On Wednesday afternoon Michael Burham appeared in federal court, just three weeks after he was arrested in South Carolina.
Burham is accused of killing 34-year-old Kala Hodgkin in Jamestown on May 11. Friends told 7 News that Hodgkin, remembered as a "wonderful" person, has three children, one of them with Burham.
Burham led local, state and federal authorities on a nearly two-week manhunt that spanned more than 800 miles.
During that time the FBI said Burham kidnapped a couple in Pennsylvania and they were found alive the next day in a South Carolina cemetery.
On May 24 the FBI announced Burham was taken into custody after a resident in Berkely County, SC spotted him.
On Wednesday Hon. H. Kenneth Schroeder, Jr. dismissed further federal proceedings. Burham is now in New York State custody.
Burham has not been charged in the death of Hodgkin, but is expected to be. The Chautauqua County District Attorney's Office said on Wednesday that police are still actively developing evidence in the case.
He is expected to first be extradited to Pennsylvania to face charges stemming from the abduction of the elderly couple there.
Hodgkin's sister and close friends were in the courtroom on Wednesday. They told 7 News Burham has been in their family's life for years, but don't know the people who were kidnapped.
Burham is also accused of raping Hodgkin before her death. In mid-May, there was an active arrest warrant for Burham related to the alleged rape.
