Several complaints led investigators to arrest a New York City mail handler who was part of a scheme that modified thousands of stolen checks to resell them to online buyers.
The USPS Office of Inspector General, also known as the OIG, learned that checks mailed to several businesses in New York’s financial district were never delivered, and later cashed by unknown third parties.
An investigation conducted by OIG special agents — along with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, FBI and local police — zeroed in on a mail handler working at a Post Office in lower Manhattan.
The mail handler was arrested after investigators saw him pick up bundles of mail on a workroom floor and stuff them into his personal bag. They found approximately 300 mailpieces in his possession.
The employee admitted that he had been stealing packages and checks several times a week for about a year. He said he sold the checks to an outside accomplice, who would then doctor the checks and sell them online.
After executing search warrants at the accomplice’s home and another location, investigators recovered 3,500 mailpieces containing checks.
The man was arrested. He and the mail handler pleaded guilty and were sentenced to one year in prison and ordered to pay $2.8 million in damages.
Overall, the stolen checks recovered were valued at approximately $12 million.
The OIG recently highlighted this case on its website.
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