the items are directly linked to the suspect. (Fox News)
July 12
Bivens reveals police have received 500 tips to date in the investigation but asks residents to keep an eye on their home surveillance systems and report anything suspicious.
He also reveals that police were looking into the sighting of a drone near the jail around the time of the escape and whether it may have been connected to the incident.
Canadian authorities also tell Fox News Digital that they are ready to assist investigators in the U.S.
"Our Border Integrity detachments have been advised of the fugitive and are on the lookout for a potential crossing," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.
Fox News' CB Cotton and Jennifer Johnson contributed to this report.
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