Three Postal Service workers were arrested on charges related to a $1.3 million fraud and identity theft scheme in which they allegedly swindled credit cards from mail they were delivering, according to the Justice Department.
In addition to the three post office workers, six others were involved in the scheme and are facing various charges that could entail over 30 years behind bars, per the DOJ. The fraud machination took place in New York and New Jersey starting in 2018.
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“These nine defendants, three of which are postal employees, sought to enrich themselves by stealing mail directly from hundreds of postal customers,” U.S. Postal Inspection Service Inspector Daniel Brubaker declared.
“They further compounded their crimes by committing identity theft against those customers to facilitate their elaborate scheme to defraud several national financial institutions,” he added.
Postal workers Nathanael Foucault, Johnathan Persaud, and Fabiola Mompoint were detained by authorities on Thursday alongside civilian Devon Richards. Five others involved in the ploy remained at large as of late last week, according to officials.
After allegedly swiping credit cards from the mail, the perpetrators would then purchase items at different stores in New York and New Jersey before selling some of the obtained merchandise on LuxurySnob.com, per the U.S attorney for the Southern District of New York.
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“Make no mistake, the Postal Inspection Service will not allow thieves, no matter who they are, to use the U.S. Mail to harm postal customers or the financial institutions that serve them,” Brubaker added. “We are pleased the members of this criminal syndicate have been apprehended and their crime spree brought to an abrupt end.”
Charges in the case include conspiracy to steal mail by Postal Service employees, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit access device fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and access device fraud. Prison sentences for the charges range from two years to 30.
