Go Fetch!: Couple’s Dog Helps Capture Escaped Inmate in Pennsylvania

Amy Furr

An escaped inmate in Pennsylvania was captured recently thanks to assistance from an unlikely yet extremely smart helper.

When Conewango Township residents Ron and Cindy Ecklund heard their beloved dog, Tucker, barking in the woods behind their house on Saturday, they knew something was not right, KOCO reported Monday.

The pair hopped into their golf cart and took off toward where his barks were heard. However, they did not expect to bump into a man, identified as Michael Burham, who was a prison escapee.

The 34-year-old fugitive, who was being held at the Warren County jail, reportedly used exercise equipment to scramble onto the jail’s roof and make his escape using bed sheets, Fox News reported Monday.

“He is the main suspect in the shooting of Kala Hodgkin in Jamestown, New York, and later allegedly set a parked car on fire and also kidnapped a Pennsylvania couple. He was able to elude authorities for nine days after his escape,” the outlet said.

When they encountered the man, Ron Ecklund said he asked him what he was doing, and the man said, “I’m camping.”

However, Ecklund already recognized him as Burham. Moments later, the couple high-tailed it back home, dialing 911 on the way, and it was not long before the fugitive was taken into custody.

The discovery happened in an area where law enforcement had been searching, one official said, adding, “That’s been our strategy all along is to push him hard, to have him make a mistake. He finally did.”

The outcome may have been different had Tucker not alerted his owners to the man’s presence. When speaking of his faithful companion, Ecklund said, “He’s the hero.”

The Warren Crime Stoppers gave the couple a $2,000 cash reward as a thank-you for their help in putting the community at ease, Erie News Now reported Tuesday.

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