Houston police search for suspect who beat, stole Social Security check from 65-year-old man

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Houston police are searching for a man believed to be responsible for robbing a 65-year-old man at gunpoint and stealing his Social Security check.

In connection with this case, Oscar Lee Benjamin, 38, is charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and unlawful carrying of a weapon with a felony conviction.

The victim said he went to the L&L Market at the corner of Gregg and Orange streets in the Greater Fifth Ward around 8:30 p.m. on April 30.

He told investigators that Benjamin approached him about purchasing a gun and he refused before entering the store.

When he got out, the victim, who asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, said he stood next to his own car for a few minutes. The man, who police identified as Benjamin, is seen on surveillance video casually approaching the victim and knocking him to the ground.

The victim said Benjamin held him at gunpoint and demanded his wallet, which contained his $1,000 Social Security check that he used to pay his bills.

“I gave up the money,” the victim said. “I think I made the right decision.”

According to the victim, Benjamin left and called the police.

“You want to rob elderly people who can’t even take care of themselves,” the victim said of the suspect. “He’s a weak man to me.”

In the weeks that followed, the victim again encountered the suspect while he was sitting on a friend’s porch near the grocery store.

“He rolled in front of the man’s house, jumped out with a gun in his right hand and started talking shit,” the victim recalled.

He also said Benjamin threatened his sons. The victim in this case said she felt angry and hoped Benjamin would be arrested.

“It affects my life because every time I drive or get out of the car I look around,” the victim said. “It greatly affects my life. I don’t like living like I’m in prison, but I’m a free man. I don’t like living like that.”

At the time of the robbery, Benjamin was on probation for evading arrest or detention in 2021 with a vehicle charge. Court records show that while on probation he was charged in Travis County with burglary of a vehicle.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call the Houston Police Department’s Robbery Division at 713-308-0700 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.

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