On August 31st, 2023 at approximately 9a.m. Danelo Cavalcante made his escape from the Chester County Prison, about 25 miles outside of Philadelphia. Cavalcante was in prison due to murdering his ex-girlfriend in 2021, stabbing her 38 times in front of her two young children. Also wanted for a murder in Brazil in 2017, Cavalcante was sentenced to life in prison before making his escape on August 31st.
After his initial escape, law enforcement deemed him highly dangerous and said he would be seen wearing a white t-shirt, gray shorts and white sneakers, since then changed, and was spotted wearing green pants, and either a green or yellow sweatshirt. Early on, there was worry amongst law enforcement that Cavalcante would receive help from friends and family, similarly to how he did prior to his initial arrest. However, this fear died down quickly as the search went on.
On Friday, September 1st, the United States Marshals announced they would be joining the search for Cavalcante. This led to multiple sightings of Cavalcante to be reported during Labor Day Weekend.
“It is frightening knowing that there is an escaped murder within a close proximity to Villanova,” sophomore Nadia Balduf said. “I trust that all that can be done is being done, but it is fearful being on campus without definite answers.”
Late on the night of September 1st, local resident Ryan Drummond saw Cavalcante inside his home, walking through the living room and kitchen, before leaving through his French door outside.
During the long weekend, many more law enforcement officers were added onto the manhunt, and a state trooper caught sight of Cavalcante, leading to a brief chase until Cavalcante ultimately got away. He was seen about a mile and a half away from the prison with a backpack, and later that weekend, another local citizen reported seeing Cavalcante in a creek bed behind their house in Pennsbury Township.
On Monday, September 4th, Cavalcante was caught on a trail camera in a popular tourist area called Longwood Gardens. According to Longwood Gardens security, Cavalcante was seen entering around 8:21p.m. and leaving at approximately 9:33p.m., with a backpack, duffle bag and hoodie.
“I grew up going to Longwood Gardens with friends and family,” sophomore Kara McGoldrick said. “It is scary how Cavalcante is turning places I grew up going to into parts of a crime investigation”.
On Tuesday, September 5th, law enforcement shifted their search more south, and from helicopters blasted a voice message from Cavalcante’s mother, which told him to surrender and turn himself in peacefully, spoken in their home language of Portuguese.
“There is nothing stronger than a mother’s voice telling you to do something,” sophomore Claire Gaza said. “I hope that through these continued attempts it leads him into agreeing to peacefully surrender.”
Since the beginning of the search, and up until now, the family of Cavalcante’s ex-girlfriend whom he murdered has been barricaded in their home, with constant security and watch.
On Wednesday, September 6th, the video of the escape became public, showcasing Cavalcante crab walking up against two walls, leading him to then scale up razor wire, run across the ceiling of the prison, cross more razor wire and then escape. The officer who was in the watchtower and did not see Cavalcante leave is currently on administrative leave. There is current work being done to ensure the prison becomes more secure and harder to escape.
As the week went on, and the heat grew worse and worse, law enforcement hoped that Cavalcante would come forward hot, hungry, thirsty and tired, yet he is still out there. Many of the local school districts that had closed due to his escape reopened Thursday, September, 7th with increased security. The heat ended up messing around with technology being used to track Cavalcante, causing more hot spots to appear, when truly it was due to the temperature and not his body being detected.
As of Saturday, September 9th, law enforcement has publicized that Cavalcante has changed his appearance, is now clean shaven and most likely in a new collection of clothing. He was driving a stolen dairy van, and was sighted in Northern Chester County. The registration on the stolen Ford van is ZST8818, and according to law enforcement they believe it was stolen from Baily’s Dairy near West Chester, more than 20 miles away from where he was being searched for previously. However, the van was found abandoned Sunday.
As of Sunday, September 10th, there were over 400 federal, local and state officers using dogs, horses, drones and helicopters to try to find Cavalcante. While the repeated sightings around the state have frightened citizens far and near, law enforcement are putting all their resources into looking to catch Cavalcante.
