Mishawaka man accused of stalking two women, threatening to kill estranged wife

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- A 48-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly stalking two women and causing them to fear for their lives, according to court records.

Benjamin Eric Hall has been charged with two counts of stalking, one for each victim.

The first victim, a former girlfriend, obtained a protective order against Hall on October 25, 2019.

On January 21, 2020, the victim told investigators with the St. Joseph County special Victims Unit about messages and objects Hall has been leaving for her, according to the probable cause affidavit.

She detailed the following incidents:

• December 20, 2019 - Hall texted the victim saying he had seen her in traffic
• December 29, 2019 - The victim found a metal triangle with her name and Hall's name engraved on it, along with Hall's phone number.
• January 6, 2020 - The victim found another metal triangle outside her residence with another message about Hall engraved on it.
• January 10, 2020 - The victim found two handmade metal cases in her back yard with her name and Hall's name engraved on them.

The victim provided investigators with other metal objects with messages allegedly written by Hall. She said the objects were found by her car, by her son's car, by her husband's car, in her yard and in her daughter's yard, according to the probable cause affidavit.

She said she has been receiving calls and messages from different numbers she believes are all Hall. She said Hall had put photos of her up at a restaurant and gas station parking lots, reports said.

The victim told police she is scared to go anywhere alone because she is afraid Hall will kill her, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Investigators served a search warrant at Hall's residence on January 25 and found metal pieces similar to the ones the victim received, reports said.

Hall is also accused of stalking a second woman, his estranged wife.

The second victim received a protective order against Hall on January 15, 2020.

On January 31, the victim went to the Special Victim's Unit to discuss Hall's alleged harassment, reports said.

The second victim told police she has received the following communications from Hall, according to the probable cause affidavit:

• The victim said Hall had showed up to her workplace every day for a week and said if she didn't come outside to talk to her, he would kill himself, according to the probable cause affidavit.
• Hall sent a video of himself holding a pistol in his mouth.
• On January 17, Hall said in a message, "I can't believe you got a restraining order against me."
• On February 6, a mutual friend sent the victim screenshots of a conversation with Hall. In the conversation Hall allegedly said, "I've got nothing left to lose…I"ll see her tomorrow and end everything…I found out she's moving in with some guy. When I catch her with her new man they could be 3 deaths that day."

On February 7, detectives served a search warrant for Hall's iPhone, reports said.

On the phone, investigators located a message Hall sent to the victim that included a pornographic video along with the statement, "I’m going to [expletive deleted] kill you," according to the probable cause affidavit.

They also found on the phone, according to reports:

• On January 17, Hall sent the victim a message that said, "I will kill myself today at 1 o'clock."
• Between January 15 and January 17, Hall called the victim 121 times.
• Hall also left the victim two voice mails, one on February 2 and one on February 4.

Hall was charged in both cases on February 21, 2020 and was arrested on February 24. He will be arraigned on February 25.