OIG OPERATING STATUS

DUE TO A LAPSE IN GOVERNMENT FUNDING, ALL NON-EXCEPTED OIG EMPLOYEES ARE FURLOUGHED AND MUST CEASE ALL OIG WORK-RELATED ACTIVITIES.

This website will not be monitored or updated until full operations resume.
Your interest in the efficiency of Postal Service programs is important to us. Our Hotline remains operational, and you may still submit your concern and it will be reviewed.

You may also submit FOIA requests, however we cannot respond until the government reopens.

Investigative News Releases

Working with our Law Enforcement Partners

Our special agents investigate nationwide internal crimes and fraud committed by postal employees and contractors as well as postal employee misconduct. We work with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and local prosecutors across the country to prosecute these crimes.

In some instances, we uncover much larger criminal activity being carried out by multiple individuals and organizations. In many of these cases, we partner with other federal and local law enforcement agencies to identify and hold responsible those who take advantage of the public’s trust in our postal system.

Below are links to the most recent news releases about our work.

Ex-USPS Supervisor Sent to Prison for Stealing Marijuana from Confiscated Package

Date Released: 10/26/2021

BRUNSWICK, GA: A U.S. Postal Service supervisor who admitted stealing marijuana from a confiscated package has been sentenced to federal prison. Howard Kerns, 53, of Dearing, Ga., was sentenced to two months in prison followed by two years of supervised release after pleading guilty to Theft of Mail Matter by a Postal Employee, a felony crime, said David H. Estes, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Kerns also was terminated from the U.S. Postal Service. As described in...

Postal Manager Pleads Guilty to Drug Charges

Date Released: 10/22/2021

BOSTON – A U.S. Postal employee pleaded guilty today in connection with stealing mail believed to contain controlled substances. Shawn M. Herron, 44, of Whitman, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute and one count of theft of mail by a postal employee. U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for Feb. 17, 2022. Herron was indicted in August 2020. Since September 2005, Herron has been employed with the Postal Service...

Providence Man Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Substantial Quantities of Fentanyl and Heroin

Date Released: 10/18/2021

PROVIDENCE – A Providence man who attempted to sell two kilograms of fentanyl and nearly 400 grams of heroin while under surveillance by members of the DEA Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force in March 2019 today pleaded guilty in federal court to fentanyl and heroin trafficking charges, announced Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus. Josimar Delacruz-Reyes, 31, appeared before U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., and pleaded guilty to possession with intent...

Former Postal Worker Sentenced After Pleading Guilty to Mail Theft from Paulina, LA, Post Office

Date Released: 10/14/2021

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that LACEY STEWART, age 34, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana was sentenced on October 13, 2021 to one year probation after pleading guilty as charged to a one count Bill of Information on June 29, 2021. She was charged in 2021 by a Bill of Information with Mail Theft, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1708. U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Office of Inspector General of the United States Postal Service in...

Essex County Man Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Steal Mail and Commit Bank Fraud

Date Released: 10/07/2021

NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, New Jersey, man was sentenced today to 33 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to steal check books and credit cards from the postal system, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced. Tashon Ragan, aka “Ta,” 21, of Newark, previously pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Wigenton imposed the sentence by videoconference...