Escaped Convict Danilo Cavalcante Arraigned for Crimes Committed While on the Run

Charges include theft, burglary, and possession of a firearm, with a preliminary hearing to be scheduled.

Danilo Cavalcante, a convicted murderer who escaped from a southeastern Pennsylvania prison earlier this year, was arraigned Friday on theft, burglary and other charges in connection with alleged crimes committed while he was on the run.
Following his Aug. 31 escape from Chester County Prison, Cavalcante allegedly stole a transit van and burglarized homes in southeastern Pennsylvania, where a rifle and ammunition, clothing, a sleeping bag and other items were stolen.
Prosecutors consolidated the new charges with the initial escape charge Cavalcante faced after he was captured. A preliminary hearing will be held where more information regarding both sets of charges will be discussed, but a date for that hearing has not been scheduled.
Cavalcante had been sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of killing Deborah Brandao in front of her children in 2021. He was awaiting transfer to a state prison when he escaped.
Cavalcante was captured Sept. 13 after a two-week search that left residents on edge and led to school closures right at the start of the academic year, as well as warnings for residents to lock their doors and blocked roads over the busy Labor Day weekend.