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Who is convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante and which prison did he escape from?
MAYHEM ensued when a convicted killer escaped from prison and remained at large.
After launching a manhunt that lasted for two weeks, police eventually captured Danelo Cavalcante.
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Who is Danelo Cavalcante?
Danelo Cavalcante is a 34-year-old Brazilian national who was given life in prison for stabbing his ex-girlfriend Deborah Brandão to death in April 2021 in front of her two young children, who were aged four and seven at the time of the murder.
Cavalcante reportedly stabbed Brandão 38 times during the attack.
Cavalcante is also wanted in Brazil for a separate killing that occurred in 2017.
Prosecutors believed he killed Brandão to stop her from telling information about this murder.
Cavalcante came to the illegally from Puerto Rico after fleeing Brazil following the 2017 murder.
What was Danelo Cavalcante convicted of?
Danelo Cavalcante was convicted of first-degree murder.
The sentence was passed down after he brutally murdered his ex-girlfriend Deborah Brandão by repeatedly stabbing her in a frenzied attack.
The murder was committed in Schuylkill Township in April 2021.
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Which prison did Danelo Cavalcante escape from?
On August 31, 2023, Danelo Cavalcante escaped from Chester County Prison in West Chester, .
He was then spotted on a residential surveillance camera about 1.5 miles from the jail he escaped from, according to the Chester County District Attorney.
He was wearing a white T-shirt and white sneakers.
His clothes appeared to be prison-issued and he was carrying a backpack.
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District Attorney Deb Ryan told reporters at a news conference that search efforts are focusing on railways, waterways, and routes out of the area.
At the time, Ryan added that authorities believed Cavalcante was trying to flee south.
On September 13, 2023, police captured Cavalcante and he was taken back into custody.
How did Danelo Cavalcante escape?
Authorities have not yet revealed how the criminal managed to escape Chester State Prison on the morning of Thursday, August 31.
The convict was later seen on cameras approximately 1.5miles from the .
Captain Robert Bailey said at a press conference that authorities were narrowing the scope of their search.
He explained: "We believe that he may be in a residential location that is comprised with hundreds of homes in a deeply wooded area at this time, but our search remains active."
At a news conference, DA Ryan said: "Look in your basements, look around your areas, check your cars. Make sure that things are locked."
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She added: "There is no evidence at this time that anyone has helped to facilitate this escape, or is assisting him at this time."
Acting Warden of Chester County Prison, Howard Holland, said an investigation is underway to establish who the escape happened, explaining: "Once we knew we had an issue with an inmate not being there, we immediately followed our protocols, locked down the prison, did what we call a special count to confirm there was only one person missing."
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