Federal Authorities Charge 33 People with Crimes Against the U.S. Postal Service, including Theft of Mail by Employees
August 26, 2016 LOS ANGELES – Thirty-three defendants were charged as part of a sweep targeting criminal activity that has victimized the United States Postal Service (USPS) and its customers. Most of the defendants charged as part of the sweep are USPS employees who allegedly stole mail, embezzled from the agency or, in one case, failed to deliver nearly 50,000 pieces of mail.
Arrest warrants were issued for 6 of the 33 defendants, who were recently charged as a result of investigations by the USPS’s Office of Inspector General. Most of the defendants were charged in indictments that were returned by federal grand juries on Wednesday and Thursday this week.
The 33 defendants are charged across 28 cases, about half of which allege mail theft and/or possession of stolen mail by USPS employees and contractors. Other cases charge USPS employees with conspiracy, embezzlement, bank fraud, and false statements. Five of the cases allege crimes by non-employees, including mail theft and fraud related to the use of credit cards that had been stolen from the mail.
In one case announced today, the former local area president of the Mail Handlers Union was charged with conspiracy and possession of stolen mail. Jarol Garcia, 33, of Hemet, who formerly worked at the Moreno Valley Delivery Distribution Center as a mail handler, stole mobile phones from parcels going through the center and traded the phones after offering them for exchange on a website, according to an indictment, which also alleges that Garcia, in December 2015, possessed at least 166 mobile phones stolen from the mail.
Another case charges a mail carrier from the Mid-City District of Los Angeles with conspiracy to commit access device (credit card) fraud and to steal mail. The indictment alleges that Norman A. Muschamp, 48, was part of a conspiracy to use information belonging to identity theft victims to order pre-paid PayPal debit cards that were sent to primarily non-existent addresses on his mail route. Muschamp allegedly participated in the scheme by obtaining the PayPal debit cards from the mail and delivering them to co-conspirators in exchange for cash. Investigators who are continuing to investigate the overall scheme believe it caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses.
In another case, a postal carrier from the Sawtelle District of Los Angeles was charged with delaying the mail by effectively hoarding the mail she was entrusted to deliver. Sherry Naomi Watanabe, 48, was found to have more than 48,000 pieces of mail in her residence, according to a plea agreement, that was supposed to be delivered to mail customers on her route in Placentia.
“The mail system plays an important role in our country’s commerce and social communication. Maintaining its integrity is vital,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “Mail theft across Southern California has increased recently, which is significant since this type of crime tends to be a precursor to other crimes like identity theft and drug offenses. As a result, we are stepping up enforcement activities, including dealing aggressively with corruption within the Postal Service.”
“The overwhelming majority of Postal Service employees are honest and dedicated public servants who are worthy of our trust. However, when employees engage in criminal activity, our agency will aggressively investigate these matters to protect the overall integrity of the Postal Service,” said U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General Special Agent in Charge Brian Washington.
Other cases filed as part of the sweep include the following:
- Vince Johnson, 30, of Carson, who worked for a USPS contractor, was charged with possession of stolen mail;
- Jose Hernandez, 35, of Long Beach, who worked for a USPS contractor, was charged with mail theft;
- Tamika Deloach, 38, of Wilmington, a mail carrier, was charged with possessing stolen mail related to checks she allegedly stole from the mail and deposited into her credit union account;
- Charell Watson, 32, of West Covina, formerly a mail processing clerk, was charged with theft of mail by a postal employee;
- Nicole Elwood, 45, of Atascadero, was charged with theft of mail by a postal employee for allegedly stealing mail items containing medications, including medications sent from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to veterans;
- Kayla Young, 23, of Diamond Bar, was charged with mail theft by a postal employee;
- Michael Smith, 43, of Lake Elsinore, was charged with mail theft by a postal employee for allegedly stealing money orders from a mail envelope;
- Justin Brewster, 25, of Lake Elsinore, a USPS mail processing clerk, was charged with mail theft by a postal employee for allegedly stealing video games that were mailed to or from Gamefly;
- Christian Wesley Johnson, 27, of Los Angeles (90044), a postal clerk, was charged with mail theft by a postal employee for stealing mobile phones, which, according to his plea agreement, were valued at approximately $15,000; and
- Deion Deshazier, 27, a former mail carrier, of Hawthorne, was charged with dumping and delaying mail;
- Betty Owens, 73, of Oakland, a former mail handler, was charged with a misdemeanor offense of theft of government property (for fraudulent mileage reimbursements).
- Lisa Thornberry, 31, of Rancho Cucamonga, and Ian McCown, 34, of Alta Loma, were charged with conspiring with each other to steal mail and possessing stolen mail;
- Chelsea Green, 24, of Canoga Park, a former mail carrier, was charged with bank fraud for allegedly misusing a USPS-issued gas card and fraudulently using the PIN of another USPS employee to fuel her personal vehicle;
- James Freeman, 30, of Lakewood, a former mail carrier, was charged with bank fraud for allegedly misusing a USPS-issued gas card;
- Mary Williams, 60, of Los Angeles (90002), a former USPS sales associate, was charged with making a false entry in an official record related to her alleged embezzlement of funds from USPS;
- Victoria Uribe, 48, of Rancho Cucamonga, a former USPS sales associate, was charged with making a false entry in an official record related to her alleged embezzlement of funds from USPS;
- Lucy Plambeck, 66, of Paso Robles, a former USPS sales associate, was charged with making a false entry in an official record related to her alleged embezzlement of funds from USPS;
- Monica Cavalier, 40, of Victorville, a former sales associate, was charged with making a false entry in an official record related to the sale of stamps related to her alleged embezzlement of funds from USPS;
- Johnnie Macon, 34, of Los Angeles (90011), a former postal support employee, who was charged with embezzlement of postal funds and making a false entry in an official record related to the fraudulent voiding of postal money orders;
- Gary Nygard, 49, of Mission Hills, a former contract driver, was charged with conspiracy to steal government property by siphoning approximately 385 gallons of diesel fuel (paid for by USPS) from contractor trucks;
- Raymond Coffin, 24, of Adelanto, a mail carrier, was charged with bank fraud for allegedly misusing a USPS-issued gas card;
- Eugene Brown, 43, of Compton, was charged with making a false statement relating to his criminal history in his employment application to work for the USPS;
An indictment or criminal information contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Defendants charged as part of the sweep will be arraigned in the United States District Court in Los Angeles, Santa Ana, and Riverside.
The cases announced today were filed by Special Assistant United States Attorney Ashwin Janakiram of the General Crimes Section.
It’s so sad to see your fellow coworkers handcuffed and escorted through the building because they got caught stealing credit cards, gift cards, actual cash money, Christmas gift packages, and so on…. The really sad thing about it is these people have been with the PO for 20+ years…. The most recent one that I can remember was a supervisor…. He was caught stealing all sorts of things and had the audacity to wanna write up or put employees under disciplinary actions….. How dare him… The majority of employees are harassed by crooked supervisors…. I know from experience first hand…. The hardest part of working for the PO is working under an idiot supervisor….. THIS SPELLS STRESS
should be noted that “sales associate” and “postal support” are po mismanagement. way to many po mismanagers on postal reporter the last 10 years getting caught with their paws in the till. UPS, FDX, DHL, Amazon are pulling ahead of the “Postal Circus” in more ways than one. 99% of postal mismanagement have no university/college education and PO has lost over $95 Billion Dollars since 2009….anybody see a connection? how long can an organization lose $Billions before they go bust? I guess we will see! kind of like when Socialist Countries fail when they run out of other peoples money. (and don;t drone on about that canard of pre-funding….PO stopped all payments for pre-funding in 2009 and they are still losing Billions and need a new fleet of vehicles that will cost more Billions……where is all the money going? theft is the least of there worries I would guess.
its quite simple my friend…..you lay down with dogs and now you have flees. they have know use for you now! they are unethical and amoral…………tell me, why did the mailhandler run over you with a fork lift and then back up over you……for fun? there is his side, your side, and than the truth. I had a problem like you, tried to fire me for being active in the union, got a great lawyer, got case to PMG Marvin Ruyon desk, and got the Plant MisManager FIRED!………..Judge told him he got off lucky with no jail time! never saw a po mismanager who was not a scumb@g! all whine “they were just following orders” when they get caught!
Frank, Please allow me to be….. The Managerial eat their own. You were sold a Supervisory position for your life. All you stated sounds so in and on your side,Oh what a surprise how the rules change according to players. You walked into a room of people and asked who are the players here without knowing the rules. What a shaft job. Personally you can be successful but many years from now.
Contact your personal elected officials from there is one way to start.
Eugene Brown, Please inform your stewards that many postal employees has outlived this cargo. Please investigate for help, its available.
You are told in the beginning you will be caught and your reason for doing it, is different then theirs for catching you, go to the head of the class, Quickly!
A new example of how to recognize an Idiot!!!!! Most of these new postal employees wouldn’t have qualified many years ago. The background check was just that checking the checked. They hired at several periods “Top Shelf” employees from other highly regarded agencies and companies. They chose the best of the best. Now its to fill a spot with a body. Some of these new employees has never touched three thousand dollars at one time. Mind you, not theirs, but?
PLM POSTAL LIVES MATTER
Can’t wait for them to catch the person that works inside that has been pilfering the mail in my zip code area. My personal mail has been pilfered
Before we get too disgusted with those who make us all look bad, bear in mind criminal activity goes in workplaces and factories all over the place but because they may not be Federal agencies, they don’t get as much attention. That doesn’t excuse these idiots, management who commit harassment or other crimes and skate, and other unlawful activity. However, the visibility may serve as a deterrent.
I retire soon, and I know of stuff that has gone on that included theft of COD money (that moron was rightfully canned), dumping mail, buying and using meth on their routes, workman’s comp fraud, and other bad things. But most of us have been reliable, hard working dependable clerks and rural and city carriers, and even management in the last several years has been far far better than what my office experienced in the 1990’s. Maybe I’m one of the luckier ones, but it is a shame that whistleblowers not just in the USPS but nationwide get dealt with so severely when those above people committing terrible acts should be removing those abusive or criminal managers instead of harassing those who try to be honest. The trouble is that managers above the levels of those doing the terrible stuff don’t want that reflected on them. That’s a chickenshit thing to do, but that’s management life in all manner of businesses.
An interesting article, certainly.
My question is this: Does the OIG investigate management Gross Misconduct and Whistleblower Retaliation to the extent it is Required to do?
It has not, in my case.
My name is Frank Loose and I was crushed by a forklift, in an attack upon my person recognized by Law Enforcement, while employed with the United States Postal Service (USPS).
The operator of the forklift did run over me, shift the forklift into reverse – and back up over me. This, while serving as a member of the USPS managament team.
July 4, 2006 at 12:10am my Life changed forever when this event took place against me.
On February 20, 2014 I underwent my most recent surgery, having provided medical documetation (in person and notarized/delivery receipted) to former plant manager Ignatius Vaccaro (Rochester, NY/Columbus, OH) and former manager of distribution operations Antony Frosino (Rochester, NY).
On February 21, 2014 – ONE DAY after the surgery – Anthony Frosino did pen a Letter of Removal citing the very dates that had been previously settled/documented MONTHS before, and signed of as approved by management. The timing of this Letter of Removal – was it done with the thought that I would be at a weakened, disadvataged state, recovering from major sugery, unable to clearly defend myself against this thoroughly flawed action?
Following this most recent surgery to achieve Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI), I was wrongfully terminated by the USPS Agency decision in November 2015. This, despite approvals from the Department of Labor, as well as approvals from our own management team, signed off on in advance.
This, also, as it was accepted by numerous management administrations in years previous that this fight for recovery WAS to take years, and tremendous efforts on my part.
I invite – I respectfully expect – the Inspector General of the USPS, The Postmaster General of the USPS, as well as the United States Attorney General to visit my Investigative Report Interviews now posted on YouTube, given to Media Journalists with National Affiliations. These Interviews deal with – and reveal – the illegal actions taken against me by USPS senior managers in their wrongful termination of me.
This despite proper medical documentation being submitted numerous times to the manager tasked for documentation intake, former Manager of Distribution of Operations in Rochester, NY Anthony Frosino. His responsibility for my documentation intake is confirmed in written/audio meeting minute notes taken where I was present – along with Mr. Frosino, former Labor Relations Specialist Richard Francione (Rochester, NY), as well as WNY National Postal Mailhandler Union Representative Gregg Hubbard (Rochester, NY).
Again, this attack was recognized by Law Enforcement and Postal Inspectors in 2006.
So why was I terminated after years of surgeries, recoveries, Physical Therapy cracking 12, 000+ hours, returning to work, awarded supervisory positions based upon Merit, and performing to management expectations? The documentation was submitted, and the copies were retained by me.
I brought the shortcomings of many issues – waylaid payroll, wrongfull job assignments violating my seniority/accomadation(s), seniority progression delays, contract violations, Harrassment, Bullying, Law of the Land violations, etc, – to management attention, time and again, respectfully running through the chain of command, offering every opportunity for correction to be made at every level. This, to no avail.
This, also, despite that we have Site-Speciffic regulations/rules – as well as Agency Wide regulations – that forbid this very behavior/action by one individual against another. We have an ethics policy we were all required to sign off on. To no avail.
I am considered a responsible, awarded corporate citizen, a former USPS employee serving in a number of management Details based on Merit and USPS Training. I urge the Reasonable People in positions that afford them the power to make correction to simply do so.
My documentation is catagorically definitive, and I will continue to present the Truth to those that need to hear it until correction is made.
Keep the Faith,
Frank Loose
I was labeled a Whistleblower.
Yet I was denied Whistleblower protections by our own OIG – even after submitting a 214 page report to them, notarized and delivery receipted. This, even though the requirements within our own Regulations definitively support I met the Guidelines/Requirements of Whistleblower retaliation protection.
Again, I invite the United States Attorney General’s office, The Postmaster General of the USPS, the Inspector General of the USPS’ OIG to review the documents I have submitted. Ladies and Gentleman, given a fair read I am positive that a Reasonable Person will agree that corrections need to be made, and that those committing the crimes against me must be punished to the fullest extent of our Employe Labor Manuals(s) – and to the fullest extent under the Laws of our Land, the United States of America.
You’re too naive.
When you’re not fully productive , you’re like dead weight to the company. You’ve been around too long not to realize that.
In St. Louis at Marian Oldham workers threw away mail and received no discipline. One actually got promoted to supervisor soon after. OIGs know of the incident but did nothing. Friends of your management goes a long way at some places. And when will USPS prosecute those harassers instead of moving them to harass others? So one sided.
I use Postal vehicle to grocery shopping while on duty.
73 yrs old female was nailed for fraudulent mileage?
WTF?!?
An interesting article, certainly.
My question is this: Does the OIG investigate management Gross Misconduct and Whistleblower Retaliation to the extent it is Required to do?
It has not, in my case.
My name is Frank Loose and I was crushed by a forklift, in an attack upon my person recognized by Law Enforcement, while employed with the United States Postal Service (USPS).
The operator of the forklift did run over me, shift the forklift into reverse – and back up over me. This, while serving as a member of the USPS managament team.
July 4, 2006 at 12:10am my Life changed forever when this event took place against me.
On February 20, 2014 I underwent my most recent surgery, having provided medical documetation (in person and notarized/delivery receipted) to former plant manager Ignatius Vaccaro (Rochester, NY/Columbus, OH) and former manager of distribution operations Antony Frosino (Rochester, NY).
On February 21, 2014 – ONE DAY after the surgery – Anthony Frosino did pen a Letter of Removal citing the very dates that had been previously settled/documented MONTHS before, and signed of as approved by management. The timing of this Letter of Removal – was it done with the thought that I would be at a weakened, disadvataged state, recovering from major sugery, unable to clearly defend myself against this thoroughly flawed action?
Following this most recent surgery to achieve Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI), I was wrongfully terminated by the USPS Agency decision in November 2015. This, despite approvals from the Department of Labor, as well as approvals from our own management team, signed off on in advance.
This, also, as it was accepted by numerous management administrations in years previous that this fight for recovery WAS to take years, and tremendous efforts on my part.
I invite – I respectfully expect – the Inspector General of the USPS, The Postmaster General of the USPS, as well as the United States Attorney General to visit my Investigative Report Interviews now posted on YouTube, given to Media Journalists with National Affiliations. These Interviews deal with – and reveal – the illegal actions taken against me by USPS senior managers in their wrongful termination of me.
This despite proper medical documentation being submitted numerous times to the manager tasked for documentation intake, former Manager of Distribution of Operations in Rochester, NY Anthony Frosino. His responsibility for my documentation intake is confirmed in written/audio meeting minute notes taken where I was present – along with Mr. Frosino, former Labor Relations Specialist Richard Francione (Rochester, NY), as well as WNY National Postal Mailhandler Union Representative Gregg Hubbard (Rochester, NY).
Again, this attack was recognized by Law Enforcement and Postal Inspectors in 2006.
So why was I terminated after years of surgeries, recoveries, Physical Therapy cracking 12, 000+ hours, returning to work, awarded supervisory positions based upon Merit, and performing to management expectations? The documentation was submitted, and the copies were retained by me.
I brought the shortcomings of many issues – waylaid payroll, wrongfull job assignments violating my seniority/accomadation(s), seniority progression delays, contract violations, Harrassment, Bullying, Law of the Land violations, etc, – to management attention, time and again, respectfully running through the chain of command, offering every opportunity for correction to be made at every level. This, to no avail.
This, also, despite that we have Site-Speciffic regulations/rules – as well as Agency Wide regulations – that forbid this very behavior/action by one individual against another. We have an ethics policy we were all required to sign off on. To no avail.
I am considered a responsible, awarded corporate citizen, a former USPS employee serving in a number of management Details based on Merit and USPS Training. I urge the Reasonable People in positions that afford them the power to make correction to simply do so.
My documentation is catagorically definitive, and I will continue to present the Truth to those that need to hear it until correction is made.
Keep the Faith,
Frank Loose
I was labeled a Whistleblower.
Yet I was denied Whistleblower protections by our own OIG – even after submitting a 214 page report to them, notarized and delivery receipted. This, even though the requirements within our own Regulations definitively support I met the Guidelines/Requirements of Whistleblower retaliation protection.
Again, I invite the United States Attorney General’s office, The Postmaster General of the USPS, the Inspector General of the USPS’ OIG to review the documents I have submitted. Ladies and Gentleman, given a fair read I am positive that a Reasonable Person will agree that corrections need to be made, and that those committing the crimes against me must be punished to the fullest extent of our Employe Labor Manuals(s) – and to the fullest extent under the Laws of our Land, the United States of America.
Hire more temporary employees and you will have more of the same. You may want to remind managers supervisors that’s what their titles mean, to manage and supervise not just harass.
Let this be a warning to other people who would risk a good paying job with great benefits and a promise of a good retirement. How foolish can you be. As a retired postal worker with 37 years of service i unfortunately have witnessed these crimes in my career.One example was a letter carrier.,on her route, putting a deceased person’s Social Security check into her checking account .How stupid can you be?