Moment convicted killer Danelo Cavalcante SCALED max security Philadelphia prison wall before climbing two razor wire fences – as AG launch probe into how on-duty tower guard failed to spot the escapee
- The Brazilian fugitive remains on the run after escaping on Thursday morning
- Authorities say he is ‘extremely dangerous’ and have locked down schools
- Igor Bolte, 30, escaped Chester County prison in the same way in May
Authorities have released surveillance footage showing the moment a convicted killer scaled a prison wall within seconds – before avoiding an on-duty tower guard.
Danelo Cavalcante, 34, escaped from Chester County maximum security prison on Thursday morning, sparking a seven-day-long manhunt.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Cavalcante is still on the run, with prison warden Howard Holland admitting that it took over an hour for law enforcement to be alerted to the fugitive.
The Brazilian felon scaled the wall in the exercise yard and made his way over two razor-wired topped fences, as a basketball game took place.
During a press conference, Holland admitted that the escape was similar to that of Igor Bolte, 30, who broke out of the prison from the same yard on May 19 but was caught nearby minutes later.
An on-duty tower guard failed to spot Cavalcante’s breakout, with Holland confirming that a separate criminal investigation into the escape has been launched by the Attorney General.
The Brazilian felon scaled the wall in the exercise yard and made his way over two razor-wired topped fences, as a basketball game took place
The Brazilian felon, 34, fled from the Chester County Prison in Pocopson Township, Pennsylvania, at around 8.30am on Thursday
Cavalcante was handed a life sentence two weeks ago for the April 2021 murder of his ex-girlfriend Débora Brandao, 34, a mother of two children.
Footage shows him walking towards a doorway, then looking over his shoulder, before placing his hands on one wall and feet on another before moving parallel to the ground.
A prisoner is also visible in the footage, though officials were unable to confirm if he was acting as a ‘lookout’ for the killer. Razor wire had been added to the fences following the escape of Bolte.
Holland confirmed that Cavalcante was in the exercise yard from 8.33am, with the footage capturing him escaping at 8.51.
The breakout was not spotted until 9.45am, when officers in his block realized he was not there and at 9.50am the prison was locked down.
Prison guards alerted 911 that Cavalcante had escaped at 10.01am following a prison wide count and search for the offender.
Holland has promised that the facility is investing in improved security measures following the two escapes in four months.
He said: ‘We know the gravity of the situation. We are developing proposals that would fully enclose all outside exercise yards.
Danelo Cavalcante escaped on Thursday morning and was last spotted at Longwood Gardens, in Pennsylvania, on Monday night
As of Wednesday afternoon, Cavalcante is still on the run, with prison warden Howard Holland admitting that it took over an hour for law enforcement to be alerted to the fugitive
Cavalcante is described as ‘extremely dangerous’ and ‘desperate not to be caught’ by Pennsylvania State Police searching for him (pictured)
‘Cavalcante had razor wire to contend with before accessing the roof, which Bolte did not.
‘Once additional wire was added following Bolte’s escape it was determined by security advisors that this was sufficient.
‘While we believed that the security measures we had in place were sufficient they have proven otherwise and we will move quickly to enhance our security measures.’
Pennsylvania State Police said it ‘wasn’t shocking’ that Cavalcante slipped through their perimeter set up following his escape, saying it’s a ‘large dark area’.
‘Obviously, I wish we would have been able to capture him without him getting through that perimeter, but it’s also not shocking,’ said Lt. Col. George Bivens. ‘It’s dark, it’s a large area. Not to make excuses – it’s difficult terrain.’
Police say the brush is so thick that searchers can only go a few feet before losing sight of each other and they have to hack their way through it.
Devices usually used in searches like this are being hindered by the weather as it is too hot for technology that can spot body temperature to pick anything up.
Authorities confirmed that the Pennsylvania State Police are being assisted in the manhunt for the convicted killer by the FBI, as two school districts canceled classes.
Cavalcante was last spotted by cops on Tuesday night in a creek near to a property, but fled by the time cops were called.
Pennsylvania State Police described him as ‘extremely dangerous’ and ‘desperate not to be caught’, while warning residents to remain on high alert with their doors locked.
There have been several credible sightings of the fugitive in the area over the last several days, according to Lieutenant Colonel George Bivens.
‘That pressure we put on him is working. We squeezed him hard enough in a period of a few days where he couldn’t get some relief, and he squeezed out,’ Bivens said. ‘I wished we could’ve got him, but it’s a large, dark area, with difficult terrain.’
Bivens urged residents and businesses around the area to lock their doors and check their security cameras, adding: ‘Even while I was in the house, I would have my doors locked.
‘You are dealing with someone who is desperate and does not want to be caught,’ he said.
Pictured is Cavalcante in the area of Longwood Gardens, heading north at 8.21pm and south in the same location at 9.33pm
Débora Brandao (pictured) was stabbed dead in April 2021 by Danelo Cavalcante, who feared that she would turn him over to police because she knew he had murdered a person in Brazil
He was seen wearing a white t-shirt, with Bevins confirming he was i the area of Longwood Gardens, heading north at 8.21pm and south in the same location at 9.33pm.
‘He has not changed his appearance but has acquired a backpack, a duffel bag and a hooded sweatshirt,’ Bevins added.
Authorities confirmed that they sent out a reverse 911 to residents within a 1.5-mile area of the camera which caught Cavalcante at 5am, and a second to a 3-mile radius at 5.30am Tuesday morning.
The killer stabbed his ex-girlfriend more than 30 times and cops are warning the public to stay away and report him if they see him
State Police confirmed that they had launched an ‘hours-long’ search close to Pocopson township on Monday, but were ‘unable to locate him’.
Bevins confirmed that the FBI had now joined the manhunt for the convicted murderer.
Police believe that he’s been wearing prison-issued pants and prison-issued shorts underneath when he escaped on August 31.
He was spotted by a state trooper on Sunday afternoon, who gave chase but eventually lost him.
There have been six credible sightings since his escape within the search area in Pocopson Township.
Cavalcante was also spotted in a home in Pocopson township on Friday, where he ‘flicked the lights’ at the owner before stealing some food items.
Ryan Drummond claims he saw Cavalcante inside his home on Friday night, flipping the switch a few times after hearing ‘rustling’ downstairs.
He told ABC6: ‘What I decided to do was flip the switch three or four or five times, paused, and then he flipped a light switch from downstairs. This was the moment of, ‘Oh my God this guy is down there.
‘I saw him walk out of the kitchen through our living room, open up that door, (and) walked out. He was wearing a white shirt and had a bag.
Cops released this pictured of Cavalcante who was walking down a road in Pocopson Township, around three miles from the prison, on Thursday
Brandao (left) was stabbed over 30 times by Cavalcante in front of her children
‘Peaches, apples, green snap peas were missing. We have a bunch of little steak knives and he could have taken one of those.’
Cavalcante is also wanted for a 2017 murder of a man in Brazil. Prosecutors say he stabbed Brandao dead in front of her two children to stop her from reporting him to United States authorities.
He was apprehended in Virginia after killing Brandao. Authorities believe he was trying to flee to Mexico to return to Brazil.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, he killed Brandao with a kitchen knife he had been using to cut meat in preparation for a barbeque earlier that day.
Jurors heard that he was angry at Brandao because she had threatened to turn him in to police, which came after she found out he had hacked her Instagram account to spy on her.
During his trial, prosecutors claimed the couple were in an abusive relationship where Cavalcante was ‘an angry and jealous boyfriend who needed to be in control.’
On the day of the murder, Brandao was playing with her two children outside her home when she was confronted by the killer, who told her he was ‘going to do something bad to their lives.’
He then stabbed her more than 30 times in her upper torso and neck, according to testimony heard at his trial, while her children screamed for him to stop.
In a recorded confession played at the trial Cavalcante said that there was ‘no reason’ for killing Brandao, however prosecutors claimed the stabbing was the culmination of a long history of domestic violence.
Chester County District Attorney Deb Ryan added: ‘We are requesting that residents in the area of Pocopson Township remain inside. Lock your doors, lock your cars.
‘He is still considered an extremely dangerous individual. There is evidence to suggest that he’s still in that local residence. We do not believe he has gotten more than one to two miles away from the prison.’
Police say a recording of the prisoner’s mother is being broadcast from helicopters flying over the search area.
‘It’s done in Spanish or actually Portuguese, and it’s being broadcast in an effort to facilitate his peaceful surrender,’ said Bivens.
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