Arizona sex offender arrested for allegedly faking his death

MESA, AZ (AZFamily) — A man who was supposed to register as a sex offender faked his own death to get away with it has been arrested, the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday.

Deputies said Benjamin Hollins, 50, was convicted as a sex offender in California more than 20 years ago and moved to Arizona in 2018, but did not register.

While working as a behavioral health counselor, he reoffended by kidnapping and attempting to molest a 16-year-old female client.

“He shouldn’t have even come out,” Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb said in a video posted to social media.

He accepted a plea deal and was sentenced to supervised probation. He had to register every year as a sex offender.

Then, in October, Hollins asked a woman to file a false report, claiming he had committed suicide by jumping from the Roosevelt Bridge.

No body was ever found.

Since Hollins was “dead,” his sex offender registration expired.

“Chandler police have not given up. They continued to investigate and they found it,” Lamb said.

Detectives reportedly found him at a home in Mesa, where he was living under an assumed name.

Hollins was taken into custody Tuesday.

He was arrested on Tuesday.(Pinal County Sheriff’s Office)

Investigators said he lived in a family with children and they had no idea of his criminal past.

“Nice try, Benjamin. We found you. You are not dead. We’re going to hold you accountable,” Lamb said.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it.

Do you have a photo or video of a news report? Send it’s ours here with a brief description.