RI Cruiser Thief Sought

PROVIDENCE, RI — State police are still looking for the suspect who stole a cruiser on Route 146 on Thursday around 9 a.m. The cruiser was at a traffic stop when it was stolen. Providence police found the car, which had been abandoned.

The suspect, Donald Morgan, is still at large, according to state police. Earlier, he was believed to have been killed in a shootout near the Providence Place mall. But Thursday afternoon, police said Morgan was not involved in the shooting.

Morgan, 35, has no permanent address, according to state police.

Morgan had been arrested Wednesday on charges of obstruction and possession of a stolen motor vehicle, Col. Ann C. Assumpico said. He was in the cruiser because police were taking him to court. He was left alone and handcuffed in the vehicle when the trooper stepped out to check on an accident, she said.

“I know the trooper did leave the vehicle for a short time,” she told reporters. “I want to sort through it. ... You have to understand, when we come upon an accident on the highway, it is our duty to check on the welfare of the people.”

The cruiser was found within the hour abandoned in Providence after police tracked it there with the car’s GPS system, but the thief was not located. Police launched a search throughout the neighborhood and were seen searching house-to-house with rifles and dogs.

Police ask anyone with information to call Rhode Island State Police 401-444-1000.

Associated Press contributed to this story.