After nearly 30 years, NYPD detectives say they were able to track down the man they believe is responsible for a string of sickening rapes in Queens during the 1990s.
Police sources say the Special Victims Division DNA Cold Case Squad, located in the Bronx, retested fingerprints and DNA from 29 years prior and found a match that led them to Michael Benjamin. The 57-year-old once resided in Queens but has since moved to Georgia, where he was cuffed by local authorities and extradited back to the Big Apple on Thursday.
Law enforcement sources accused Benjamin of raping five women in the confines of the 105th Precinct, which covers much of southeast Queens, between 1995 and 1997.
Yet the suspect boisteriously maintained his innocence as special victims detectives walked him out of the headquarters of NYPD Detective Bureau Bronx, where the department’s Special Victims Division DNA Cold Case Squad is housed.
“I didn’t do this! I didn’t do none of this!” Benjamin cried with arms cuffed behind his back as he was walked to a vehicle headed for Queens Central Booking.
“What fingerprints? I didn’t do this! I didn’t do this, up!” He hollered as he was placed in the back of an unmarked police vehicle. He continued to cry out as the vehicle pulled away.
Timeline of the Queens rapes
Police say the first attack occurred on July 25, 1995, inside a home near 113th Road and 194th Street in St. Albans. Cops alleged that Benjamin raped a sleeping 24-year-old woman and stole jewelry.
Cops say he next struck just over a year later on Aug. 24, 1996, in a home near 140th and South Conduit Avenues in Rosedale. In this case, the suspect allegedly entered the residence through a glass sliding door before entering the bedroom and throwing a jacket over the head of a 27-year-old woman in bed.
Law enforcement sources said the perpetrator then raped her and added insult to injury by searching the home for items to sell, all while threatening the victim not to look at him.
A mere month later, on Sept. 15, 1996, Benjamin allegedly grabbed a 21-year-old on 131st Avenue and Hook Creek Boulevard in Rosedale. At gunpoint, he forced her into her backyard and searched her for money. He then took her inside her home, shut off the lights, and raped her in her bedroom.
Police said the suspect then allegedly attacked two women in Rosedale on Feb. 7, 1997, near the corner of 241st Street and 136th Avenue. He entered the home and threatened two 21-year-old women to take their clothing off, forced one into a bed, put sheets over her head, and pushed the other into the kitchen and made her shut off the lights.
Prosecutors said he raped one victim in the bed and the other in the kitchen and bathroom. He ended the attack by going through their refrigerator and eating their food.
Police said Benjamin had been previously arrested for a rape that occurred in 1991. He now faces five counts of rape, achieved in part through the efforts of the victims to help police build their case, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
“After several decades, this defendant will finally face charges of violently raping at least five women, some at gunpoint, between the years 1995 and 1997 in southeast Queens. Although decades have passed, these cold cases were not forgotten,” Katz said. “Thanks to the bravery of the victims, vital DNA evidence was gathered, which helped law enforcement identify the person responsible. It is never too late for justice, and I thank my prosecutors and the detectives for their work on this case.”
