Onondaga (WSYR-TV) -- Another fugitive has been caught thanks to NewsChannel 9 viewers.
Viewer tips help lead police to Kenneth E. Bennett, 52, of Syracuse, who was arrested Wednesday.
Bennett is accused of taking a 2008 Pontiac Grand Prix and a 1999 Ford pickup from an acquaintance in the Town of Onondaga. Officials say the truck was lent to Bennett for business purposes but was never returned. The same goes for Grand Prix, which officials say Bennett used to travel out of state to Tennessee. After an extended period of time the owner reported the vehicles stolen.
An investigation revealed Bennett was also collecting rent money from tenants living at apartments he was employed with, but officials say he never gave the money to the landlord.
Bennett is facing grand and petit larceny charges in both the Town of Onondaga and the City of Syracuse. He is being held at the Justice Center pending an arraignment.
Additional charges are pending.
Fugitive of the Week: Man accused of beating his girlfriend, ripping off the elderly
August 1, 2011
Syracuse (WSYR-TV) - A man who told Syracuse Police two weeks ago that he would surrender himself is nowhere to be found and the authorities want the public to be On the Lookout for him.
Kenneth Bennett, 52, has been accused of assaulting his girlfriend and stealing from senior citizens.
“It was apparently a stall tactic for me to stop looking for him,” said Syracuse Police Detective Gary Coe.
Syracuse Police had information that Bennett was recently at Camp Sandy Creek in Oswego County. Police say he is also known to frequent the city of Syracuse and is wanted in Madison County on a grand larceny charge.
They warn that the fugitive is a scam artist and anyone who encounters him should be aware of his ploys.
“He's a full blown con man from the word go,” Coe said. “He's smooth talking and apparently he can talk people out of their savings.”
According to Onondaga County Sheriff’s Deputies, Bennett convinced an elderly woman to give him the title of her car.
Detectives also want to question him about other scams involving the elderly. In those instances, they say a suspect offered to fix roofs or clean gutters and then took their money without providing a service.
They say he routinely changes his looks and his address.
“Whether it's facial hair to shaving himself bald, it definitely changes his overall looks,” Coe said.
Bennett does have some permanent markings, including a tattoo of a Native American chief on his left arm and a snake on his right.
Anyone with information on Bennett should call (315) 442-5230.
