Formal Charges Filed in Superior Homicide Case

SUPERIOR, Wis. – Charges have been filed against a Superior man accused of killing his mother in the Central Park neighborhood just before 7:00 a.m. Tuesday.

Robert Bennett III, 39, has now been formally charged with first-degree intentional homicide.

According to the criminal complaint, multiple officers were dispatched to a residence on Norwood Avenue on reports of a stabbing.

When officers arrived at the scene they found a female victim, later identified as Cindy Bennett, laying on her back on the living room floor with what appeared to be blood on and around her body.

The female victim was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

According to the complaint, officers on the scene noticed an object protruding from the victim’s neck that appeared to be a plastic pen.

One of the victim’s sons, Robert Lee Bennett III, was taken to the police department for questioning.

According to reports, Bennett had what appeared to be blood spatter on his face, right shoe and sock, his right sweatshirt sleeve, and on both of his hands.

It was also noted that Bennett had two cuts on his right hand, which included a laceration between his thumb and index finger, and a cut on his pinky finger.

According to the criminal complaint, Cindy’s sister told police that she had received a call earlier in the day from Cindy indicating that her son Robert had been ‘acting weird’ and she was trying to convince him to go to the hospital.

When the victim’s sister arrived at the house a short time later she found Cindy on the living room floor with “blood all over the place.”

She told police she saw something in Cindy’s neck and a knife handle on the chair next to her.

During questioning, Robert Bennett told detectives that his mother wanted to take him to the hospital which he did not like.

The criminal complaint says he told detectives that his mother had a “weird needle” in her shirt pocket and when she went to pick up the needle he threw her to the ground.

He then told detectives he took a knife from the kitchen and said  “then I went to do that, and she went to do that” while making gestures with his hands.

When asked by the detective if the knife went into his mother, Bennett replied “so, yup.”

Bennett told the detective “she tried to get me, so I stabbed her.”

During a formal autopsy, the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office found a large metal object embedded in the victim’s head.

According to reports, the object was found to be a large serrated metal blade. The blade was compared to the knife handle found at the victim’s residence and appeared to be the exact same size as of the portion of the blade that was still attached to the handle.

The pathologist also found the object protruding from the victim’s neck to be the metal end of an electronic cooking thermometer that had the handle broken off.

Bail has been set at $1 million cash with conditions.

Bennett is scheduled to appear in court for a status conference on Monday and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.