Career Offender on pre-trial release arrested for stealing vehicle after owner got sick

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Ricky Morrow, 51, was arrested yesterday for stealing a vehicle after the owner became sick and got out of the vehicle; Morrow was last arrested on January 17 and was released after posting bail.

At about 12:26 p.m. on February 10, a Gainesville Police Department officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that had been reported stolen.

The victim said he had been in his vehicle with a black male who matched Morrow’s description when he started feeling sick, so he got out of the driver’s seat and the man jumped into the driver’s seat and drove away in the vehicle without his permission.

A search of the car reportedly produced about 0.2 grams of MDMA and about 0.6 grams of cocaine.

Post Miranda, Morrow reportedly said that he and the victim were getting high when the victim started feeling sick and went to the hospital, leaving the vehicle for him to use.

Morrow has been charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle, possession of a controlled substance without a prescription, and driving without a valid license. He is a designated Career Offender who has 21 felony convictions (two violent) and 26 misdemeanor convictions (six violent); he has served six state prison sentences, with his most recent release in September 2024. He was most recently arrested on January 17 for trespassing after a warning and resisting an officer without violence and was released after posting $10,000 bail. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $22,000 on the new charges.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.