Hudsonhubtimes.com - Man convicted in 1982 Boston Heights rape back in custody

by Laura Freeman

Reporter

Boston Heights -- A man convicted of rape and aggravated burglary in 1982 is back in prison after violating his parole and failing to register as a sex offender, according to Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh.

John Michael Burkey, 49, went to prison in 1982 for rape and aggravated burglary after prosecutors say he was convicted of raping a woman at gunpoint in Boston Heights in the presence of the victim's invalid father.

He was paroled in December 2001, but went back to jail in 2002 after he was convicted of charges related to a foiled robbery attempt in New York in March 2002, according to the Summit County prosecutor's office.

He was paroled Dec. 6, 2006, but violated his parole on Sept. 25, 2007, and began running from the law, according to Walsh.

Burkey allegedly used an alias while living in Colorado, Arizona and Nevada, before the U.S Marshal's Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force tracked him down and arrested him in Las Vegas March 7, Walsh said.

Burkey had been profiled on the show "America's Most Wanted" in November 2007.

"He was one of the top most wanted fugitives that I hoped to see arrested," Walsh said, noting that she "vehemently" opposed all of Burkey's requests for parole.

Walsh congratulated the U.S. Marshal's office of their work and teamwork with federal, state and local law enforcement officials.

"These officers went the extra mile to keep Ohio citizens and citizens around the country, as this case shows, safe," Walsh said.

The prosecutor's office said Burkey will have his parole revoked, and he will have a post revocation hearing to determine what the parole board will do with him. The District of Nevada is currently in the process of referring this case to the U.S. Attorney Office for prosecution under the Adam Walsh Act, which requires stricter requirements for sex offender registration.

E-mail: lfreeman@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3150