Money tossed in Pasco bank robbery recovered

LAND O'LAKES — All of the money tossed out of a bank robber's getaway car has been recovered, according to the Pasco County Sheriff's Office.

Tito Morell, 34, took $7,889 when he robbed a Wachovia bank in Hudson on Tuesday afternoon, authorities said. He then led deputies on an 80- to 90-mph chase east on State Road 52 and stopped on U.S. 41, the Sheriff's Office said.

With a gun to his head and his tires shot out by deputies, Morell kept authorities in a standoff for six hours, shutting down a large portion of U.S. 41 and stranding hundreds of residents who couldn't get home.

Morell's father and brother were brought to the scene to help the negotiator talk Morell into giving up.

At nearly 9 p.m., the standoff ended and Morell — who has served two stints in prison totaling nearly seven years — was arrested. He was taken into mandatory mental health custody because he was suicidal, said Kevin Doll, spokesman for the Sheriff's Office.

Morell, of Sun City Center, is charged with robbery with a deadly weapon.