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Following a two-week manhunt, escaped Pennsylvania inmate Danelo Cavalcante, 34, was captured in Chester County on Wednesday, September 13, 2023. The arrest comes days after Pennsylvania State Police warned Cavalcante was corralled in the area of South Coventry Township in Chester County.
The arrest was also confirmed by Pennsylvania State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service, who via a radio call, announced that they had captured Danelo Cavalcante following a two-week manhunt, that prompted school closures as residents were warned to stay on alert. They said:
“The radio room, Chester County government and other agencies working on the prisoner escape are proud to announce the subject is in custody.”
A picture of the captured inmate posted on X ,formerly Twitter, showed Cavalcante wearing a Philadelphia Eagles shirt at the time of his arrest.
Meanwhile, in a post of X, formerly known as Twitter, Pennsylvania State Police announced that a press conference was scheduled for 9.30 a.m. on Wednesday where they would provide details of the prisoner’s arrest.
Details of Danelo Cavalcante's capture explored
In a press conference, detailing Danelo Cavalcante's capture Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said that the escaped inmate was captured just after 8. a.m. on Wednesday. Shapiro revealed that no members of law enforcement or the public were injured in the incident.
Two days before the arrest, a shirtless Cavalcante broke into a homeowner’s garage on Monday night and grabbed a .22-caliber rifle, prompting the owner to fire his weapon at the fugitive, who fled the scene. In the press conference Wednesday, Shapiro said that Cavalcante did not fire the weapon during his arrest.
Further detailing the capture, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens said that on Tuesday night authorities responded to reports of a security breach at a residence in Prizer Road in Chester County. While they did not find Cavalcante at the scene, tactical teams converged on the area after aircraft overhead using flair technology picked up heat signals that indicated a human presence. Bivens said that around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, the tactical team began to track the heat signal.
However, authorities were forced to retreat from the area after weather conditions got worse but were able to secure the heat signal parameter. Biven said that shortly after 8 a.m. authorities descended on the area and tracked down Cavalcante who tried to escape by crawling through the underbrush with the stolen weapon. However, authorities, who had the suspect surrounded, released a dog who was able to subdue the Cavalcante. The suspect, who sustained a minor bite bark, was then forcibly taken into custody.
The capture of dangerous fugitive Danelo Cavalcante came as a relief for residents who received late-night reverse 911 alerts to lock their doors and stay inside after Cavalcante broke into a home and stole a weapon on Monday.
Danelo Cavalcante, convicted on August 16, 2023, for life in prison in the fatal stabbing of his former girlfriend, 38-year-old Deborah Brandaoe, escaped Chester County Prison on August 31, 2023.
The escaped inmate was accused of stabbing his girlfriend 38 times in front of her children, ages 4 and 7. Prosecutors contend that he murdered his girlfriend after she learned he was wanted for a 2017 killing in Brazil and threatened to go to the authorities.
The search for Danelo Cavalcante was centered in an area near the Chester County Prison, where he had been spotted multiple times, including in a security camera at the home of a former Co-worker in South Coventry Township on Saturday, September 9, 2023.
Two days later, he broke into a homeowner's residence and stole a weapon. On Tuesday, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens expressed fears that the armed fugitive would go to great lengths to evade capture.
“We consider him desperate. We consider him dangerous. I would suspect that he’s desperate enough to use that weapon.”
Bivens said nearly 400 people from multiple agencies were engaged in the manhunt for the "dangerous individual."
What we know of Danelo Cavalcante's escape from prison
Cavalcante escaped Chester County Prison by crawling up to the roof from one of the exercise yards. Prison security footage released Wednesday, September 6, 2023, showed Cavalcante walking toward a doorway and looking over his shoulder, seemingly to ensure he wasn’t being watched. The video then showed the inmate bracing himself between two walls before crawling toward the roof and disappearing out of sight.
The corrections officer on duty in the guard tower at the time was fired on September 7, 2023. Cavalcante, who was taken to Avondale detention center after arrest, will be transported to a state facility where he will serve the life sentence for the murder of his former girlfriend.
