By Taylor Sanzo
masslive.com
WHITMAN, Mass. — This is one arrest that actually has a happy ending.
Earlier in September, the Whitman Police Department received a request to help out a Massachusetts man propose to his girlfriend.
“Of course the easy response is flat out ‘No.’ But I had to hear more,” someone from the department wrote on its Facebook page.
One Whitman police officer received a call from a friend who the department referred to as “Swifty” on Facebook, who works at another Police Department on the South Shore. Swifty told the officer that he had a friend named Wayne Morse who wanted help from the police to help him propose to his girlfriend.
“Hey Swifty, have Wayne give me a call,” the officer said.
“I want you to arrest me,” Morse said after a long pause of silence from the officer. He then told the officer his plans to propose to his girlfriend and now fiancé, Kristen Fleming.
Here’s how the plan was going to go, as detailed in the Facebook post.
Morse was headed to The Patio at McGuiggan’s in Whitman with Fleming and her parents on Friday, Sept. 9. He told police that he wanted officers to come into the restaurant, lock him up in front of Fleming and her parents, and when she comes over to the police cruiser to find out what is going on, he would exit the cop car, get down on one knee and propose.
Police Chief Timothy Hanlon approved the plan saying “sure, go ahead. What could go wrong?”
The owner of the restaurant, Richard Rosen, was in on the prank too along with Fleming’s parents.
Watch the full video from the Whitman Police Department of the proposal below.
https://www.facebook.com/MyEyewitnessNews/videos/821333135719061/
Sgt. Andy Stafford, Officer Jeff Cormier and Officer Rob Silva went inside the restaurant, found Morse and placed him under arrest. Fleming gets up and follows them out the door, while restaurant guests take in what just happened.
As she heads outside, Wayne is let out of the police cruiser without handcuffs on. He then drops to his knee and pops the question in the middle of a group of police.
In the video, Fleming throws her hands over her face and nods her head yes just before the two embrace, celebrating the proposal.
“We were very grateful to participate in Wayne and Kristen’s unique proposal. We were fortunate to have some quiet time (no calls) that enabled us to do it,” the department wrote on Facebook.
The department advised its followers that this event was a “one-and-done occasion” as they asked followers “please do not flood our answering machines with all sorts of crazy requests. Wayne fooled us once. It won’t happen again!”
The Whitman Police Department then wished the two love, health and happiness in their future.
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