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| [Photo of Postal Delivery Truck from wikipedia] |
As Christmas approaches, are you expecting to receive gift cards or money in the mail from family members? Well, frankly, we all must face the fact that, for various reasons, the mail does not always reach its destination, even at Christmas.
As a former federal prosecutor, here, in Augusta, Georgia, I sometimes prosecuted mail thefts by U.S. Postal Service employees. Some cases involved simple thefts of newspapers or magazines. Other thefts included income tax refund checks and other valuables sent through the mail. But generally all such thefts involve a horrible abuse of a position of trust.
According to various news reports, during six months of 2012, 171 Postal employees around the country were charged with theft or destruction of U.S. mail. In one recent case, in an Atlanta federal court, Gerald Eason, a postal supervisor at an Atlanta mail distribution facility, was prosecuted, along with four co-workers, for reportedly stealing $3 million in U.S. Treasury checks, including folks' V.A. and Social Security checks.
So, while you may be expecting a gift in the mail this Christmas from grandma, please realize that, sadly, it simply might never reach your mailbox! Unfortunately, no one is immune from white collar crime, even during the holidays.
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