Is Danelo Cavalcante a US citizen? Illegal immigrant status explored amid latest sightings 

As the manhunt for escaped Pennsylvania inmate Danelo Cavalcante intensified this week, the dangerous convicted murderer's nationality has come under the scanner. Reports surfaced that the inmate was wanted for a 2017 murder in Brazil.

Danelo Cavalcante convicted on August 16, 2023, for life in prison over the 2021 brutal murder of his girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, escaped Chester County Prison on August 31, 2023.

The inmate, who has remained at large for nearly two weeks, was accused of stabbing his girlfriend multiple times in front of her children. Prosecutors argued that he murdered his girlfriend after she learned he was wanted for a 2017 killing in Brazil and threatened to go to the authorities.

Authorities also revealed that Danelo Cavalcante, who is not a U.S. citizen, is an undocumented immigrant from Brazil. Cavalcante reportedly entered the country illegally after first fleeing Puerto Rico to avoid capture over a 2017 murder in his native Brazil.

On Sunday, September 10, Danelo Cavalcante’s sister was also arrested by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over expired immigration status. Authorities said that the sister, who is facing possible deportation, was not arrested for aiding her brother but noted that she refused to assist police in his capture. On Monday, in a news conference, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens said:

“Her arrest was, again because she's an overstay,” Bivens said Monday during a news conference. “That was a process that would play out for anyone in her same circumstance. And what I would say is she has, she has failed to cooperate and so there was no value in law enforcement keeping her here at this point.”

In light of Cavalcante's illegal immigrant status, some residents wondered why he was not deported back to Brazil following the 2021 murder of Deborah Brandao. In response attorneys cited in the Philadelphia inquiry said that the authorities decided to keep the suspect in U.S. prison, as there is no guarantee the native country would prosecute him for crimes committed in the foreign land. Law enforcement in the United States wanted to ensure justice was served in the murder of Deborah Brandao who was viciously killed in front of her children.

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Danelo Cavalcante is suspected to be in the wooded area in northern Chester County

In a post on Twitter on Tuesday, the Pennsylvania State Police wrote that they were "pursuing" Danelo Cavalcante, in South Coventry Township, a rural area in northern Chester County.

Authorities said that Cavalcante, who has been sighted multiple times since the prison escape, was last seen on September 9, Saturday night in “the northern Chester County area near Phoenixville,” and that he was driving a stolen white 2020 Ford Transit delivery van.

Authorities said that Cavalcante was also spotted in a doorbell camera in the northern Chester County area, where he attempted to contact a former coworker who notified the police. The doorbell video security system captured the fugitive's new clean-shaven face.

Authorities believe that Cavalcante had moved away from the urban landscape and was using heavily wooded areas to evade capture. In a Twitter post, police asked people to stay vigilant and contact law enforcement with information on the fugitive’s whereabouts.

“PSP is pursuing Danelo Cavalcante in the area of Ridge Road/Coventryville Rd/Daisy Point Rd in South Coventry Twp., Chester Co. He is armed. Residents in the area, are asked to lock all doors and windows, secure vehicles, and remain indoors. Do not approach. Call 911 if seen.”

The reward for information leading to Calvalcante’s capture was also increased from $10,000 to $25,000.