Federal authorities say a Detroit-area postal employee accused of stealing as  between 1,600-2,000 pieces of mail said she did so out of boredom.

Sharon Berrien is accused of pocketing any cash from the mail and dumping the leftovers along Interstate 94. Most of the items were greeting cards.

Berrien was charged Monday with stealing mail while working at a Detroit Processing and Distribution Center.

The probe started in October when the OIG was notified by Taylor Postmaster that a customer brought mail that he found on the side ofI-94 to the Taylor Post Office. The customer advised that he found the mail scattered on the side of the road while walking along the Pelham Road exit (#204) on the west bound side ofI-94. This customer went on to say that this is the second time he had discovered mail in the area. He indicated that
his wife spotted mail in that same area approximately two months prior.

The mail that was recovered consisted of greeting cards that were all rifled. Some of the cards contained checks and/or gift cards. No currency was found among the rifled mail. OIG Special Agents met with Postal Management regarding the recovered mail. Based on the particulars of the mail (i.e., cancellation dates and locations, the destination addresses for the mail, etc.), it was determined that the mail was likely transported to the Detroit Processing & Distribution Center (P&DC) where it would have been processed on the Low Cost Tray Sorter (LCTS). Based on the scans it was determined the recovered mail was never processed on the Delivery Barcode Sorter (DBCS).

Postal Management provided Special Agents with a list of employees that work on the LCTS at the P&DC. After reviewing the names and the dates that these employees worked, it was discovered that mail handler Sharon Berrien (Berrien) worked on the LCTS on each of the dates that this mail would have been processed. It was further determined that the exit on 1-94 where the mail was discovered was in the direct line of
travel from the Detroit P&DC to Berrien’s residence.

Special Agents randomly checked the area on 1-94 where the mail was initially discovered. Several more pieces of rifled mail were discovered over multiple dates. On November 21, 2014, SAs retrieved approximately 800 pieces of rifled mail from the trash left for pickup outside of Berrien’s residence. The mail consisted of rifled greeting cards. Several of the cards contained gift cards and checks.

When asked when she began stealing mail, Berrien stated she began doing this in spring 2014. When asked why she did it, Berrien stated “I was bored.” She went on to say that it was just a game to see if she could get away with it.  Berrien told OIG speial agents that this was just a game that she was playing to see if she would get caught and it got out of hand. She then stated that she realized that she made a big mistake.

Berrien stated that she stole mail from the Detroit P&DC about once a week.  She indicated that she would sometime open the mail outside during her break but most of the time she would take it home. When asked what she did with the mail after she opened it, Berrien advised that she would either throw it in the trash at her residence or she would throw it out the window of her vehicle while driving on the 1-94 expressway.

Berrien advised she has taken between $1000-$1500 cash. She asked when she last stole mail from the P&DC; she responded she took a bag of mail out of the building on Saturday, November 22,2014. She went on to state that she removed between $50 and $60 from the mail that she stole on that date. Berrien was asked if she had any mail in her possession. She initially stated that she did not have any mail. She then stated she had mail at her residence. After obtaining consent from Berrien, SAs searched her vehicle and residence. SAs retrieved three bags of rifled greeting cards from a closet inside of Berrien’s residence. No mail was found inside Berrien’s vehicle. SAs asked Berrien if she had discarded mail in any other locations besides at her residence and on the I -94 Expressway. She stated that she had not.

After interview with OIG special agents, Berrien’s USPS badge was confiscated and she was placed on Emergency Placement.  OIG special agents then escorted Berrien from the facility.

Although a specific piece count has not been completed, it is estimated that approximately 1,600 to 2,000 pieces of rifled mail, mainly consisting of greeting cards, were retrieved from Berrien’s residence and the side of the expressway.

Berrien, a mail handler, has worked with USPS since 1986 (28 years).