Spotted 8 Times, Manhunt for Escaped Pennsylvania Prisoner Intensifies

A portion of the wanted poster for Danelo Souza Cavalcante, who escaped from Chester County Prison in Pennsylvania on Aug. 31, 2023. Courtesy of Chester County District Attorney’s Office

Convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante, an illegal immigrant from Brazil who escaped on Aug. 31 from Chester County Prison in Pennsylvania, is still missing but has been potentially spotted eight times, officials said during a Sept. 7 news conference.

The latest possible sighting was on Sept. 7, near the popular horticulture tourist attraction Longwood Gardens. Law enforcement, which has focused its search on an area that’s roughly 8 to 10 square miles in Chester County, has intensified its search near the location of the latest sighting.

Mr. Cavalcante, 34, was sentenced to life in prison for the Aug. 16, 2021, stabbing murder of his former girlfriend, 33-year-old Deborah Brandão, in front of her two young children. Mr. Cavalcante is also wanted in Brazil for a 2017 homicide.

Officials say that Mr. Cavalcante speaks Portuguese and some Spanish, but very little English.

Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan, who prosecuted Mr. Cavalcante in the 2021 homicide case, said Ms. Brandão’s family is terrified that Mr. Cavalcante isn’t in custody.

“They are terrified. They haven’t left their home. They’re barricaded inside and very concerned about their safety,” Ms. Ryan said during the news conference. “We do have police detail around them 24 hours a day, but I know they’re very, very worried.”

Mr. Cavalcante won’t be returned to Chester County Prison once found. He will go to a state correctional facility. He had been in the county prison awaiting a state prison assignment.

Hundreds Searching

The weather in Pennsylvania has been hotter than usual, and the longer that Mr. Cavalcante is the subject of a massive manhunt, the more desperate he will become, Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said.

“I believe he has always been very dangerous, and I’ve said that from the start,” he said. “He’s already murdered two people, one in Brazil and one here, and in a very brutal manner. He’s a very dangerous individual, and he remains so.”

Lt. Col. Bivens said Mr. Cavalcante has some family and associates in the area.

“It is a very intensive search involving hundreds of law enforcement officers, involving state-of-the-art technology, but we are not sitting in a room someplace waiting for technology to solve this,” he said. “Our people are out there, hundreds of them last night, pushing through the woods, holding perimeters, checking on possible sightings, but it is very hot and humid weather and they’re working in that around the clock in order to keep the pressure on.”

Escape Caught on Video

Mr. Cavalcante escaped from an exterior hallway off the prison exercise yard, where other inmates were playing a game of basketball. Putting his hands on one wall and his feet on the other side of the hallway wall, Mr. Cavalcante can be seen in a prison surveillance video climbing up the walls and disappearing to the roof.

It’s the same way that another inmate, Igor Bolte, used to escape on May 19. That inmate was seen by a guard in a tower who was tasked with watching the exercise yard. Mr. Bolte was captured in five minutes, but Mr. Cavalcante wasn’t seen escaping. He was noticed missing when inmates went back inside and were counted, Howard Holland, acting warden of the Chester County Prison, said during one of the two news conferences that officials held about the matter on Sept. 7.

The former warden, Ronald M. Phillips, retired on Aug. 30, one day before Mr. Cavalcante’s escape. Prior to his retirement, Mr. Phillips had been placed on administrative leave for an unknown reason, according to numerous news reports.

Tighten Security

The first escape incident prompted prison officials to beef up security, Mr. Holland said.

“Security consultants were brought in, and improvements were based on the consultants’ findings,” he said. “The improvement consisted of additional razor wire being placed in the yard area at the wall where the escape occurred, to block access to the roof. The escape of Cavalcante is not just being internally investigated. Because it is a criminal nature, it is also being investigated by the state attorney general’s office.”

Mr. Holland confirmed that Mr. Bolte and Mr. Cavalcante escaped from the same location, but Mr. Cavalcante had razor wire to contend with. The prison is now planning to fully enclose the exercise yard, pending county approval.

Officials have urged local citizens to lock their doors and keep their eyes open. Mr. Cavalcante has already obtained a change of clothing.

Anyone with information about Mr. Cavalcante or suspected sightings has been asked to contact the tip line at 717-562-2987.