Manhunt underway in Massachusetts for man suspected of York robbery

SALISBURY, Mass. (WMTW) - Police in Salisbury, Massachusetts, are looking for the suspect in two robberies and a police chase across state lines, though the active search was ending Tuesday morning.

Investigators say Brandon Simmons, 34, robbed the Bangor Savings Bank in York, Maine around 10:30 a.m. Monday morning. Police say he did not show a weapon, though Massachusetts State Police say he did claim to have a bomb. Nobody was hurt in the incident.

York police say he left the bank in a white utility van with New Hampshire license plates, escaping with an undisclosed amount of money.

Salisbury police Chief Thomas Fowler said that just before 5:00 p.m. Monday, a local officer noticed a white van that matched the description from the York robbery.

The officer pulled over the van and identified the driver as Simmons, whose last known address was in Seabrook, New Hampshire.

The officer says Simmons hit him and drove away before the officer could stop him, starting a police chase northbound from North End Boulevard in Salisbury across the state line into Seabrook.

The chase continued back into Salisbury, with Seabrook and Massachusetts State Police now also involved in the pursuit. Officials decided to end the chase since it was becoming too dangerous as the van and police vehicles wound through residential areas.

Shortly after, the white van hit another car near the intersection of Elm Street and Gardner Street in Salisbury. The driver of the van, still believed to be Brandon Simmons, got out of the car and ran into a residential neighborhood nearby. The driver of the car with whom Simmons collided is expected to be OK.

Residents in Salisbury are being told to stay in their homes to allow police from several surrounding towns as well as Massachusetts State Police to conduct a search of the area.

Officials say Simmons is also a suspect in a robbery at a CVS Pharmacy in Newburyport, Massachusetts, on Saturday.