WBAY

Foreign lottery schemes may be fleecing Americans out of as much as a billion dollars every year. The problem is so vast, congress is hearing testimony on the matter.

Often suspects are overseas, and that’s a challenge for law enforcement. But here’s a case where a perceptive postal employee helped bring a suspect to justice right here in the United States.

“Something is not right here. Why are you getting all these Express Mail packages from all over the US?”

Mary Santiago asked the right questions. She knows her customers and suspected one was running a mail fraud scheme based here in the U.S.

Read more: Postal Worker Helps Bust Domestic Lottery Scam – WBAY.

CBS — Delivering mail shouldn’t be a dangerous job, but in some Chicago neighborhoods, postal carriers are finding themselves caught in the crossfire.Others have been targets of brutal attacks and robberies, but a new program set to roll out next month aims to keep them safe.CBS 2’s Mai Martinez reports.

Read more: New Program Sets Up Safe Havens For Postal Carriers Who Encounter Danger « CBS Chicago.

MINNEAPOLIS—Recently in federal court, the former postmaster of the Marble Post Office in Itasca County was indicted for stealing funds from the office. On June 10, 2013, Jill Marie Rousse, age 39, of Calumet, was charged with one count of misappropriation of postal funds and one count of unlawful issuance of postal money orders. Read the rest of this entry »

BUFFALO, N.Y.– U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Alcides Marcelino, a/k/a “Amigo” was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy after an indictment was unsealed charging him with 3 counts of Possession and Sale of Counterfeit Postage Stamps. The charge carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 5 years and a fine of $250,000, or both.

The indictment alleges Marcelino sold counterfeit Lady Liberty and U.S. Flag forever postage stamps on multiple occasions between early Summer 2010 and July 19, 2011. The investigation began when the main postal facility in Buffalo discovered multiple letters with the counterfeit stamps affixed. Further investigation revealed the stamps were allegedly being sold at several small, retail grocery locations in the Buffalo area. The evidence was presented to the Grand Jury by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert C. Moscati, who will handle the trial of the case.

The investigation was conducted by the United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Kevin M. Niland, the Federal Bureau of Investigation under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel, and the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James C. Spero.

Lisa Virginia A. Barker, 48, Gleason, Wisconsin, is charged with stealing an item from an envelope intended to be conveyed by the U.S. mail. The indictment alleges that on February 26, 2011, she stole a gift card from a piece of mail which came into her possession by virtue of her employment at the Schofield Post Office, Schofield, Wisconsin.

If convicted, Barker faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. The charge against her is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Service-Office of Inspector General. The prosecution of this case has been assigned to Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert A. Anderson.

A federal grand jury in Madison WI has returned an indictment charging Kristy Hollibush, a 43 year old rural carrier from Janesville WI, with mail theft. The US Attorney’s office said in a news release that Hollibush had stolen money from a piece of mail on September 25, 2012. The amount of the alleged theft was not disclosed. Hollibush, who has worked for the USPS since 1999, faces up to five years in prison if convicted. The USPS Office of the Inspector General investigated the case.

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Even though a 47-year-old man is behind bars for sexually assaulting a postal worker behind her work place, the victim told News4 she is still recovering from the attack.The 21-year-old woman, who spoke exlusively with News4 but wanted to conceal her identity, was sexually assaulted after getting lunch May 2.

Read more: Arrest Made in Postal Worker's Sex Assault | NBC4 Washington.

Another letter to the president is being investigated for the toxin ricin. From 18th century bombs to the 2001 anthrax attacks, the mail has been a common but often ineffective means of terrorism.

Read more: 249 years of terror through the mail – The Washington Post.

Richard S. Hartunian, United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York, announced that JOHN GIBSON, III, age 37, of Oswego, N.Y., pled guilty today to the felony offense of Theft of Government Money, before the Hon. Glenn T. Suddaby in the United States District Court in Syracuse, New York. Sentencing for GIBSON is scheduled for October 9,
2013. As a result of the conviction, GIBSON is facing a term of imprisonment of up to ten years, supervised release of up to three years, a fine of up to $250,000, and a special assessment of $100.

GIBSON admitted that he purchased 91 postal money orders with checks drawn on closed checking accounts in the total amount of $33,072.68, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641.

GIBSON’s prosecution is the result of a joint investigation by U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General. The investigation began in June 2012.

This prosecution was handled in the United States Attorney’s Office by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamara B. Thomson.

Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Major Crimes Division – Homicide/Sex Section have arrested a suspect believed to be responsible for a sexual assault that occurred in Silver Spring on May 2.

During the course of the investigation, DNA evidence obtained from the crime scene was submitted to the DNA lab for analysis.  Following the submission, detectives received notice that the DNA collected from the crime scene had been matched to a DNA sample that had previously been entered into the DNA database.

Based on the match, the suspect was identified as Dennis Nathan Carpenter, age 47, of no fixed address.  On May 31, a warrant was obtained for Carpenter charging him with one count of first degree rape.

Today, at approximately 1:00 p.m., Carpenter was located and arrested in Southeast, Washington, D.C. on the strength of the warrant.  Carpenter is currently being held in Washington, D.C. pending extradition to Montgomery County.