Escaped Prisoner Danelo Cavalcante Apprehended After 14-Day Manhunt

Following a two-week search, State police arrested convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante on Wednesday after he escaped from Chester County Prison last month.

According to reports, Cavalcante is being transported to the PSP barracks in Avondale.

The search spread over several areas of Chester County after multiple sightings from locals and law enforcement.

Pennsylvania State Police and other law enforcement agencies eventually surrounded Cavalcante, who was wearing a gray Eagles sweatshirt.

Days after fleeing, Cavalcante was located 1.5 miles from the prison in Pocopson Township. Then, throughout the investigation, he was twice seen near Longwood Gardens.

Days later, Cavalcante adopted a new look and fled with a .22 rifle from a homeowner in the East Nantmeal area. The homeowner allegedly shot at the convicted murderer multiple times, but police weren’t sure if they hit the suspect.

After Cavalcante stole a van from a dairy farm, the search for him was moved to northern Chester County.

Police say that Cavalcante, a native of Brazil, is suspected of breaching the security barrier at Longwood Gardens using a drainage ditch or tunnel.

According to the Chester County District Attorney’s Office, the corrections officer who failed to notice the inmate’s escape has been fired.

Before his escape, Cavalcante was scheduled to be moved to a state prison after receiving a life sentence without parole for fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend Deborah Brandao 38 times in front of her two young children in the Phoenixville neighborhood in 2021.

Chester County officials and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro plan to prosecute anyone who assisted Cavalcante to the maximum extent allowed by the law.