The United States Postal Inspection Service started investigating mail thefts at a Macon post office on May 29, 2024. Inspectors found a piece of cardboard inside a blue box, which blocked the mail from falling down into the blue box. The trap allowed whoever set it to then put his or her hand inside and grab the mail.
Two days later, a USPS employee spotted a Black Tesla pull up multiple times to the blue box. The employee said the driver didn’t place anything into the blue box.
Inspectors saw the same Tesla return that afternoon and saw the driver stick his hand into the box and pulled items out.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office later pulled over the driver, identified as Ponder. Inside the Tesla, they found 52 pieces of stolen mail, two cell phones and a cardboard box and tape that matched the trap.