Two-time loser tells of thefts from mail

For the past three months, two local men have been using mailbox keys to help themselves to mail in cluster mailboxes in Summerlin and the northwest valley, according to a federal indictment.

You could be one of their victims. I am.

Derrick Hutson and Marshal Stapleton were arrested April 23 and indicted Tuesday on charges of conspiracy, unauthorized possession of counterfeit U.S. Post Office keys, possession of stolen mail and aiding and abetting.

The initial credit for their arrest goes to an alert woman.

Her name isn’t public, but on April 7, she called police and said she saw two men taking mail from boxes in her community around 2 a.m.

The police were too late, but the Postal Service was in luck. This gated community had video surveillance, which showed a vehicle with two men entering and leaving about 2 a.m. The license plate on a 2002 Honda Accord was registered to Hutson. The postal inspectors began surveillance on the car, and on April 23, about 2:20 a.m., they saw the Honda parked next to another cluster mailbox in Summerlin.

Hutson and Stapleton were arrested. Keys and burglary tools were seized, according to the complaint filed by U.S. Postal Inspector Shad Matheny.
The indictment said items taken from Hutson’s home included stolen U.S. Postal Service mailbox locks and parts, counterfeit keys, uncut keys, a lock pick set, counterfeit Arizona driver’s licenses, a credit card embossing machine, credit card coding devices, blank credit card stock and stolen mail.

Similar items were found in Stapleton’s home, including personal information of others, according to the indictment.

This grab bag of goodies contained all the materials an identity theft ring would find useful.

Continuing the series of “Learn from my mistakes,” I live in a gated community in Summerlin, and this is the second time my mailbox has been broken into.The first time in 2005, the bad guys used a tool to pop the door.
The second time, some weeks ago, master keys were used. The boxes weren’t damaged, but all of the mail was taken.

My neighbors and I can only hope we haven’t become the victims of identity theft, which is a horrendous hassle to cure.

Postal Inspector Vicki Lenard said any victims whose mail was recovered in this case already have been notified by the Postal Service, which is routine.
She said if people believe they were a victim of mail theft, in this case or any other, they should contact the sender immediately.

“If they discover that something was not received, they should file a mail theft complaint with us online,” she said. The link is https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/contactUs/filecomplaint.aspx

In outgoing mail, crooks look for cash and checks. They can wash those checks and make them payable to themselves. See if your bank uses checks designed to prevent check washing.

For incoming mail, they hope to find your bank statement so they can order blank checks on your account. Social Security checks, income tax refund checks, welfare checks, food stamps and credit cards are all plum pickings.
Among the latest trends in mail thievery is using a change of address form rerouting your mail to the baddies. To combat that, the Postal Service now sends a “Move Validation Letter” to the old address saying a change of address form has been received. If you haven’t moved, that’s a red flag.

True confession: I’ve been guilty of leaving incoming mail out overnight. My only virtue: I don’t put anything in the outgoing mail if it’s going to sit there overnight.

I am embarrassed to admit I’m a two-time loser when it comes to mail.
That’s mail, not males.

Jane Ann Morrison’s column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Email her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call her at (702) 383-0275.