Belgian Malinois Yoda Hunts Down Escaped Murderer

Escaped murderer Danelo Cavalcante was finally nabbed this week after two weeks on the lam. US Marshals and the Pennsylvania State Police deployed search teams, armored carriers, horses, helicopters, and aircraft equipped with thermal imaging to catch the killer, but the ultimate hero in the capture was Yoda, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois.

Cavalcante was convicted for murdering his ex-girlfriend in 2021 and sentenced to life without parole in August. He escaped from the Chester County Prison near Philadelphia and remained at large for two weeks, evading capture in the Pennsylvania woods, right up until one of the K9 tracking teams, with Yoda in the lead, surrounded the escapee.

Yoda is a “bite and hold” police dog, US Marshals deputy Robert Clark explained to CNN.  As such, Yoda bit Cavalcante on his scalp and then bit him again in the “lower extremity area” to keep him down.

Good thing, because Cavalcante was still armed with the .22-caliber rifle he’d stolen from a local homeowner’s garage. “When the dog got to him, he then went flat with the dog on him – the dog was able to detain him there,” State Police officer George Bivens described. “I was told the rifle was within arm’s length.”

The American Kennel Club describes the Malinois Belgian – the Mal – as a “smart, confident, and versatile” dog that thrives on hard work. “Belgian Malinois are squarely built, proud, and alert herders standing 22 to 26 inches. Strong and well-muscled, but more elegant than bulky, there’s an honest, no-frills look about them … the black ears and mask accentuate bright, questioning eyes the color of dark Belgian chocolate.”

If it had not been for this very good dog, the escapee would have likely met with a much more violent end. Law enforcement squads that happen upon an armed felon and known killer are not known for their restraint. But instead of dying in a hail of bullets, Cavalcante is now in a maximum-security prison, compliments of US taxpayers.

Of course taxpayers also provide for a certain brave dog with eyes the color of Belgian chocolate, so it’s kind of a wash.

Photo credit: US Customs and Border Protection