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Written by: A. Smith
Published October 21, 2025 @ 11:00 AM ET
ROCKDALE COUNTY, Ga. – A Georgia man has been arrested and charged in connection with a string of rapes and burglaries that targeted women in southeast Queens nearly three decades ago, authorities said.
Michael Benjamin, 57, of Conyers, Georgia, was arraigned on a 17-count indictment that includes multiple charges of rape, sodomy, sexual abuse, burglary, and robbery, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced. Investigators said Benjamin allegedly raped five women between 1995 and 1997 in the neighborhoods of Jamaica, St. Albans, Laurelton, and Brookville.
The case broke open after DNA recovered from a discarded cup used by Benjamin at the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office in Georgia matched DNA collected from the original crime scenes. Benjamin was apprehended in Georgia on September 22 and extradited to New York on October 15.
According to the indictment, the incidents began on July 24, 1995, when Benjamin broke into a woman’s home through a window while she slept, tied her up, placed a sheet over her head, raped her, and fled with cash and jewelry. A year later, on August 24, 1996, he broke into another woman’s home while she slept, covered her head with a jacket, and raped her.
On September 16, 1996, Benjamin approached a woman as she walked to her front door, forced her inside at gunpoint, and threatened to kill her husband and child if she did not comply. He then raped her and stole cash before fleeing. On February 8, 1997, he broke into the home of two women, holding a gun, raped both victims, and took cash and jewelry.
Katz said the breakthrough highlights the persistence of law enforcement and the courage of the survivors who came forward decades ago.
Benjamin faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted of the top charges. Authorities said the case remains under investigation and additional charges could be filed.