A Jamaica Plain robbery victim whose courageous testimony helped cage a career crook for life, slammed her neighbors yesterday in a powerful statement to the court, accusing them of being “silent witnesses to crime.”
The 31-year-old woman was threatened then robbed at knife-point in the vestibule of her building last January by 52-year-old Michael Benjamin, who fled with her handbag.
“As I ran behind him calling ‘thief!’ no one helped me or gave me, at least, their attention,” the victim, who asked to remain anonymous, said in an impact statement to Suffolk Superior Court Judge Patrick Brady yesterday.
She said one couple ignored her desperate plea to use their cell phone to call cops.
Eventually, a man who saw her chasing the suspect lent her his phone, but only after she explained that she had been robbed.
“The Michael Benjamins in our city have made our neighbors silent witnesses of crime. This loss of faith has stayed with me,” the victim said in her statement.
The woman, who lives alone in her apartment, said she was worried about having to testify but overcame her fears.
“I believe that if I fulfill my responsibility as a citizen, that will encourage others to fulfill theirs,” she said.
Benjamin, who has previous convictions for armed robbery in 1976 and 1985, was tried and convicted of one count each of armed robbery and assault with a dangerous weapon, and yesterday was sentenced to life in prison under the state’s habitual criminal statute.
“It’s a harsh sentence and it’s one the defendant brought on himself,” Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.
“The victim was very brave, both in and out of court. We could not have built this case without her, and I hope the result brings her some satisfaction,” he added.
Benjamin, who has no current address, was arrested in a Heath Street apartment building after Boston police received the woman’s 911 call.
She was able to give cops a description and was on the scene to identify him after his arrest.
“Every so often, we hear from a city resident who really embodies civic responsibility,” Conley said. “This was one of those moments, and this was one of those very special residents.”
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