Danelo Cavalcante, a murderer sentenced to life in prison who escaped from the Chester County Jail in Pennsylvania on August 31, has been captured, local police said. The circumstances in which the fugitive was detained were also reported. State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens explained that Cavalcante tried to escape even when he was surrounded by officers and began crawling through dense brush while carrying his rifle. A police dog helped in the capture.
Officers announced Cavalcante’s arrest on Wednesday, September 13, on the X platform (formerly Twitter). The man was detained “in a wooded area,” local police said.
On Tuesday, it was reported that Cavalcante the night before broke into a garage near Chesterwhere he allegedly took a .22-caliber shotgun. “The homeowner fired several gunshots at him,” State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens said during a news conference Tuesday.
Behind the scenes of Cavalcante’s capture
Bivens revealed more details on Wednesday. He explained that the series of events that ultimately led to the capture of the escaped prisoner began shortly after midnight on Wednesday. An alarm went off at a home in the search area in north Chester. The wanted fugitive was not found there, but additional teams were brought to the area.
A plane took part in the search operation and helped locate the missing person. The capture operation was delayed by a thunderstorm. However, the search team secured the area until the weather improved. Bivens said crews entered calmly early Wednesday morning and Cavalcante “didn’t realize he was surrounded until it was too late.”
However, this did not stop him from trying to escape. As Bivens reported, the fugitive began to crawl through the thick bushes, taking the rifle with him. One of the officers who took part in catching the man released a specially trained dog to tame the escaping man. Bivens said Cavalcante was slightly bitten by the dog. He added that Cavalcante continued to resist even then, but was detained.
The captured man was transported to a building in Avondale, Chester County, owned by the Pennsylvania State Police. He is then to be sent to prison.
Danelo Cavalcante capturedReuters
Escape of Daniel Cavalcante
August 31 Cavalcante escaped from the Chester County Jail in Pennsylvania. The video released last week shows the 34-year-old climbing the walls of the building, leaning on two opposite walls with his hands and feet. After a short while, he disappears from the surveillance camera’s field of view. This way he got to the roof of the prison, from where he escaped. The police searched for him using thermal imaging technology, as well as drones and dogs.
Coming from Brazil Cavalcante was sentenced last month to life in prison for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, in front of her two young children, the BBC reports.
Danelo CavalcantePA State Police
Main photo source: Reuters