FOX 8 Defenders: Thieves targeting post office boxes in Jefferson Parish

HARAHAN, La. (WVUE) - Authorities in Jefferson Parish are seeing an uptick in thefts tied to checks dropped in blue Post Office boxes.

Multiple victims have reported their checks being stolen and altered after being deposited in the blue boxes in Harahan.

Debbie Peters says she’s meticulous with her checkbook.

“I’m still old school. I like to write the checks,” Peters stated.

Her attention to detail paid off last week when she noticed something was wrong.

“When I checked my checking account - I check the balance every day - I noticed the check had been changed from $267 to $1,000,” she explains.

Peters says her husband dropped off their mail in a blue box outside the Post Office on Citrus Boulevard. They were mailing the check to a life insurance company for a cancer policy.

After a trip to her bank, Peters found out her check had been stolen and altered. She says the altered check was written out to someone named Garanisha Ried.

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Peters is not alone, as the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office has received eight different calls in the past eight days about checks being stolen from these blue boxes.

“I did run into a man at the bank the next day and he had the same exact thing, made out to the same exact person with the same exact amount,” Peters said.

Sheriff Joe Lopinto issued a warning last year about using the blue boxes, and while they were roped off for a period of time, they are now accessible again.

A spokesperson for the postal service said that USPS is implementing a nationwide initiative to harden blue collection boxes and enhance collection box key and lock technology to address ongoing safety threats. However, the spokesperson did not answer questions about whether anything will be done differently at the specific post office on Citrus Boulevard

Meanwhile, Peters says she will be walking her mail inside the post office once again and spreading awareness about the thefts.

If you have a consumer complaint you’d like us to look into, call the Fox 8 Defenders, staffed with volunteers from the National Council of Jewish Women at 1-877-670-6397. Or click here to fill out our online complaint form, which is the easiest way to reach us.

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