Just after midnight on October 14, an Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, police officer pulled over a local resident driving with a headlight out. When the officer approached the vehicle and began the traffic stop, something unusual caught their eye. The driver had literally hundreds of sealed letters sprinkled all through the vehicle. The officer thought the driver seemed awfully nervous, too.

It didn’t take long for the driver, a 34-year-old Inver Grove Heights resident, to come clean about where the “tremendous” amount of mail came from. The officer questioned her and the driver directly admitted to stealing all of it from area mailboxes. The officer arrested the motorist for mail theft. 

Authorities removed and processed over 500 pieces of mail from the car, which belonged to 161 residents. The department transferred the mail to the post office for redistribution. The police department said it would notify the victims and encouraged possible victims to contact the post office.

Authorities charged the driver with felony mail theft.

Since mail theft is a federal felony, it’s punishable by fines of up to $250,000, financial restitution to victims, and up to five years in federal prison.

The Inver Grove Heights police department issued a press release explaining the incident and including some recommendations to help folks avoid mail theft:

• Collect your mail ASAP
• Use a locking mailbox
• You can sign up for USPS Informed Delivery, which digitally tracks incoming items for you
• Opt for “secure” package delivery options
• Destroy sensitive information before tossing it (i.e. shred it first)
• Report suspicious activity
• Check your bank and credit card statements regularly