Mail fraud scheme lands man in jail for four years
November 18, 2009 – 3:16 pm
The mailbox is something of a quandary. On one hand it contains some of our most important information — check, credit cards, bank statement, vehicle registrations and letters containing great personal data. On the other hand it is probably the least secure device we own. We plant it on a post directly on the road far from our house. We keep a simple hinged door on it that anyone can access. It really is amazing that there aren’t more stories like this…
Bradley Williams, a San Francisco man, was sentenced to four years in state prison for his part in a mail fraud scheme. Williams and two accomplices stole mail from over 1,000 different residential mailboxes and cashed checks that they found. When authorities gathered evidence from William’s house they found 1,874 pieces of stolen mail.
Williams plead guilty to four felony counts of identity theft and possession of stolen property. Each of his accomplices plead guilty and were sentenced to one year in county jail on forgery charges.
Just another reason to think of how secure your mailbox is. Also, what type of material do you receive in the mail? Are your payroll checks mailed to you? Do you frequently order products from the internet or buy items off eBay or Etsy? It may be time to head to the Home Depot and find a mail receptacle more suitable for the shameful world we live in.
Tags: check, ebay, etsy, forgery, mail fraud, mailbox, scheme, secure
