Topline
The reward for information leading to the capture of convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante was increased to $25,000 on day 12 of the manhunt in which the escapee has continued to elude law enforcement officers since his escape from Chester County prison in southeastern Pennsylvania—despite being seen several times in surveillance images.
Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police briefs the media on developments in the … [+]
Timeline
Cavalcante was last seen in footage from a doorbell camera from late Saturday night after he stole a van from a dairy farm and went to the homes of two former acquaintances, trying to make contact; the van he stole was found abandoned in East Nantmeal Township on Sunday morning.
On Friday there were two confirmed sightings of Cavalcante within a search area designated by authorities, which was expanded the next day, according to the Chester County District Attorney.
He was spotted Tuesday by a resident in the search perimeter who said they saw Cavalcante in a creek bed on their property, but he fled into the woods before police could arrive.
Cavalcante was seen in residential security footage about a mile-and-a-half from the prison, according to a Facebook post from the Chester County District Attorney.
A resident of Pocopson Township claimed to see Cavalcante leave his home with food around 11:45 p.m.; the resident told ABC 6 that he flipped the light switch downstairs a couple of times before it was flipped back at him, signaling someone was in the home.
Key Background
Cavalcante, 34, escaped from the Chester County Prison on August 31 by crab-walking between two walls at an outdoor exercise area before he climbed over razor wire and jumped from a roof. He used the same crawling technique as Igor Bolte, an inmate at the prison who escaped in May but was caught quickly. Bolte told police he was able to scale a wall in the exercise area by crab-walking like Cavalcante did. Cavalcante’s escape came less than a month after he was sentenced to life in prison for fatally stabbing his then-girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, in 2021. Cavalcante is also suspected of committing another murder in his home country of Brazil, prosecutors said, and he reportedly killed Brandao when she threatened to tell the police of that murder. He killed Brandao brutally, stabbing her 38 times in front of her two children. Before his escape, there were plans to transfer Cavalcante to a state correctional facility, where Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan has said he will be taken when captured.
News Peg
Officials announced the increase in reward—which was previously $20,000—at a press conference Monday during which Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens spoke directly to people “contemplating assisting Cavalcante in any way,” saying they will be prosecuted fully and reminding them if they instead choose to assist the police, there’s thousands in reward money.
Big Number
$20,000. That’s how much the reward for information on Cavalcante has increased since the manhunt began nearly two weeks ago, when the Chester County District Attorney’s office was offering just $5,000.
Tangent
Authorities also announced Monday that Cavalcante’s sister was in the deportation process. Bivens confirmed the arrest of his sister on Sunday, but gave slightly more information Monday, saying she was arrested because “she was an overstay” and then she failed to assist them in their investigation into her brother’s escape, “so there was no value in law enforcement keeping her here.”
