Rain–which we had here in Las Vegas this past weekend–didn’t stop the postman from delivering bills I have to pay. Sleet and snow don’t stop the US mail, either. However, theft of the mail will stop it. One postal carrier will likely be heading to ClubFed because he stole mail used in an identity theft ring.
Earl Champagne delivered mail in Pennsaucken, New Jersey. From the Department of Justice press release:
Champagne admitted that from March 2014 to July 2014 he stole U.S. Treasury Checks from the mail and gave them to others. He said he was approached by two individuals who asked him to retrieve checks from the mail with the promise that he would be paid. The individuals told Champagne that the checks were IRS checks and that they would mostly be addressed to individuals with “Spanish” names. The individuals expected to either pick up the checks from Champagne or for him to notify them that the checks were in the mailbox so that they could retrieve the checks themselves. For this service, Champagne was paid $50 per check for every check stolen from the mail. Champagne admitted that he stole 72 U.S. checks totaling $442,776.
Theft of mail is a felony–and can be subject to a lengthy term at ClubFed (up to 15 years and a $250,000 fine per offense). This wasn’t a brilliant idea as sooner or later someone would notice the lack of the refund check, and then the IRS would be notified and it would be fairly easy to figure out the issue. For Mr. Champagne, the Bozo aspect of his crime didn’t occur to him…but it likely does now (a bit too late for him).