Crime & Safety
Prosecutor: Newark Man Wanted for Torching Mayoral Candidate's Campaign Bus
An arrest warrant has been issued for Michael Benkowski, who allegedly set fire and put sugar in the engine of Ras Baraka's bus.
A 43-year-old Newark man has been identified as the person who set a city mayoral candidate's campaign bus on fire earlier this year, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said.
An arrest warrant was issued Tuesday for Michael Benkowski on charges of third-degree arson, third-degree criminal mischief and third-degree burglary for setting the fire to Ras Baraka's campaign bus on Feb. 16, the prosecutor's office said.
Benkowski remained at-large as of late Tuesday afternoon.
According to the prosecutor's office, the bus was torched and sugar was put in the engine during the early-morning hours of Feb. 16 at 423 Central Ave. Surveillance video and other technology revealed a white Chevy Express van was involved in the arson, the prosecutor's office said.
Authorities stopped a 2007 Chevy Express van in the area of Morris and Central avenues in Newark on March 7, the prosecutor's office said. A South Orange man was driving the vehicle and has not been charged in the arson, the prosecutor's office said.
The van is registered to Newark-based Prestige Professional Management LLC and was linked to Benkowski, the prosecutor's office said.
Anyone with information on the incident or Benkowski's whereabouts can contact the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Major Crimes Task Force tips line at 877-847-7432.
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