A former mail processing clerk at the Columbia, SC, Processing and Distribution Center recently was sentenced to 2½ years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing checks from the mailstream and selling them online.
The USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) launched an investigation after receiving several complaints on its hotline from people whose checks were fraudulently cashed.
OIG and the Postal Inspection Service agents zeroed in on the clerk, Vincent Anthony Gailliard Jr., 41, who had 20 checks in his backpack on the night of his arrest.
Gailliard told the agents he resorted to theft when he began experiencing financial hardship.
For about a year, he would pocket selected envelopes, photograph the checks and post them for sale on a social media app.
The Postal Service terminated his employment.
The OIG recently highlighted the case on its website.
“While the idea of easy cash by way of mail theft might be tempting to some postal employees, know the OIG will be watching,” said USPS Inspector General Tammy Hull. “We will aggressively investigate any USPS personnel who violate the public’s trust for personal gain.”
In addition to prison time, Gailliard received five years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution. The estimated losses from the fraud came to roughly $3.5 million.
If you suspect or know of mail theft involving Postal Service employees or contractors, report it to the OIG.
