A Smyrna post office worker has been charged with stealing checks, credit cards and debit cards from the mail and then working with another man to cash the checks and use the cards.
Smyrna Police Lt. Brian Donner said detectives believe all the thefts happened at the Smyrna post office. The investigation lasted several months, and Smyrna police received help from the U.S. Postal Inspector’s Office and Dover police.
Some of the checks were altered and cashed, police said, while the cards were used to make purchases and withdrawals.
The post office employee, a 25-year-old Smyrna man, was arrested Tuesday. Smyrna police used a warrant to search his home on Providence Drive where they said they found stolen mail, drugs and weapons.
The suspect was arrested and charged with 92 counts of theft, 10 counts of selling stolen property, nine counts of identity theft, nine counts of unlawful use of credit cards, three counts of theft where the victim is 62 or older, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, two counts of possession of deadly weapon by a person prohibited, possession of a controlled substance, possession with intent to deliver, possession of drug paraphernalia, conspiracy, official misconduct and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
He was committed to the Department of Correction on a $30,702 secured bond while he awaits a court hearing.
More:Mail theft is on the rise. Here’s how to keep yours safe.
In the investigation, police said they also linked a 33-year-old Dover man to the scheme. He was arrested by Dover police with a search warrant relating to a drug investigation.
He was charged with 83 counts of receiving stolen property, nine counts of identity theft, nine counts of unlawful use of a payment card, conspiracy and criminal impersonation.
He would have been released on a $31,900 unsecured bond while awaiting a court hearing, but was held by the Department of Correction on other charges, police said.
Smyrna police are asking anyone who may have been a victim in this scheme to call the police department at (302) 653-9217. Police said users of the postal system can participate in the free U.S. Postal Service informed delivery program to help prevent theft.
According to the postal service, reports of mail theft and robberies have been on the rise since the COVID-19 pandemic. In the 2022 fiscal year, 412 letter carriers were robbed on the job. In the first half of the 2023 fiscal year, there were 305 robberies of letter carriers.
Reach reporter Ben Mace at rmace@gannett.com.
