In a crackdown on a spree of postal thefts, Coral Springs police have collared a 24-year-old man accused of swiping mail from a local post office, the department declared on social media.
Eric Mckinnie found himself in handcuffs Tuesday, charged with grand theft, identity theft, and bank fraud after months of sleuthing by Coral Springs detectives who were wise to the rise in postal pilfering nationwide, and unfortunately, this trend seems only to be surging, last year saw a sharp uptick in mail-related crimes, the U.S. Postal Service has warned that it witnessed an increase in attacks on letter carriers and a spike in mail fraud episodes – with 305 mail carriers robbed in just the first half of fiscal year 2023.
Police pounced on the suspect with the assistance of Delray Beach Police, leading to Mckinnie's arrest, citing a "lengthy and complicated" investigation into the thefts from the United States Post Office located at 3255 Northwest 94th Avenue, Coral Springs Talk reported.
As Mckinnie sits in Broward Main Jail with bond set at $20,000 plus additional holds, law enforcement officials are firm in their resolve to stamp out post office plundering, the city police had previously urged residents to observe caution when sending checks and to utilize secure mail drops at post offices, instead of the blue mailboxes which have become targets for fraudsters – even as officers had noticed a distressing surge in incidents where checks were being stolen then cashed illegitimately according to Tap Into Coral Springs.
With the investigation ongoing, CSPD Detective Brett Schroy entreats the public to come forward with any information that could aid in the case, in a testament to the community's role in combating such offenses, proving that it indeed takes a village, or at least a vigilant neighborhood to keep the mail safe, from those who would do it harm.
