Deibson Cabral Nascimento, known as “Tatu” or “Deisinho,” became nationally known after escaping from the Federal Penitentiary in Mossoró, Rio Grande do Norte, in February 2024. The episode was historic because it represented the first recorded escape from Brazil’s federal penitentiary system, which had been operating since 2006. Nascimento escaped together with Rogério da Silva Mendonça, known as “Martelo,” on February 14, 2024. The two men were being held at the Mossoró facility after being transferred there in 2023.
Before his transfer to the federal system, Nascimento had already faced criminal convictions in Acre. According to court reporting, he had been sentenced in proceedings involving organized crime, drug trafficking and robbery-related offenses. In December 2023, the Superior Court of Justice rejected a request seeking to reduce one of his sentences. The decision was separate from the later proceedings concerning the prison escape.
The escape triggered one of the largest manhunts in recent Brazilian history. Federal and state authorities deployed personnel and intelligence resources across the region while investigations sought to identify people who may have assisted the fugitives. The search continued for approximately 50 days.
On April 4, 2024, Nascimento and Mendonça were recaptured in Marabá, Pará, during a joint operation involving the Federal Police and Federal Highway Police. According to the authorities, the two were located after intelligence teams monitored their movements. Four other people were also arrested during the operation.
The legal consequences of the escape continued after the recapture. In 2026, a Federal Court in Rio Grande do Norte sentenced Nascimento to five years in prison in proceedings concerning the events surrounding the escape. The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office appealed, seeking additional legal consequences for the defendants.
Deibson Cabral Nascimento remains incarcerated in the federal prison system. His name is now permanently associated with a significant episode in the history of Brazil’s federal penitentiary system: the first escape from one of its maximum-security facilities.
SOURCES
CNN Brasil
CNN Brasil — Recapture of Deibson Cabral Nascimento
CNN Brasil
CNN Brasil — The first escape from Brazil’s maximum-security federal system
Folha de S.Paulo
Folha — Timeline of the Mossoró escape and recapture
Metrópoles
Metrópoles — Deibson Cabral and his previous conviction
Agora RN — 2026
Agora RN — Federal court proceedings involving the Mossoró escape
