On March 12, the U.S Postal Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service gave an update on Project Safe Delivery, an initiative begun 10 months ago to protect postal employees and secure the nation’s mail and packages in wake of a crime wave.
Since May 2023, the Postal Inspection Service has made 1,200+ arrests nationwide for robberies of letter carrier and mail theft.
Louis Dejoy
“We have been unrelenting in our pursuit of criminals who target postal employees and the U.S. Mail. The efforts of our postal inspectors and law enforcement partners have yielded positive results,” said Postmaster General and CEO Louis DeJoy. “We are not done. Ensuring the well-being of our letter carriers and all postal employees remains of the utmost importance. We will continue to make major investments to secure the postal network while directing the full weight of our law enforcement resources to protecting our employees and the mail.”
In February, USPIS completed a second law enforcement surge in San Francisco as a part of this nationwide effort.
DeJoy called for increased prosecution and strong sentences for those who carry out postal crimes, saying, “Our nation’s letter carriers deserve to go to work without fear of harm from a robbery or attack. Letter carriers are hardworking, federal civil servants who deliver an essential service to communities across America. An attack on a letter carrier, or any postal employee, is also an attack on the very community they serve. Individuals who attack postal employees should be vigorously prosecuted and, if convicted, should receive penalties from the courts that reflect the seriousness of their crimes. The courts must take postal crimes seriously, and the criminals who perpetrate them must be held fully accountable under the law.”
Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale said San Francisco, Chicago, and several locations in Ohio were targeted for law enforcement.
Arrests Up 73%
The 1,200+ arrests for letter carrier robberies and mail thefts by the Postal Inspection Service is up 73% compared to the same time period in the prior fiscal year.
Over the last five months, reported robberies of letter carriers have decreased by 19% and complaints for mail theft are down 34%.
Law enforcement surges are planned for 2024 in other cities.
Each surge leverages partnerships, including with the Department of Justice, Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, other federal agencies, and local law enforcement.
Initial crime surges have resulted in more than 20 arrests, more than 950 investigative actions, including the execution of arrest warrants, search warrants, and other court-authorized law enforcement activities, and more than 400 prevention activities, including presentations to postal employees on employee safety and mail theft prevention.
Secure Collection Boxes
Since the launch of Project Safe Delivery, USPS, with USPIS, has invested in the physical security of its mail receptacles and is hardening blue collection boxes, making access to their contents more difficult for criminals in all 50 states.
Since May 2023, tens of thousands of hardened blue boxes and electronic locking mechanisms have been and will be strategically deployed in high postal crime areas, the USPS said. T
his includes 15,000 hardened blue boxes, with another 8,500 ordered to be installed, and 28,000 electronic locking mechanisms installed in mail receptacles.
What You Can Do
U.S. Postal Service said customers can take steps to protect their mail and their letter carriers from crime:
- Don’t let incoming or outgoing mail sit in your mailbox. Reduce the chance of being victimized by simply removing your mail from your mailbox every day.
- Deposit outgoing mail at secure locations, including inside your local Post Office or at your place of business, or hand it directly to a letter carrier.
- Sign up for Informed Delivery and get daily digest emails that preview your mail and packages scheduled to arrive soon.
- Become involved and engaged in your neighborhood via neighborhood watches and local social media groups to spread awareness and share information.
- Keep an eye out for your letter carrier. If you see something that looks suspicious, or you see someone following your carrier, call 911.
Customers are encouraged to report stolen mail as soon as possible by submitting an online complaint to the Postal Inspection Service at www.uspis.gov/report or calling 877-876-2455.
Individuals are encouraged to report allegations of Postal Service employee misconduct, including attempts to corrupt a Postal Service employee, to the USPS OIG at 1-888-877-7644 or www.uspsoig.gov.
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Postmaster General: 30 Days for Stealing Mail at Gunpoint Unacceptable
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy released the following statement regarding a 30-day sentence for a criminal involved in the armed robbery of a Postal Service letter carrier in San Francisco:
“It is simply unacceptable that a criminal was sentenced to a mere 30-days for threatening a letter carrier at gunpoint and stealing his personal possessions, as well as both the public’s mail and packages. This sends a concerning message of encouragement to our nation’s criminals and a message of disregard to our loyal public servants, who deserve better protection and reassurance that the law will take crimes against them seriously. America’s postal workers are entitled to feel protected as they go about their public service mission, and at a minimum should be able to take solace in knowing that the law protects them against crime as they perform their duties, and that any such crimes will be taken seriously by the courts.”