Escaped US killer seen farther afield with new look: police

WASHINGTON - As an intense US manhunt for an escaped killer entered its 11th day, Pennsylvania authorities on Sunday released security camera pictures showing the man had slipped through a search perimeter and changed his look.

Danelo Cavalcante's escape from the Chester County Prison in the northeastern US state sparked a huge search, with hundreds of law enforcement officers with helicopters, drones and search dogs out in force, as fearful locals locked their doors.

But photos released Sunday showed the 34-year-old Brazilian national was no longer sporting the dark beard and moustache seen in his original "wanted" poster.

"He is now clean shaven and was wearing a yellow or green hooded sweatshirt, black baseball style hat, green prison pants and white shoes," said a statement from the Pennsylvania State Police.

They posted four pictures of Cavalcante, all apparently taken by a door camera as he stood or sat on a house porch.

Police said the convicted murderer had reportedly been seen overnight near the town of Phoenixville, about 20 miles (32 kilometre) north of the prison and about 30 miles northwest of the major metropolis of Philadelphia.

Phoenixville is the town where Cavalcante killed his girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, in April 2021. He had lived nearby.

Authorities had previously said that Brandao's relatives in the area were under 24-hour protection.

Police said Sunday that the escapee was driving a 2020 White Ford Transit van, reportedly stolen from a dairy in West Chester.

Early Sunday, a reporter for the NBC affiliate in Philadelphia who drove through the area said the only cars seen on the road were from law enforcement agencies. Police carrying long guns were checking the area in the pre-dawn dark.

There have been several sightings of the convict so far, including some in which he was shirtless.

On Wednesday, prison officials released a video showing how Cavalcante, who was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his girlfriend, was able to make his escape.

It shows the convict, then wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, crab-walking up two parallel walls and then climbing to the roof before making his way over two razor-wire fences. - AFP