Investigative News Releases

CINCINNATI – A former United States Postal Service employee pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to selling a postal key. Demarco Tapplar admitted to selling a mail arrow key, which is a federal crime. Individuals sought to steal cash and checks from USPS collection boxes by illegally obtaining the postal keys to the boxes. Police recovered a stolen postal key. The next day, the perpetrators of the mail theft obtained a new postal key by purchasing one from Tapplar.

CAMDEN, N.J. – A Gloucester County, New Jersey, man who worked as a postal employee admitted today stealing more than $170,000 in cash that had been sent through the mail. Joseph Fenuto pleaded to an information charging him with one count of mail theft. Fenuto admitted he had stolen more than 50 parcels containing cash from retail stores. U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents with the USPS OIG, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Matthew Modafferi.

NEW ORLEANS – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced today that TIMOTHY MCMILLAN, JR., age 43, of New Orleans, was indicted on November 30, 2023 for Theft of Mail by a Postal Service employee. MCMILLAN stole and removed money from a letter entrusted to him, while performing his assigned duties as an employee of the United States Postal Service. U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the United States Postal Inspection Service, Office of the Inspector General in investigating this matter.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A U.S. Postal Service employee and two co-conspirators have been arrested on federal charges for a scheme involving stolen checks worth over $24 million. Nakedra Shannon, 29, Donnell Gardner, 27, and Desiray Carter, 24, charged with seven counts of possession of stolen mail matter, and with eight counts of theft of mail by a postal employee. U.S. Attorney King thanked U.S. Postal Service’s Office of the Inspector General.

ST. LOUIS – A former employee of the U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday admitted stealing checks from the mail and depositing them in her own account. Porcia Denise Rhodes, 27, of St. Louis, Missouri, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of bank fraud and one count of theft of mail by an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General.