Brazilian convicted murderer Danilo Cavalcante was apprehended Wednesday morning in Chester County, following a nearly two-week manhunt that terrified nearby residents because of his violent past.
Cavalcante, 34, was captured shortly after 8 a.m. after he tried to escape by crawling through bushes before a search dog subdued him, police said.
But despite Cavalcante's brazen escape from a Chester County prison on Aug. 31st, his previous crimes are much more serious and violent.
Brazilian arrest warrant
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According to Brazilian police, Cavalcante has an outstanding arrest warrant dating from 2018, when prosecutors in Tocantins said he killed Válter Júnior Moreira dos Reis in 2017 over a vehicle repair debt Moreira owed him.
Prosecutors allege Cavalcante shot Moreira six times in the chest while they were in a cafeteria. He then stole Moreira's phone and fled the scene.
But before Brazilian authorities could apprehend him, Cavalcante fled to Puerto Rico, though U.S. officials suspect he did so illegally before settling in Pennsylvania, BBC reported.
He still faces an outstanding warrant in Brazil for a 2017 murder.
Ex-girlfriend murder
It would not be until 2021 that police would learn again about Cavalcante's whereabouts after settling in Royersford, Pennsylvania.
According to previous reporting, in April 2021 Cavalcante was arrested after stabbing his ex-girlfriend, 33-year-old Deborah Brandao in her home in front of her 7-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son.
Then, officials said Cavalcante grabbed Brandao’s hair and yanked her to the ground before getting on top of her and stabbing her more than a dozen times in the chest and upper torso. Brandao died shortly after in the Paoli Hospital.
Cavalcante was then arrested in Virginia as he was trying to flee to Mexico to then return to Brazil, authorities told NBC News.
He was later convicted of first-degree murder on Aug. 16, 2023, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Before his Aug. 31 escape from Chester County Prison in Pocopson Township, Cavalcante was scheduled to be moved to a state prison in the upcoming days.
