NJ councilman surrenders to police after being caught on Post Office camera

✅Tensions have been high between the Washington Township BOE and council

✅3 BOE members received letters mailed at the same time

✅Council member Richard Bennett was caught on video mailing the letters

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP (Gloucester) — A member of the Township Council surrendered to police on Wednesday in connection with anonymous letters sent to Board of Education members.

Councilman Richard Bennett was charged with two counts of harassment and two counts of forgery, according to Washington Township police.

Video from the Post Office showed Bennett purchasing postage and mailing the letter.

He was processed and released by police pending a court appearance.  The Republican is the liaison between the municipal governing body and the Board of Education, according to InsiderNJ.com.

The surrender comes after school board President Julie Kozempel and board members Patricia Blome and Connie Baker, all Democrats, filed a criminal complaint against Bennett last week, accusing him of harassment, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

SEE ALSO: New Jersey Republicans push to ban naming buildings, streets after ‘terrorists’

Conflict between Washington Township Council and school board

Tensions have been growing between the two government bodies over the district budget and the suspension of Superintendent Eric Hibbs. Kozempel, whose home address is the return address on the letters, had asked Council President Peter Del Borrello III to replace Bennett as liaison, according to the Inquirer.

According to the affidavit filed by investigators, two individuals received a letter on May 17. The names were redacted in a copy of the document that the Municipal Court provided to New Jersey 101.5.

The letters contained a similar message with a long run-on sentence.

"Evil, drunk at BOE meetings boozing, stupid personal agenda for dems, forgetting about kids, shameful, dishonest, playing games with the superintendent job, time to step down and you are a disgrace, did not even review the line items on the budget or talk to [redacted], you are a disgrace and God is watching your actions!!!"

How police suspected Councilman Richard Bennett

Using the postal processing code on the envelope, Washington Township detectives were able to determine the letter was mailed from the post office on Hurffville Crosskeys Road, according to the affidavit.

According to the complaint, Bennett has a court appearance scheduled for July 3.

The township has not commented on the charges as of Thursday afternoon. Bennett is still listed on the township website as a council member. Video of Wednesday's council meeting shows that he was not present.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom