KANSAS CITY, KAN. – The former postmaster of the Whiting, Kan., post office has been convicted on charges of embezzling government funds, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

Terri L. Morris, 50, Holton,, Kan., was convicted in a jury trial on two counts of making a false writing and one count of embezzling public funds.

During trial, prosecutors presented evidence that the crimes took place while Morris was postmaster in Whiting, a town of about 200 in Jackson County, Kan. In 2010, investigators with the U.S. Postal Service made an unannounced visit to the Whiting Post Office and conducted an audit that showed a shortage of more than $7,000. Morris took the money and filed fraudulent statements to the Postal Service to cover up the thefts.

Sentencing is set for Aug. 24. She faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count of making a false writing, and a maximum penalty of 10 years and a fine up to $250,000 on the embezzlement count. Grissom commended the U.S. Postal Service, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Kenney and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Hathaway for their work on the case.

via USDOJ: US Attorney’s Office – District Of Kansas.

From CBS Sacrament:

IONE CBS13 – An Ione postal carrier is behind bars accused of stealing drugs mailed to veterans then selling them to people along her route.CBS13 spoke with one man who says postal carrier Shelly Crabb, a 15-year veteran, simply asked if he wanted to buy drugs.“She would say, ‘hey, if you need something, let me know,’” said Scott Guthrie.

via Postal Carrier Accused Of Stealing Mailed Drugs And Selling Them Along Route « CBS Sacramento.

Senator Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate committee that oversees the US Postal Service, released a statement yesterday that appears to contradict what the USPS announced earlier in the day. Lieberman says that the PMG has given assurances that “no mail processing centers will be closed this year”- while the USPS has released a list of 48 facilities that it plans to begin “consolidating” (postalspeak for “closing”) this summer.

So did Joe not get the memo yesterday?

Possibly, but more likely Joe simply forgot to add the qualifier “in Connecticut”. Because, of course, no plants in the home state of the Chairman (or of the Ranking Member, Susan Collins of Maine) are on the list- now wasn’t that a lucky coincidence??

WASHINGTON – Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., Thursday issued the following statement in reaction to the U.S. Postal Service announcement that it would delay closing mail processing plants until 2013.

“I appreciate that the Postal Service is moving forward with its downsizing in a way that is consistent with the Senate-passed 21st Century Postal Service Act. The PMG assures us that no mail processing centers will be closed this year, which means the House still has time to pass a bill so it can be reconciled with the Senate-passed bill. While the PMG is moving cautiously now, the financial condition of the Postal Service continues to deteriorate, and he will not be similarly restrained next year. Congress must approve legislation as soon as possible to return the postal service to solid financial ground before essential services are lost for millions of people.”

via Senator Joseph Lieberman (CT) – LIEBERMAN REACTS TO POSTAL SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT.

From the League of Postmasters:

The Postal Service has provided the list of offices that will be upgraded to level 18 under the POStPlan process. Each incumbent Postmaster will receive a letter from the Postal Service informing them of this upgrade. Salary raises will follow current Postal Service policy. Postmasters whose salary is not at the minimum of a level 18 will be slotted in at the minimum of the level 18 pay scale. Postmasters above the minimum salary of the level 18 will receive a 2 percent raise. Click the link below to view the list as a Google Docs spreadsheet:

League_NAPUS_Upgrades.

Note: the list is sorted by area and district. To quickly find an individual office or district, click “Edit” on the menu, then “Find and Replace”. If more than one item matches your search, clicking the “Find” button again will take you to the next match.

From Fox25 Boston:

The cash-strapped Postal Service is spending $200 million a year renting empty buildings, including a massive, nearly empty warehouse complex in Springfield that’s costing $2.6 million a year, a FOX Undercover investigation has found.The Postal Service is stuck with a long-term lease for a 41,200-square-foot Brookdale Drive building that it’s never used and another, bigger building next door that is used as a storage shed and for seasonal mail processing. Combined, the two buildings cost the Postal Service $216,000-a-month to rent thanks to a 2004 lease they signed which doesn’t expire for another year.

via FOX Undercover investigates: Postal Money Pit – Boston News, Weather, Sports | FOX 25 | MyFoxBoston.