A man who assaulted a Hancock police officer and attempted to steal the officer’s cruiser before he was arrested pleaded not guilty on Friday to a three-count indictment handed down by a federal grand jury in October.
Michael Munroe, 33, of Concord, faces one count of carjacking and two counts of bank robbery, stemming from an alleged two-state multi-week crime spree that took place in March and April.
Munroe faces a charge for allegedly taking a 2004 Honda Pilot from a woman while she sat in the vehicle in Manchester on March 27. He also faces two charges for allegedly robbing a Northway Bank branch in Ossipee on March 28, and robbing a Granite State Credit Union branch in Seabrook on April 1.
On June 29, Munroe was found guilty of two counts for simple assault and resisting arrest in 8th Circuit Distrcit Court in Jaffrey. Both are Class A misdemeanors.
Police also arrested Rebecca Norton, 29, of Raymond, shortly after Munroe was apprehended. She was charged with two counts for possession of controlled drugs and criminal mischief. Those charges were moved from district court to Hillsborough County Superior Court North.
Hancock officers were alerted about suspicious activity a day prior to Munroe’s arrest when they found an abandoned 2016 Honda CRV with no license plates on a class VI road. The vehicle was waterlogged in more than two feet of mud, according to a previous article published by the Ledger-Transcript.
The next morning, officers were called to a Bennington home to investigate a report of a suspicious man who knocked on a residents door and asked to use the telephone.
After the report was made officers began searching for the man. Hancock officer Frank Shea eventually located Munroe near Fiddleheads Cafe. Shea searched Munroe for weapons at which point the suspect became defensive.
In court, Shea said Munroe swung punched him, striking his upper left cheek bone. Munroe then began to run. Shea caught Munroe near the Hancock Market, but punched him again in the jaw before sprinting away.
Munroe jumped into the police cruiser and attempted to put the vehicle in gear. A group was able to pull Munroe out of the cruiser and wrestle him onto the ground where he was cuffed.
Police said Munroe was in possession of what they believed to be heroin and cocaine and related paraphernalia.
A trial has been scheduled to take place in the two-week period between December 13-27 in front of Senior U.S. District Judge Steven McAuliffe.
If convicted, Munroe faces a maximum of 15 years in prison for carjacking, and a maximum of 20 years for each bank robbery offense.
Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com.