Reported by Weston Blasi

Over 300 mail carriers have been robbed in the first half of FY23, and a recent series of thefts in Wisconsin led to more than 900 stolen checks 

The U.S. Postal Service has issued a new warning: be careful when mailing checks. 

The USPS reported a recent surge in attacks on letter carriers and mail fraud, stating that 305 mail carriers were robbed in the first half of fiscal-year 2023, compared with 412 last year. Many of the USPS’s thefts occurred when mail was taken from its flagship blue collection boxes — a recent series of thefts in Wisconsin led to more than 900 stolen checks. 

“As crime rises, so do the threats against our public servants,” said Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer Louis DeJoy. “The men and women of the Postal Service are walking our nation’s streets every day to fulfil our mission of delivering mail and packages to the American people. Every Postal employee deserves to work in safety and to be free from targeting by criminals seeking to access the public’s mail.” 

In response, the USPS is adding more than 12,000 high security blue collection boxes nationwide, as well as replacing 49,000 electronic locks for their Arrow and Modified Arrow Lock (MAL) Keys, which some robberies have targeted with the intent to steal mail. 

One of the most common types of check fraud is what’s known as “check washing,” where a criminal steals the check from the mail and proceeds to change the payee’s name on the check and, additionally, the amount of money. This process sometimes involves using chemicals to erase the original payee’s name on the check. 

Stealing mail is a federal crime and could lead to up to five years in prison. Additionally, altering checks can be a felony charge if it’s over a certain amount, but it depends which state the crime occurs in. Postal Inspectors retrieve over $1 billion in counterfeit checks and money orders every year.

Read full report: https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/20230628410/usps-issues-warning-over-check-fraud-go-directly-to-the-post-office-to-mail-a-check