Meet Yoda, the K9 who helped capture the Pennsylvania fugitive
Shortly after police officers spotted the head of convicted murderer Danilo Cavalcante peeking through the undergrowth, they released a police dog that bit and subdued Cavalcante, leading to his arrest nearly two weeks after he escaped from prison, officials said. The dog, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois male Yoda, was part of one of two tactical teams that moved into a wooded area in Pennsylvania in Cavalcante around 8 a.m., ending an intensive manhunt that brought hundreds of police officers to the area without any shots being fired during the arrest.Yoda was a key force in the crackdown, preventing Cavalcante from using a stolen rifle that was within his reach, Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said during a news conference Wednesday. “He was simply essential to the pursuit and search, as were numerous other K9s that were here,” Robert Clark, deputy US marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, told CNN on Wednesday. “All of these K9 resources were used by various tactical teams in the area and they were just incredible resources.” Cavalcante escaped from the Chester County Jail on August 31, leaving the surrounding community in fear as he evaded capture, although he has been spotted on multiple occasions.The 34-year-old was convicted last month of the 2021 murder of his former girlfriend Deborah Brandão. He is also wanted in a 2017 murder case in Brazil, a U.S. Marshals Service official said. Cavalcante was captured in Chester County, where he was surrounded by at least 20 police officers, Bivens said. Yoda joined the search from the US Border Patrol Tactical Unit based in Michigan, Clark told CNN. Authorities said it took about five minutes when authorities, with Yoda’s help, began to arrest Cavalcante. The “very important role” of K9sPolice dogs play “a very important role” in tracking down and safely capturing a person, Bivens said during the press conference. “It’s much better that we can release a patrol dog like this and subdue the person rather than having to use lethal force.” “It’s common practice for K9s to move first and go quickly and directly to a suspect on command Bivens told CNN of her surroundings. Their training gives officers a few extra seconds to approach the suspect and apprehend him without using deadly force, Bivens added. “They don’t just bite and let go or try to cause additional injury,” Bivens said, referring to the way K9 dogs are trained. “They just grab the person and try to restrain them until the officers can arrive there,” he added, pointing out that police dogs are not intended to be released at a distance or without supervision. “There are officers nearby who can then intervene, the handler can immediately pull the dog away… and then the officers take over from there.” CNN contributed to this report
Shortly after police officers spotted the head of convicted murderer Danilo Cavalcante peeking through the undergrowth, they released a police dog that bit and subdued Cavalcante, leading to his arrest nearly two weeks after he escaped from prison, officials said.
The dog, a 4-year-old male Belgian Malinois named Yoda, was part of one of two tactical teams that moved into a Pennsylvania wooded area in Cavalcante around 8 a.m., ending an intense manhunt that drew hundreds of police officers in the area, without that shots were fired during the arrest.
Yoda was a key force in the crackdown, preventing Cavalcante from using a stolen rifle in his possession that was within weapons range, Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police said during a news conference Wednesday.
“He was simply essential to the pursuit and search, as were numerous other K9s that were here,” Robert Clark, deputy US marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, told CNN on Wednesday. “All of these K9 resources were utilized by various tactical teams throughout the region and they were just incredible resources.”
Cavalcante escaped from the Chester County Jail on August 31, leaving the surrounding community in fear as he evaded capture despite being spotted multiple times.
The 34-year-old was convicted last month of the 2021 murder of his former girlfriend Deborah Brandão. He is also wanted in a 2017 murder case in Brazil, a U.S. Marshals Service official said.
Cavalcante was captured in Chester County and surrounded by at least 20 police officers, Bivens said. Yoda joined the search from the US Border Patrol Tactical Unit based in Michigan, Clark told CNN.
According to authorities, it took about five minutes for authorities to begin arresting Cavalcante with Yoda’s help.
The “very important role” of K9s
Police dogs play “a very important role” in tracking down and safely capturing a person, Bivens said during the news conference.
“It is far better that we can release a patrol dog like this and have it subdue the individual rather than having to use deadly force,” Bivens said.
It is common practice for K9s to advance first and move quickly and directly to a suspect on command, Bivens told CNN.
The dogs are trained to “unprepare” a person to prevent them from escaping or using weapons near them. Their training gives officers a few extra seconds to approach the suspect and apprehend him without using deadly force, Bivens added.
“They don’t just keep biting and letting go or trying to cause additional injury,” Bivens said, referring to the way K9 dogs are trained.
“They just grab the person and try to restrain them until officers can get there,” he added, pointing out that police dogs are not intended to be released at a distance or without supervision. “There are officers nearby who can then intervene, the handler can immediately pull the dog away again… and then the officers take over from there.”
CNN contributed to this report
