Chester County prison escape: Latest updates as Danelo Cavalcante manhunt enters seventh day

Danelo Cavalcante, a 34-year-old man who stabbed his ex-girlfriend to death, escaped from Chester County Prison in West Chester around 8.45am on Thursday, said the county’s district attorney Deb Ryan.

She said the convict is “considered an extremely dangerous man” and urged for the public’s help in locating him.

Cavalcante was convicted on 16 August for the murder of his 33-year-old former girlfriend Deborah Brandao in April 2021 in front of her children. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole for stabbing the woman to death.

He is also wanted for a homicide in 2017 in Brazil, the US Marshals Service for Philadelphia said.

Two suburban Philadelphia school districts remained shuttered and one of the nation’s premier botanical gardens was closed Wednesday as authorities worked to flush out a convicted murderer who escaped from prison last week.

Danelo Cavalcante, 34, has been spotted five times since he escaped Thursday from the Chester State Prison.

The most recent sighting came Monday night at Longwood Gardens, where trail surveillance video captured him walking through the area with a duffel bag, backpack and hooded sweatshirt he apparently stole while on the run.

That sighting led officials to move the search area farther south on Tuesday after they determined that Cavalcante had likely slipped through the original perimeter set by hundreds of local, state and federal law enforcement officers, but they said his movements show he’s feeling the pressure of the massive search and that his options are dwindling.

Chester County Prison acting warden Howard Holland said that Cavalcante’s jailbreak was similar to another inmate’s escape back in May. During that incident, a tower officer immediately reported the situation to prison staff and the inmate was apprehended within minutes.

In Cavalcante’s case, his absence was not noticed for nearly an hour.

“While we believed that the security measures we had in place were sufficient, they have proven otherwise,” Mr Holland said. “And we will work to enhance our security … One key difference in [this] escape is the role of the tower officer whose primary responsibility is to oversee the inmate in the exercise yard.”

The state’s attorney’s office is now investigating the jailbreak. Mr Holland said that the actions of the tower officer, who is on administrative leave, are part of the probe and that appropriate action will be taken against personnel based on the results of the investigation.

Authorities said that the woods in the search perimeter are so vast that investigators can only walk a few feet without losing sight of each other.

Pennsylvania State Lt Col George Bivens said that search units were experiencing challenges amid hot weather while canvassing the area where Cavalcante is believed to be hiding.

A K-9 unit had to be hospitalised on Tuesday, Mr Bivens said, after suffering a heat-related medical incident.

“I don’t think he has more ability than we initially gave him credit for, I think it’s a very challenging area,” Mr Bivens said. “We have had some searches like this in the past … some take hours, some take days, some take months.”

Cavalcante escaped from the Chester County Prison in Pocopson Township, Pennsylvania, at around 8.50am on Thursday (31 August).

These are some of the confirmed sightings:

• He was captured on camera at Longwood Gardens in East Marlborough Township, Chester County, on Monday (4 September.) He travelled north at around 8.21pm and was then spotted coming past the camera again at 9.33pm local time.
• Cavalcante has been seen at the intersection of Routes 926 and 52, north on Route 52 to Parkersville Road, southeast to Route 926 and west to the intersection of Routes 926 and 52 in Pocopson Township, police said.
• Cavalcante was last spotted near Chandler Road in Pennsbury Township on Tuesday evening. Local and federal law enforcement agencies searched the area for hours but were not able to locate Cavalcante.

Cavalcante began his escape at around 8.50am on 31 August, police said, while other inmates in the exercise yard played basketball.

He stretched his body to fit the length of a hallway and climbed onto the roof of the prison. He then made his way out of the prison on foot.

It was only nearly an hour later that correction officers realised an inmate was missing during a head count.

The prison was locked at 9.50am and the 911 centre was notified of the escape 10 minutes later.

The Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers have offered $10,000 for information that leads to Cavalcante’s capture, bringing the reward total to $20,000.

Law enforcement teams, including the US Marshals, SWAT, local, state, and other federal agencies, have joined the search to find Cthe fugitive.

Cavalcante was sentenced to life without parole for stabbing his 33-year-old ex-girlfriend Deborah Brandão to death. He attacked Brandão in Schuylkill Township, back in August 2021, in front of her two children, who were just seven and three years old.

He is also wanted for a 2017 murder in Brazil.

Cavalcante was last spotted near Chandler Road in Pennsbury Township on Tuesday evening. Local and federal law enforcement agencies searched the area for hours but were not able to locate Cavalcante.

Mr Bivens said that search units were experiencing challenges while canvassing the vast wooded area where Cavalcante is believed to be hiding. A K-9 unit had to be hospitalised on Tuesday, Mr Bivens said, after suffering a heat-related medical incident.

“I don’t think he has more ability than we initially gave him credit for, I think it’s a very challenging area,” Mr Bivens said. “We have had some searches like this in the past … some take hours, some take days, some take months.”