Rhode Island police nab Dartmouth's own rock 'n' roll shoplifter

Mar 2, 2016

Dartmouth police reported this week that a man who shoplifted in town has been caught by the Rhode Island State Police.

In late February, Dartmouth police put out a call for help identifying a shoplifter. In a still taken from surveillance footage, the shaggy haired suspect is wearing a leather jacket and curling his lip.

On the police’s Facebook page, the department jokingly referred to the suspect as “Elvis,” referring to his rock 'n' roll demeanor.

This struck a cord with the community, becoming a hit on social media with plenty of likes, comments and laughing Emojis.

The man in question, Andrew Gaskell, 37, a resident of Newport, Rhode Island, stole approximately $400 of merchandise from Sears in Dartmouth, then led police on a chase to the Rhode Island line before the chase was terminated at the state border. At the time of the incident, Gaskell was operating a black Ford Taurus with Massachusetts plates.

On Feb. 29 members of the Rhode Island State Police Violent Fugitive Task Force arrested Gaskell for pending charges from the Tiverton and Portsmouth Police and for fleeing from Massachusetts State Police for larceny.

According to Rhode Island State Police, Gaskell was arraigned in Second District Court on the arrest warrants from Tiverton and Portsmouth, along with the fugitive from justice charge.

Meanwhile, on Facebook, the Dartmouth police wonder “if Andrew ‘Elvis’ Gaskell was singing ‘Don't Be Cruel’ when members of the Rhode Island State Police Violent Fugitive Task Force locked him up?”