Mail thieves repeatedly target Beaumont neighborhood, leaving residents frustrated

BEAUMOUNT, Calif. (KABC) -- Stealing mail is a federal crime, but it hasn't stopped thieves from repeatedly targeting the Seneca Springs neighborhood in Beaumont.

"About a week before, we checked our mail and we went down to get it and there was no mail in there, which seemed really strange," said resident Stacie Webster.

The thefts have her and her neighbors concerned about their personal information falling into the wrong hands.

"That is what my husband and I are most concerned about is someone getting a hold of that and having identity issues with identity theft or someone getting credit cards in our name," said Webster.

Not far from her neighborhood, Albert Pitte encountered one brazen mail thief behind the gates of his residential development.

"I actually went to the mailbox one day and a guy with a handful of mail, dropping the mail, and I said, 'Hey, you dropping the mail?' He jumped in the car and took off. So, I knew he was stealing the mail," said Pitte.

Pitte said the post office is in the process of re-keying the cluster boxes in his neighborhood since whoever is behind the thefts may have a stolen mail key.

"It's just something we've been dealing with for the last three weeks to two months," he said.

Even the local post office in Beaumont has had to deal with thieves making off with mail secured inside blue drop-off boxes.

"They took this mailbox two or three times," said Dean Quinn pointing the replaced bolts on the mailboxes footings.

Quinn said he ended up with late payment fees on some of his bills after thieves took the entire drop box where he left his mail.

The U.S. Postal Inspector tells Eyewitness News they are aware of the thefts and there is an ongoing investigation.

In the meantime, they advising residents with the following:

• Don't let incoming or outgoing mail sit in your mailbox. You can significantly reduce the chance of being victimized by simply removing your mail from your mailbox every day.

• Deposit outgoing mail through your local Post Office, place of business or a letter carrier.

• Sign up for USPS Informed Delivery
• Be involved in your neighborhood and community
• If you see something that looks suspicious, call 911