Couple checking barking dog leads to encounter with escaped prisoner, his capture

WARREN, Pa. — A homicide suspect who has been on the run since July 6 after he escaped from a prison in Pennsylvania has been taken into custody.

Micael Burham, 34, was captured in a wooded area near Warren at 5:50 p.m. on Saturday.

Burham escaped the Warren County Prison by climbing on exercise equipment and climbing through a window. He used a rope made out of sheets to climb down from the window.

A couple checking out a barking dog on their northwestern Pennsylvania property led to his capture, authorities said.

The residents went out to see why their dog was barking and encountered Burham, who said something about camping during a brief conversation, state police told the Associated Press.

Burham looked tired and was dirty and wet. He was still wearing his jail-issued pants turned inside out. Authorities did not find a weapon they feared he had since ammunition had been found in small stockpiles linked to him by DNA, but the area was being searched to make sure he hadn’t hidden one, state police said.

Burham is currently being held at the Pennsylvania State Police Warren station.

The Chautauqua County, New York, district attorney said in June that Burham was the prime suspect in the May 11 killing and a related arson in Jamestown, New York. Authorities also accused him of abducting an older couple in Pennsylvania while trying to evade capture before his arrest in South Carolina.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2023 Cox Media Group