Subject of local manhunt arrested in Belton

By LYNETTE SOWELL

Cove Leader-Press

Robert Westly Morris II was arrested on Tuesday evening around 8:30 in the 7600 block of Sparta Road in Belton.

He was arrested without incident, according to a representative of the U.S. Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force, the agency that arrested Morris.

Morris, a Temple resident, and Johnnie Heintzman, 30, of Copperas Cove, had been the subject of a pursuit that began in Lampasas County by Texas Parks & Wildlife game wardens who responded to a criminal trespass call on the afternoon of Nov. 18.

The pursuit then led to Big Divide Road in Copperas Cove, where the suspects’ vehicle reportedly ran out of gas. Heintzman was arrested and held in the Lampasas County Jail on criminal mischief charges. Morris was last seen fleeing the scene with a firearm after he allegedly fired on the game wardens.

The search continued in the Big Divide area for Morris on Wednesday and into the following days, with the search widening. Agencies searched on horseback, with canines, and on foot, with the air search including the use of drones.

Morris is presently being remanded to the McLennan County Jail, where he is facing federal charges, along with multiple state felony warrants.

Along with the U.S. Marshals, other agencies involved in the nearly one-week search for Morris included Texas Parks & Wildlife; Killeen Police Department; Bell County Sheriff’s Office; Coryell County Sheriff’s Office; Lampasas County Sheriff’s Office; Copperas Cove Police Department; Texas Department of Public Safety.

According to the U.S. Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force, Morris will likely appear before a federal magistrate for any type of bond hearing, but not until next week.