October 6, 2014: The Philadelphia District Attorneys Office Special Investigations Unit has charged 36-year-old Felicia Townsend with Receiving Stolen Property, Theft, Unlawful use of a Computer, and Tampering with Public Records. Townsend, of the 400 block of N. Simpson Street, is charged with selling money orders at several United States Postal Service (USPS) locations, voiding the orders once the customer leaves, and then pocketing the money from the transactions. Townsend began working at the USPS as a temporary holiday employee in 1996, and she was hired as a fulltime employee in 2011.

In January of 2014, the USPS Office of the Inspector General received a complaint that two of its finance stations, the John Wanamaker Station on Market Street and the Land Title Station on S. Broad Street, had a number of money orders that were cashed but were never reported as sold or issued. Upon further investigation it was determined that the money orders were sold to postal customers but subsequently voided by Felicia Townsend. Townsend was even recorded on surveillance tapes making the transactions and then voiding the orders. The investigation revealed that Townsend stole $28,642.31 in fraudulently voided money orders from the USPS from October 19, 2013 through April 8, 2014.

Felicia Townsend was arrested on September 30, 2014, and she was scheduled for a status hearing today. ADA Brad Bender is specially assigned to this case.

Read more: Philadelphia Postal Worker Charged with Stealing and Embezzling Over $28,000 From Post Office | Philly DA.