Authorities are asking hikers and others to keep an eye out for signs of provisions or campsites that might have been left by a homicide suspect who used bed sheets to escape from a northwestern Pennsylvania jail earlier this month
Authorities are asking hikers and others to keep an eye out for signs of provisions or campsites that might have been left by a homicide suspect who used bed sheets to escape from a northwestern Pennsylvania jail earlier this month.
Michael Burham, 34, fled the Warren County jail in the late evening hours of July 6 by climbing on exercise equipment, going through a window and scaling down a rope fashioned from jail bedding, authorities have said. He was being held on $1 million bail and was charged with kidnapping, burglary and other counts. Authorities have said he should be considered armed and dangerous.
Lt. Col. George Bivens, the deputy commissioner of Operations for the Pennsylvania State Police, said investigators believe Burham, who taught himself survival skills and had military reserve training, remains in the area, and they have found “small stockpiles or campsites” and believe some are associated with him.
“As people hike or otherwise spend time in the woods this weekend and beyond, we ask that they notify us if they find any stored packages or apparently abandoned campsites,” Bivens said Saturday afternoon. He said authorities aren’t recommending cancelation of outdoor activities, but people encountering police activity are asked to keep their distance.
