The Postal Service Office of Inspector General (OIG) has a mission to guard against fraud, waste, and abuse. They are one of the most active OIGs, with nearly 2,200 arrests over the past five years.
The total financial impact of fraud investigations was almost $350 million in fiscal year 2024, with more than $25 million returned directly to the Postal Service.
This amount doesn’t include cases involving fraudulent activity related to mail theft. This is especially important at this time of year, when many people are waiting for tax refund checks. The OIG works with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and different divisions of the Treasury Department to deter and detect the theft and fraudulent cashing of Treasury checks sent through the mail. In a recent case, OIG special agents uncovered an employee at a North Carolina processing plant who stole $24 million worth of checks including $8 million in Treasury checks.