A Westfield man sought by Longmeadow police was arrested by Holyoke police in a routine traffic stop Saturday evening.
Longmeadow police had obtained a warrant for the arrest of Douglas Morse, 32, whose last known address was 7 Free St., Westfield, the site of the Samaritan Inn, Westfield’s shelter for the homeless.
The man had been identified as the driver of a vehicle in which Desiree Ferreira, 19, of Westfield had fled from a Berkshire Bank branch in Longmeadow on March 24 after allegedly robbing the bank.
Longmeadow Police Capt. John Stankiewicz reported in an April 3 statement that Ferreira had turned herself into Longmeadow police after learning that police wanted to question her about the theft.
Stankiewicz had reported that “an exhaustive investigation” by Longmeadow detectives working with State Police had found that Morse had driven Ferreira’s getaway car.
Morse is the elder brother of Alex Morse, the current mayor of Holyoke.
The mayor issued a statement early in March, after the arrest of his brother in Northampton on narcotics charges, acknowledging that his brother “has struggled with addiction most of his adult life.”
He reiterated his response recently after the reports of his brother’s involvement in the Longmeadow bank robbery and said “I know that good people can do bad things when overtaken by substance abuse.”
Holyoke Police Capt. Arthur R. Monfette confirmed Monday that Morse had been arrested on the Longmeadow warrant during a traffic stop Saturday and had been released to the custody of the Holyoke District Court.
Morse was arraigned Monday in Springfield District Court, where the warrant was issued, and held without right to bail pending a May 3 pretrial hearing.
Westfield Det. Lt. Ray Manos said that he assisted Longmeadow police and state troopers when they came to the city seeking the suspects and said that Ferreira, who he said was also associated with an address in Fairhaven, has no record with city police.
He said that although she may have reported to be living on Elm Street, no street number was specified and opined that she may be a recent arrival to the city.
He said Morse, on the other hand, is known to members of the department, and has ties to the city. He said that when Morse was sought at the Samaritan Inn, staff there said that, although his possessions were at the shelter, he had not been seen there since the robbery.
