Author Archives: Brian Sheehan

Postal Worker Pleads Guilty to Aiding and Abetting Mail Theft in Liverpool NY

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SYRACUSE, NEW YORK –Quayshaun Mitchell, age 28, of Syracuse, pled guilty yesterday before Chief United States Judge Glenn T. Suddaby to possession with the intent to unlawfully use a United States Postal Service key, and aiding and abetting the theft of mail, announced Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon, Joseph Cronin, Postal Inspector in Charge of the Boston Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General-Northeast Region.

As part of his guilty plea, Mitchell admitted that on March 5, 2020, while employed by the United States Postal Service (“USPS”), he gave a USPS arrow key (used to open USPS mail collection boxes), a USPS letter carrier uniform jacket, and a USPS mail satchel to Kevin Ronny Williams, so that Williams could steal mail from USPS mail collection boxes in Liverpool, New York.  That same day Williams dressed as a postal worker wearing Mitchell’s jacket and carrying the mail satchel, and used the arrow key to open USPS collection boxes from which he stole 49 pieces of first class mail.  All of the stolen mail was later recovered from Williams.  Kevin Ronny Williams has pled guilty to offenses for his role in the mail thefts and is awaiting sentencing.

The charge of possession with the intent to unlawfully use a United States Postal Service key, carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and the charge of aiding and abetting the theft of mail carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison.  Both offenses could result in the imposition of a fine of up to $250,000, and a term of supervised release of 3 years.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors. Quayshaun Mitchell is scheduled to be sentenced on June 30, 2021.

This case is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG), and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamara Thomson.

U.S. Postal Service Awards Contract for Next Generation Delivery Vehicle to Oshkosh Defense

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  • Oshkosh Defense Will Finalize Design of Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV), Delivering Up to 165,000 of the U.S.-Built Vehicles Over the Next Decade
  • Investment is Part of Soon-to-be-Released, 10-Year Plan to Transform USPS Into the Preferred Delivery Service Provider for the American Public
  • Modernization to Reduce USPS Fleet’s Costs and Greenhouse Gas Emissions as Cleaner Technologies, such as Electric Powertrains, Power Carrier Routes
  • Video remarks from Postal Service officials on this major announcement are available on the USPS Newsroom

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Postal Service announced today it awarded a 10-year contract to Oshkosh, WI, based Oshkosh Defense, to manufacture a new generation of U.S.-built postal delivery vehicles that will drive the most dramatic modernization of the USPS fleet in three decades.

The historic investment is part of a soon-to-be-released plan the Postal Service has developed to transform its financial performance and customer service over the next 10 years through significant investments in people, technology and infrastructure as it seeks to become the preferred delivery service provider for the American public.

Under the contract’s initial $482 million investment, Oshkosh Defense will finalize the production design of the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) — a purpose-built, right-hand-drive vehicle for mail and package delivery — and will assemble 50,000 to 165,000 of them over 10 years. The vehicles will be equipped with either fuel-efficient internal combustion engines or battery electric powertrains and can be retrofitted to keep pace with advances in electric vehicle technologies. The initial investment includes plant tooling and build-out for the U.S. manufacturing facility where final vehicle assembly will occur.

The contract is the first part of a multi-billion-dollar 10-year effort to replace the Postal Service’s delivery vehicle fleet, one of the world’s largest. The Postal Service fleet has more than 230,000 vehicles in every class, including both purpose-built and commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) vehicles. Approximately 190,000 deliver mail six, and often seven, days a week in every U.S. community. The NGDV, along with other COTS vehicles, will replace and expand the current delivery fleet, which includes many vehicles that have been in service for 30 years.

The first NGDVs are estimated to appear on carrier routes in 2023.

“As the American institution that binds our country together, the U.S. Postal Service can have a bright and modern future if we make investments today that position us for excellence tomorrow,” said Postmaster General and USPS Chief Executive Officer Louis DeJoy. “The NGDV program expands our capacity for handling more package volume and supports our carriers with cleaner and more efficient technologies, more amenities, and greater comfort and security as they deliver every day on behalf of the American people.”

The NGDV vehicles will include air conditioning and heating, improved ergonomics, and some of the most advanced vehicle technology — including 360-degree cameras, advanced braking and traction control, air bags, a front- and rear-collision avoidance system that includes visual, audio warning, and automatic braking. The vehicles will also have increased cargo capacity to maximize efficiency and better accommodate higher package volumes stemming from the growth of eCommerce.

“Our fleet modernization also reflects the Postal Service’s commitment to a more environmentally sustainable mix of vehicles,” DeJoy said. “Because we operate one of the largest civilian government fleets in the world, we are committed to pursuing near-term and long-term opportunities to reduce our impact on the environment.”

The Postal Service awarded the Oshkosh Defense contract in accordance with competitive Postal Service procurement policies after extensive testing of prototype vehicles, evaluation of offered production proposals, and discussions of technical specifications with the offerors.

The award is an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract, meaning that after an initial dollar commitment, the Postal Service will have the ongoing ability to order more NGDV over a fixed period of time, in this case,10 years. Oshkosh Defense is evaluating which of their several U.S. manufacturing locations is best suited to potentially increase the production rate of the NGDV.

Harrisburg Man Sentenced To 18 Months’ Imprisonment For Stealing Thousands Of Dollars’ Worth Of Postage Stamps

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HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Arthur Gibson, age 48, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on February 16, 2021, to 18 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release, by Chief U.S. District Court Judge John E. Jones III, for stealing government property. Continue reading →