Cullman police investigating mail theft

Patrick Camp, The Cullman Times, Ala.
Updated ·2 min read

Feb. 6—The Cullman Police Department is investigating a burglary that occurred last week at the Cullman Post Office.

CPD Chief David Nassetta said that they were notified Wednesday, Feb. 1, that the two exterior collection boxes located on 6th Street SW were broken into and their contents stolen.

"The CPD did a report and went and met with them on Feb. 1, so it was sometime after 5 p.m. on Jan. 31 and before the morning on Feb. 1," Nassetta said.

US Postal Inspector Julie B. Nicholson-Morgan confirmed that the USPS is also looking into the incident. She said the USPS is unaware of the exact contents of the collection boxes, but that items such as checks, money orders and merchandise that are often delivered by the USPS can be an attractive target to thieves.

"While we do not know exactly what was taken, it is likely some pieces of mail were stolen from the boxes. Postal Inspectors rely on the reports by customers to identify any items taken from the mail. If you are a victim of mail theft, you should report it to your local police AND to the Postal Inspection Service by calling our hotline at 877-876-2455 or visiting our website at USPIS.gov/report," Nicholson-Morgan said.

Nassetta said that the CPD are currently investigating the theft, but without any surveillance footage from the USPS monitoring the collection boxes CPD had no current suspects.

"We're looking to see if any of the businesses across the street to see if they might have any camera views that showed [the incident]. We're just waiting to hear back from them," Nassetta said.

Nicholson-Morgan said that instead of security cameras monitoring the collection boxes, the USPS relies on a variety of other measures to protect the contents of every USPS collection box.

"However, thieves will use a variety of methods and tools to attempt to bypass these security measures. Mail theft most often occurs in the overnight hours when there are fewer people around to witness it. If you notice anyone hanging around a blue collection box in the evening/early morning hours, call the local police immediately," she said.

The CCPD are now working with the owners of neighboring businesses to determine if any other security systems might have captured the incident.

Nicholson-Morgan said that customers are encouraged to utilize the outgoing mail slot inside the lobby of their local post office or to use the outdoor collection boxes before the latest collection time to avoid becoming a victim of mail theft.

If anyone has information regarding this incident, contact the CCPD at 256-734-1434 or call the the US Postal Inspection Service hotline at 877-876-2455.