The stolen-mail scheme now targeting a wealthy D.C. suburb

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The theft of checks from USPS blue mailboxes has spiked across the country, and the D.C. region is a new hot spot, officials and researchers say.

The 59-year-old lawyer immediately filed a report online with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service but says he never heard back from them.

The stolen checks trend is linked to a “significant increase” in armed robberies of USPS letter carriers to steal arrow keys, which can open most mailboxes across an entire Zip code, according to a U.S. Postal Inspection Service advisory to the Justice Department. In some cases, one Zip code can encompass an entire city.

The group found that buyers use nail polish remover to erase the intended payee’s name and the amount of the check, replacing the details with their own payee and amount, usually much higher than the original amount. A buyer may also use a fake ID to cash the check at a location such as Walmart. The price of the key, the Cybersecurity Research Group said, depends on the area the key is from and how many mailboxes it opens.

The Postal Inspection Service, the law enforcement arm of the Postal Service, said in an email to The Post that it is working with local, county, state and federal law enforcement to combat mail theft.It advised customers to hand outgoing mail to their carrier or mail it at the post office; ask their bank for “secure” checks that are more difficult to alter; and report stolen mail by calling 877-876-2455.

 

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