Using a tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometer, benzene cations produced by the resonantly enhanced multiphoton ionization are mass separated and are exposed to intense laser fields (similar to 2x10(16) W/cm(2)) at lambda similar to 790 and 395 nm with the pulse duration of similar to 50 fs. Comparing the yields of the product ions with those obtained from neutral benzene molecules, the ionization and dissociation dynamics of benzene in intense laser fields is investigated. At lambda similar to 790 nm, the formation of parent benzene ions is a dominant process irrespective of the initial charge states, i.e., major products obtained when starting from neutral benzene are benzene cations and dications and those obtained when starting from benzene cation are benzene dications. On the other hand, at lambda similar to 395 nm, the fragmentation processes to produce C4Hi+(i=2-4) and C3Hj+(j=1-3) dominate over further ionization to the benzene dication for both cases starting from neutral benzene and benzene cation, indicating the population trapping occurs by the efficient confinement in the light-dressed mixture of the C and X states of benzene cations assisted by the ultrafast intramolecular decay process. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.