BOSTON — A Boston man who walked free just weeks ago after posting $500 bail on an armed robbery charge has now been arrested again, after prosecutors tied him to a separate high-end car theft spree that took place earlier this fall and ended with a police officer injured during a violent getaway.

The suspect, Anthony Crumbley, was arrested in late October on charges including armed robbery and assault, stemming from an incident in the South End. Despite the seriousness of those charges, a judge set bail at just $500, allowing him to return to the streets while the case remained pending.

Authorities now say that while the armed robbery arrest came in October, the high-end car thefts happened earlier — in August and September — across downtown Boston and the Seaport, where multiple luxury vehicles were stolen from parking garages.

According to prosecutors, one of those thefts escalated when a police officer attempted to stop a stolen vehicle Crumbley was driving. Court records say the suspect used the car to flee, throwing it into reverse and accelerating, dragging the officer and injuring their hand, forearm, and leg before striking other vehicles and escaping.

The officer survived, but prosecutors charged the incident as a violent felony, saying the stolen vehicle was used as a weapon during the escape.

Those charges were filed after Crumbley had already been arrested — and released on bail — in the armed robbery case, a sequence that has fueled renewed scrutiny of bail decisions involving violent offenders.

Crumbley now faces a long list of charges tied to the car theft case, including larceny of a motor vehicle, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (a motor vehicle), reckless operation, failure to stop for police, and leaving the scene of an injury. Bail was set significantly higher following the second arrest.

The case has quickly become a flashpoint in the broader debate over crime and accountability in Suffolk County, with critics pointing to District Attorney Kevin Hayden and the courts for allowing a defendant accused of armed robbery to walk free on just $500 — only for prosecutors to later reveal ties to a violent incident involving an injured police officer.

Supporters of current bail practices argue defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. But opponents say the timeline in this case — high-end car thefts in August and September, an armed robbery arrest in October, a $500 release, and a second arrest tied to a police injury — raises serious questions about whether the system is protecting the public.

Crumbley remains in custody as both cases move forward through the courts.