Escaped prisoner Danelo Calavante’s plan was to drive to Canada in a stolen car before he was captured by ‘hero’ dog Yoda, US Marshals reveal – as sister of woman he murdered thanks cops for nabbing him
Escaped convict Danelo Calavante’s plan was to drive a stolen car to Canada before he was captured by ‘hero dog’ Yoda, US Marshals reveal – as sister of woman he killed thanks police for arresting her
- Cavalcante was arrested on Wednesday after a two-week manhunt
- More than 500 officers were actively searching for Cavalcante, who somehow managed to escape from the original search zone around the prison
- READ MORE: How Cavalcante went from ‘nice neighbor to jealous boyfriend’
Escaped convict Danelo Calavante planned to drive to Canada in a stolen car before he was captured by a hero K-9 named Yoda after two weeks on the run, a US Marshall has revealed.
Cavalcante, 34, survived two weeks on the run by eating watermelon he stole from a farm, drinking water from a stream and burying his feces so police wouldn’t find it, according to Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Clark, who led the investigation. manhunt.
The Brazil resident, who was in the country illegally, escaped from the Chester County Jail, 30 miles west of Philadelphia, by crab-walking up a wall just days after being sentenced to life in prison for the murder on 33-year-old Deborah Brandão. in 2021.
His victim’s sister, Donna Leidi, thanked police for their work on Wednesday and said the family is “very grateful for the support and hard work over the past few days.”
She added, “Right now, my family and I need to regroup and focus on processing everything that has happened while taking care of ourselves.
Escaped prisoner Danelo Cavalcante was captured Wednesday morning
‘The past two weeks have been extremely painful and terrifying as it brought back all the feelings of losing my sister and the thought of the perpetrator hurting us again.’
Clark said Cavalcante agreed to speak through an interpreter after his capture and was “brutally honest” about his time on the run.
Cavalcante said he moved not far from the Chester County Jail during his first three days on the run.
About 25 officers were able to surprise him when they surrounded him Wednesday morning, but Cavalcante, wearing a Philadelphia Eagles sweatshirt, tried to escape again by crawling through the brush with the gun he stole from a house he broke into Monday.
Officials then released a police dog to catch the killer. The dog bit him on the head and he was treated for his injuries at the scene, police said. After a bloodied Cavalcante was captured, the search team’s SWAT officers paraded him as a trophy and lined up for a photo with him around 8 a.m. EST.
After the arrest, he was taken to a nearby state police barracks in an armored vehicle, surrounded by a convoy of dozens of vehicles with lights flashing and sirens blaring as it drove down the highway. Two police helicopters followed above.
Cavalcante was charged with escape at the Avondale barracks, according to Judge Matthew Seavey’s office. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for September 27. He would be taken to a state prison to serve the life sentence he received last month for the murder of his ex-girlfriend.