Pennsylvania State Police believe convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante is near Longwood Gardens. The search to find the escaped prisoner is in its ninth day. NBC10’s Deanna Durante is in Kennett Square with the latest.
What to Know
- Officials searched through a wooded area near Longwood Gardens for hours on Thursday after another possible sighting of Danelo Cavalcante, the convicted killer who was caught on video escaping from a suburban Philadelphia jail yard last week.
- Cavalcante, a 34-year-old from Brazil, escaped from the Chester County prison on Aug. 31 by scaling a wall, climbing over razor wire and jumping from a roof. The breakout wasn’t detected by guards for a full hour, authorities say.
- Anyone with information on Cavalcante's whereabouts should call 717-562-2987.
Longwood Gardens evacuated guests from the property and closed early on Thursday night as the search for an escaped Chester County prisoner continues.
"In cooperation with authorities, we have closed the gardens and cleared the property of guests. Police are currently searching an area of interest on the property," a Longwood Gardens spokesperson wrote. "Tenants on the property are sheltering in place. The Gardens will remain closed until further notice." A statement on the Gardens website says how ticket holders can get a refund.
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Officials searched through a wooded area near Longwood Gardens for hours on Thursday after another possible sighting of Danelo Cavalcante, the convicted killer who was caught on video escaping from a suburban Philadelphia jail yard last week.
FBI personnel dressed in tactical gear had their weapons drawn on Street Road near Longwood Gardens Thursday night as they searched through the fields.
The search and road closures in the area continued overnight into Friday.
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During a Thursday afternoon news conference, Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Colonel George Bivens said an individual reported seeing a person matching Cavalcante's description running on a trail in a wooded area near Longwood Gardens -- one of the nation’s premier botanical gardens -- on Thursday, shortly before noon.
A trail surveillance video captured Cavalcante walking through the garden’s grounds on Monday night and police said Thursday's possible sighting was near that same location.
Police searched through the area for hours and continued through Thursday evening.
Longwood Gardens had reopened on Thursday prior to the evacuation.
Officials said the possible sighting was not in the area that ticketed visitors frequent. Instead, it was at a property away from the visited area that was still owned by Longwood Gardens.
Cavalcante, a 34-year-old from Brazil, escaped from the Chester County prison on Aug. 31 by scaling a wall, climbing over razor wire and jumping from a roof. The breakout wasn’t detected by guards for a full hour, authorities say.
Howard Holland, the warden of the facility, shared the video of Cavalcante's escape during a Wednesday afternoon news conference and revealed a timeline of the events of that day.
The video shows Cavalcante approaching a small hallway at an outdoor exercise yard with another person. Cavalcante then stretches to span the length of the hallway before working his way sideways up the wall and onto the roof.
Holland said that Cavalcante's escape was similar to that of another prisoner who escaped the facility in May.
The difference, Holland said, is that the inmate in May was caught "in five minutes," while Cavalcante's escape went unreported for some time.
"In the escape of Cavalcante, the tower officer did not observe or report the escape," he said.
In fact, he said, the prison wasn't locked down until about an hour after Cavalcante had fled the facility.
Holland said Cavalcante "crab-walked" up the wall at 8:51 a.m. that day. He then moved through razor wire and across a roof before vaulting a fence and pushing through more razor wire on his way to freedom.
At 9:45 a.m. officials were notified that Cavalcante was gone and the prison was locked down at about 9:50 a.m., said Holland.
Holland also said the facility had bolstered security following the escape in May, focusing on areas "from the yard to the roof area."
"While we believed the security measures we had in place were sufficient, we were proved otherwise," said Holland.
Since last week, Holland said that the facility has bolstered its security to prevent future escapes.
SkyForce10 captured officers walking on the roof of the prison Thursday morning.
SkyForce10 also captured police and federal agents watching a freight train pass by in Pocopson Township on Thursday for any signs of Cavalcante.
Police officers and tactical units from across the country continue to search for Cavalcante and were focused on a perimeter that stretched eight to ten miles.
"I'm not sensing frustration, what I see is determination," Delaware County FOP President Chris Eiserman said.
The Delaware County FOP is currently in contact with the search crews and are providing them with food and drinks at their command post.
"These troopers, U.S. Marshals, local police, they want to capture this guy," Eiserman said. "They want to get him in custody."
Thursday night, the search perimeter moved solely to Chester County, Pennsylvania. Authorities said they're focused on Route 1 to North Walnut Road, Parkersville Road to Route 52, Route 52 to Lenape Road near the Chester County Prison, and from Lenape Road to Northbrook Road in Pocopson Township.
A $20,000 reward is being offered to anyone with information leading to Cavalcante's capture. If you have any information on his whereabouts, call 717-562-2987.
Anxious residents
Residents who were under siege as heavily armed police hunted for the fugitive roaming their neighborhood for several days described frustration with the search and anxiety at being locked down.
Considered extremely dangerous, Cavalcante has since been spotted at least eight times, with the latest sighting on Thursday. Authorities continue to move and expand their search perimeter — now a vast area filled with forests and thick brush — while residents remain on edge.
Ryan Drummond, 42, had a harrowing encounter with the man believed to be the escapee when his home in Pocopson was broken into late Friday, Sept. 1.
After awaking to a noise in the kitchen at about 11:40 p.m., he checked on his young kids, grabbed a framed picture of his family as armor, then flickered the hall lights from upstairs several times — and had fear pulse through him when the intruder flicked them back.
“That was kind of the terrifying moment, where I like, looked at (my wife) quickly and said, ‘He is in the house, call 911 right now,’” Drummond said Wednesday.
“I saw him methodically, not panicked, walk out of the kitchen, in the living room toward that French door and walk out,” he said.
Police came within a minute, but not before Cavalcante — if it was him — was on the run again, with a few pieces of fruit from Drummond’s kitchen in hand.
Investigators said Thursday they can't confirm whether or not Cavalcante has broken into any homes, set up camp or left any belongings. Police are asking residents to pay attention to their homes and garages and to report any missing items. They're also urging residents to lock their doors and keep their security cameras on.
Cavalcante received a life sentence last month for killing his ex-girlfriend in front of her children in 2021. He escaped while awaiting transfer to state prison. Prosecutors say he killed her to prevent her from telling police that he’s wanted in a 2017 killing back in Brazil.
He had been captured in Virginia after the ex-girlfriend's murder, and authorities believe he was trying to return to Brazil.
The escape and search have attracted international attention and became big news in Cavalcante’s native Brazil. The main newspaper in Rio de Janeiro ran a lengthy story Wednesday with the headline “Dangerous hide-and-seek.”
Schools reopen
Classes at the Kennett Consolidated School District in Chester County were canceled Tuesday and Wednesday due to the search for Cavalcante. However, only one of the district's schools remained closed on Thursday morning.
"Currently, Greenwood Elementary School remains within the search area" wrote Kennett Superintendent Dr. Dusty Blakey in a letter posted to the district's website. "Additionally, we are still identifying the various road closures impacting a number of our families. Therefore... September 7 we will be reopening five of our six schools located outside the search perimeter. New Garden, Bancroft, Mary D. Lang, Kennett Middle and Kennett High School will open and operate on a regular schedule with an increased police presence on all campuses."
Thursday afternoon, officials announced Greenwood and Chadds Ford elementary schools were removed from the search area and would reopen. They will still have a heavy police presence on campus however.
