Danelo Cavalcante escape timeline: Everything that's happened since fugitive fled Pennsylvania prison

A prisoner's escape from a Pennsylvania prison last Thursday triggered a massive manhunt that is still unfolding as the man continues to elude capture.

Hundreds of law enforcement agents have descended in the past week on small suburban communities in southeastern Pennsylvania intent on the capture of convicted murderer, 34-year-old Danelo Cavalcante. But so far, helicopters, drones and dogs searching an ever-shifting perimeter have not gotten the fugitive back behind bars.

Here’s a timeline of what we know of Cavalcante's escape and subsequent vanishing.

Cavalcante has eluded police for 9 days:What will it take for him to get caught?

August 2023: Cavalcante sentenced to life in prison after 2021 killing

Cavalcante faces life behind bars after he was convicted last month of murdering his former girlfriend in front of her two young children.

It took a jury 15 minutes of deliberation before returning a guilty verdict against Cavalcante for stabbing 33-year-old Deborah Brandao to death in 2021 while her 7-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son were present, according to the Chester County District Attorney’s Office.

In April 2021, Cavalcante went to Brandao’s home, about 30 miles northwest of Philadelphia, and stabbed her 38 times. The two dated for about a year-and-a-half, during which time Cavalcante had "engaged in a horrific pattern of domestic violence," District Attorney Deb Ryan has said.

Cavalcante, a Brazilian national and former agricultural worker, is also wanted for a 2017 murder of a 20-year-old man over a car repair debt in his native country, the district attorney's office has said. Investigators learned that Cavalcante fatally stabbed Brandao because she had learned about his open murder warrant in Brazil and had “threatened to expose him to the police,” according to the district attorney's office.

When he escaped, Cavalcante was being temporarily held at Chester County Prison, about 25 miles west of Philadelphia, while awaiting transfer to a state facility to serve his sentence.

More:Prison escapes are rare, and most are soon caught

Aug. 31 around 9 a.m.: Cavalcante escapes

Cavalcante made his escape around 9 a.m. last Thursday, Aug. 31. His disappearance prompted an immediate search of the area as police and prison authorities deployed helicopters and dogs to locate the fugitive.

At the time, authorities said Cavalcante was last seen wearing a white T-shirt, grey shorts and white sneakers. A witness also initially spotted him almost an hour after his escape walking on Wawaset Road in nearby Pocopson Township.

Ryan had said early on that officials were concerned Cavalcante may get help from friends and family. The concern sprang from the fact that after Cavalcante murdered his girlfriend in April 2021, he was aided by others until he was apprehended in Virginia, authorities have said.

Law enforcement made it clear from the beginning that Cavalcante is considered extremely dangerous and that anyone who spots him should refrain from approaching him and call 911.

Sept. 1: U.S. Marshals join the hunt

At a press conference last Friday afternoon, it was announced that the United States Marshals Service was joining the search.

At the time, Ryan said officials no longer believed anyone to be helping Cavalcante evade authorities, and that the assumption was that he was hiding alone in the area. Ryan said Cavalcante has “nothing to lose,” and he could be capable of more dangerous crimes.

Labor Day Weekend: Cavalcante spotted multiple times

The manhunt soon brought hundreds of law enforcement officers to southeastern Pennsylvania, disrupting the lives of thousands of residents, many of whom remain on edge about the fugitive's whereabouts.

On Monday, the hunt for the Cavalcante led officials to scour a small area near the prison where they believed the fugitive was hiding.

Police initially set up a perimeter around Pocopson Township, a residential neighborhood near the Chester County Prison, where Cavalcante had been sighted multiple times over Labor Day weekend. A state trooper even spotted the fugitive, leading to a brief chase.

Just after midnight on Saturday, a residential surveillance camera captured Cavalcante about a mile and a half from the prison with a backpack, according to the Chester County District Attorney's Office.

Another resident reportedly saw Cavalcante in a creek bed behind their house in Pennsbury Township, a residential area several miles east of a popular botanic garden called Longwood Gardens.

Sept. 4 at 8:21 p.m.: Cavalcante seen on trail cam

In fact, Cavalcante was seen on Monday on a trail camera at Longwood Gardens, a popular tourist destination of about 200 acres of rolling meadows and brimming gardens. The gardens' private trail camera captured the most recent images of Cavalcante, in which he has a backpack, duffel bag and a hoodie.

Security at Longwood Gardens notified investigators that a private camera showed Cavalcante walking north around 8:21 p.m. and then south through the same location at 9:33 p.m., Pennsylvania State Police Lt. Col. George Bivens previously said.

Sept. 5: Search shifts south

The sighting prompted officials on Tuesday to shift the search perimeter south of the initial target zone.

From speakers in cars and helicopters, authorities have blasted a recording they obtained from Cavalcante’s mother in Portuguese, asking her son “to surrender peacefully."

As the search unfolded, the family of Brandao, the woman slain by Cavalcante, has been barricaded inside their homes under constant protection in case the fugitive decides to come after them.

Sept. 6: Released security footage shows escape

On Wednesday, officials released security footage that showed Cavalcante breaking free by "crab-walking" up a wall before he reportedly pushed through razor wire and ran across a roof to freedom.

The escape was revealed to have taken place while his prisoner block was outside in the exercise yard. An officer in a tower who didn't see him slip away has been put on administrative leave, Chester County Prison Howard Holland previously said.

The footage begins at about 8:50 a.m. when Cavalcante used his outstretched arms and legs to brace himself between two walls and "crab walk" up before disappearing out of sight. From there, he pushed through razor wire, ran across the roof, and scaled a fence lined with razor wire, Holland said.

Cavalcante's disappearance was discovered nearly an hour later during an inmate count after the block returned from the yard. Holland has said officials determined that the razor wire was insufficient as planning is underway to better secure the prison with physical barriers and increased staff.

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Sept. 7: Search crews battle heat, humidity

Throughout the week, the heat and humidity was posing challenges for the searchers, who Bivens said were dedicated to capturing Cavalcante as they hoped he grew tired, hungry and desperate.

As temperatures reached 94 degrees Thursday, the hundreds of law enforcement officials combing through the search perimeter were bogged down in not only full uniforms and weapons, but bullet-resistant vests.

The heat even got to the technology being used to track Cavalcante, Bivens said. For example, it was possible that thermal imaging might pick up additional hot spots, though Bivens assured said it wasn't a deterrent to using the resources.

Meanwhile, the two school districts that had canceled classes Tuesday and Wednesday − Kennett Consolidated School District in Chester County and the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District − largely reopened on Thursday.

Both districts said local law enforcement will provide additional security and that they are excusing absences of students whose families prefer to keep them home.

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Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected].