West Springfield police arrested a Connecticut man Thursday who may have played a role in a series of local bank robberies, including one at a Florence Savings Bank branch in Northampton on Wednesday.

Gerund A. Mickens, 36, of Bloomfield, Conn., was arrested at 8:43 a.m. Thursday following a car chase, according to the West Springfield police log.

However, authorities declined to specify what role Mickens might have played in the recent robberies, which occurred at banks in Northampton, South Hadley, Agawam, Chicopee and Springfield.

Both West Springfield and Northampton police declined comment on Friday.

"He has not been charged in relation to anything to do with us," Northampton Police Sgt. Jody Kasper said Thursday night.

According to the West Springfield police log, Mickens faces charges of operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license, failure to stop for police and reckless operation of a motor vehicle.

On Wednesday, a man described as black, between the ages of 40 and 50, about 5-feet-7 inches, with a gray beard and glasses and wearing a gray fedora, trench coat and jeans, entered the Florence Savings Bank branch on King Street in Northampton and handed a teller a note demanding money.

He fled with an undisclosed sum of cash in what police believe was a silver Chevrolet Traverse. A man fitting similar descriptions, though with a variety of hats, is a suspect in other recent bank robberies.

The arrest of Mickens came after a car chase involving what may be the same Chevrolet Traverse, according to police. The driver took off after a traffic stop in West Springfield and crossed into Springfield, where he allegedly caused an accident, police said. West Springfield police caught Mickens on Riverdale Street near the North End Bridge rotary.

Gazette Staff Writer Dan Crowley contributed to this story.