Rhode Island State Police Arrests Providence Man on Numerous Charges Following Theft of Cruiser

Colonel Ann C. Assumpico, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police and
Director of the Department of Public Safety, announces that a Providence resident
faces multiple criminal charges after allegedly stealing a marked State Police
cruiser early Thursday morning.

Donald Morgan, 35, who has no permanent address, was arrested at approximately 7
p.m. Friday by members of the Rhode Island Violent Fugitive Task Force, ending an
intensive two-day search by the Rhode Island State Police and several local police
departments.

Donald Morgan was charged with:

* Escape from custody
* Possession of a stolen motor vehicle
* Obstructing an officer in execution of duty
* Larceny of a motor vehicle
* Reckless driving
* Resisting arrest

Two other people were arrested and charged with harboring a criminal. They were
identified as:

* Daniel Medeiros, 54, of 52 Vermont Avenue, Cumberland, Rhode Island
* Rachael Read, 47, of 52 Vermont Avenue, Cumberland, Rhode Island

Morgan initially had been arrested about 11 a.m. Wednesday, November 8, after a car
crash on Interstate 95 South, near the intersection with Route 10. Troopers
investigating the crash learned that the car had been reported stolen the day
before.

Morgan was arrested at that time and for possession of a stolen vehicle/parts and
obstructing an officer in the execution of duties for allegedly providing
misinformation about his identity at the time of his arrest.

Morgan was taken to Rhode Island Hospital for treatment of injuries suffered in the
crash. He later was brought to the Lincoln Woods Barracks, where he was held
overnight pending arraignment in Sixth Division District Court on Thursday. However,
he escaped from custody at approximately 9 a.m. Thursday while a trooper who was
transporting him to court.

The investigation showed that Morgan was being transported in the rear seat of the
cruiser with his hands cuffed in front of him due to the nature of the injuries
suffered in the crash that led to his arrest. At approximately 9 a.m., the trooper
stopped to investigate a car crash blocking the southbound lanes of travel on Route
146 in Providence. When the trooper got out of his cruiser to check on the wellbeing
of the motorists involved in the crash, Morgan took control of the cruiser and drove
off.

The cruiser was recovered about a half-hour later, after it was found abandoned on
Vineyard Street in Providence. Rhode Island State Police, assisted by officers from
the Providence Police Department and the Cranston Police Department, launched an
intensive search using K-9 units as well as the RISP Tactical Team. The search
efforts ended last night, when the Rhode Island Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested
Morgan at a residence in Cumberland, Rhode Island. They also arrested Daniel
Medeiros and Rachael Read at that time.

The Rhode Island Violent Fugitive Task Force is managed by the Rhode Island State
Police and the United States Marshals Service and is comprised of members of the
Rhode Island State Police, the United States Marshals Service, and the Providence,
Cranston, Pawtucket, Coventry, Middletown, Portsmouth, Warwick and East Providence
Police Departments.