Current:Home > ScamsPrison guard warned that Danilo Cavalcante planned escape a month before he fled, emails show-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Prison guard warned that Danilo Cavalcante planned escape a month before he fled, emails show
View Date:2024-12-23 23:20:15
WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — At least a month before a convicted murderer escaped from a southeastern Pennsylvania prison, eluding a massive manhunt for two weeks before he was recaptured, a prison guard had warned that he was planning an escape, according to an email exchange made public this week.
Hours after the Aug. 31 escape of Danilo Cavalcante from the Chester County Prison, a prison sergeant said in an email that Corrections Officer Hernandez “noted back in July that this inmate was planning an escape.” Sgt. Beavers said he was sending the email because he didn’t want “this to come back on us or Hernandez in any way.”
That email was sent to Capt. Griswold, who forwarded it shortly afterward to the prison’s acting warden, Howard Holland, with a note saying, “This was sent to me this afternoon and I have not forwarded it to anyone else. I am not sure how you want to move forward with this information internally.” Officials withheld the first names of those mentioned.
County spokesperson Rebecca Brain said in a statement that the three people mentioned in the emails, which were first reported by ABC News, “wanted to ensure Acting Warden Holland knew that information about an escape was previously noted.”
Before the escape, Brain said, security measures for an inmate identified as an “escape risk” were only “enacted and heightened” when the inmate was being taken off prison property. Cavalcante was “initially identified as an escape risk” when he was captured in Virginia and taken to the prison in 2021, and around the time of his trial, “unsubstantiated information from an unknown source was received reinforcing Cavalcante’s status as an escape risk,” Brain said.
Since the escape, Brain said, security measures inside the prison and during prisoner transport off prison property have been strengthened, including assigning different-color clothing for those deemed potential escape risks and monitoring by one or two corrections officers of each inmate outside of cells. Officials earlier vowed to enclose exercise yards and add more cameras and guards.
Cavalcante, 34, had been sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, in front of her children in 2021. Prosecutors say he wanted to stop her from telling police he was wanted in a 2017 killing in Brazil. He was awaiting transfer to a state prison when he scaled a wall and then jumped from a roof to freedom.
Cavalcante was captured after a two-week manhunt that left residents on edge and led to school closures right at the start of the academic year, as well as warnings for homeowners to lock their doors and blocked roads over the busy Labor Day weekend. He is now being held in a state prison and is due in court next month on an escape charge.
veryGood! (287)
Related
- 'Dangerous and unsanitary' conditions at Georgia jail violate Constitution, feds say
- Olivia Culpo Reveals Her Non-Negotiable for Christian McCaffrey Wedding
- Trial of former Milwaukee election official charged with illegally requesting ballots begins
- Jimmie Allen's former manager agrees to drop sexual assault lawsuit, stands by accusation
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, 4G
- Drones and robots could replace some field workers as farming goes high-tech
- Hope for Israel-Hamas war truce tempered by growing rift between Netanyahu and his U.S. and European allies
- EPA bans asbestos, finally slamming the door on carcinogen that kills tens of thousands of Americans every year
- Texas man accused of supporting ISIS charged in federal court
- Fabric and crafts retailer Joann files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection: What to know
Ranking
- Inspector general finds no fault in Park Police shooting of Virginia man in 2017
- Watch this newborn chick revived by a quick-thinking farmer
- Chicago sues gunmaker Glock over conversions to machine guns
- Newly obtained video shows movement of group suspected of constructing Jan. 6 gallows hours before Capitol siege
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a long record of promoting anti-vaccine views
- Baby giraffe dies of a broken neck at Zoo Miami
- What are seed oils? What you need to know about the food group deemed the 'hateful eight'
- Whoopi Goldberg Reveals the Weight Loss Drug She Used to Slim Down
Recommendation
-
Wisconsin agency issues first round of permits for Enbridge Line 5 reroute around reservation
-
Taylor Swift's Eras Tour crowd caused earthquake-like tremors. These 5 songs shook SoFi Stadium the most.
-
How Bruce Willis' Family Is Celebrating His 69th Birthday Amid Dementia Battle
-
Blake Snell, a two-time Cy Young winner, agrees to a two-year deal with the Giants
-
Amazon launches an online discount storefront to better compete with Shein and Temu
-
Alito extends order barring Texas from detaining migrants under SB4 immigration law for now
-
MacKenzie Scott donates $640 million -- more than double her initial plan -- to nonprofit applicants
-
Brother of Michigan Rep. Dan Kildee killed by family member, sheriff says