A postal carrier who federal prosecutors said was caught on camera stealing cash, lottery tickets, gift cards and other items from the mail in western New York has avoided a prison sentence.
After community members in Rochester complained to the U.S. Postal Service that “their mail had been tampered with,” surveillance cameras were installed in the employee’s delivery vehicles and recorded her from January 2022 to November 2023, according to court documents.
On 38 separate occasions, the mail carrier was seen rifling through nearly 90 pieces of mail she was meant to deliver along her route, court documents said.
After opening envelopes, prosecutors said she ripped them up, tossed them out of her vehicle, or resealed and delivered them.
During one shift, she stole cash from two envelopes, which she then ripped up, before putting the money into her wallet on Feb. 28, 2022, according to an affidavit. That same day, she opened two more envelopes, kept a lottery ticket found inside, and resealed both pieces of mail, the affidavit says.
Other items she stole from the mail included ticket stubs and documents, according to prosecutors.
In January, the 40-year-old Rochester woman pleaded guilty to theft of mail matter by an officer or employee, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.
On May 10, a federal judge sentenced her to serve two years probation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced in a news release. Prior to sentencing, she faced up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to prosecutors.
The woman’s defense attorney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on May 13.
While the woman was under investigation, investigators carried out “mail integrity tests” by putting cash and gift cards inside greeting cards that she was supposed to deliver in May and November 2023, prosecutors said.
On Nov. 2, she was detained, investigators executed a search warrant and found one of the gift cards they placed in the mail inside her duffel bag, prosecutors said.
The investigation was led by the USPS Office of Inspector General.
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