Dalton Escapee Caught After 37 Years on the Run

Laurel Co., KY (WDEF) A Dalton man who police say escaped from a Georgia prison in 1979 and eluded authorities for nearly four decades has been arrested in eastern Kentucky.

Police in Laurel County, Kentucky say 67-year-old Billy Burchfield was living under the assumed name, Harold Arnold, which he took from a cousin who had died.

Burchfield was serving a 16-year sentence for manslaughter in Whitfield County, when he escaped 37-years ago.

Detectives used fingerprinting to identify Burchfield, after receiving a tip about his whereabouts.

Burchfield denies he is a fugitive.