Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey said that the suspended chief of the Perth Amboy Police Department was arrested today and charged with trespassing on the property of a convenience store and claiming he was a police officer when he was confronted by the owner and employees.
Benjamin Ruiz, 54, of Perth Amboy was charged with trespass and impersonating a police officer. He actually had been previously suspended from duty when he was confronted by store workers at the convenience store located on Smith Street.
He had been confronted on multiple occasions between February 1, 2016 and May 18, 2016.
During an investigation, it was determined that the chief was hiding outside the convenience store to watch an unidentified neighbor. On multiple occasions, Ruiz was questioned by employees and told them he was a police officer.
But Ruiz was not acting as a police officer and had been suspended from duty in December 2014, after he was arrested and charged in an unrelated theft case.
Ruiz began working as a police officer for the city on May 23, 1988, and was appointed chief on September 10, 2012.
The investigation is active and is continuing.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office at (732) 745-3300.
Photo: Perth Amboy Police Department
Related story: https://www.rlsmedia.com/article/perth-amboy-police-chief-charged-theft