He allegedly dumped more than 1,000 pieces of mail in a wooded lot in Orlando, including over 400 pieces of political mail and at least one election ballot.
A Florida postal worker has been accused of dumping more than 1,000 pieces of mail in a wooded lot in Orlando, including over 400 pieces of political mail and at least one election ballot.
Ottis Nicole McCoy Jr., who was employed by a private contractor to deliver mail for the U.S. Postal Service, has been charged with stealing and discarding mail in violation of federal law, according to a criminal complaint filed on Oct. 25 in the Middle District of Florida.
An affidavit attached to the complaint indicates that a manager at Cummings Contract Delivery Service Corp., the company that had hired McCoy as a part-time employee to deliver U.S. mail to a postal route in the Alafaya Woods area of Orlando, became suspicious when McCoy finished his route earlier than expected despite having a “very large” quantity of mail to deliver.
Data from a GPS tracking device connected to the vehicle McCoy was driving indicated that McCoy had deviated from the route, prompting the manager to investigate and find pieces of mail discarded in a wooded lot.
“Inspectors collected the U.S. Mail and discovered more than 1,000 pieces of U.S. Mail, including more than 400 pieces of political mail and one election ballot,” the affidavit reads.
The affiant, Inspector Charles Johnsten of the United States Postal Inspection Service, wrote that he spoke to a neighborhood homeowner, who provided him with surveillance footage that provided further proof in support of the allegations.
Johnsten wrote that the video shows McCoy “throwing large quantities of U.S. Mail into the wooded lot.”
If convicted, McCoy could face up to five years in prison under 18 U.S.C. § 1708, which prohibits stealing mail or otherwise diverting it from its original or intended place.
A request for comment on the allegations sent to McCoy’s listed attorney was not immediately returned.
Michael Martel, a spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that, as a matter of policy, the agency cannot comment on ongoing investigations.
Martel said that the Postal Inspection Service, as the law enforcement and security arm of the U.S. Postal Service, deploys various fraud detection and loss prevention strategies to protect the integrity of the mail system, particularly during the election season.
“Postal Inspectors will continue to actively identify attempts to compromise the mail system our Nation is depending on during this critical time,” Martel said, adding that the Inspection Service will be working closely with state, local, and federal law enforcement partners to respond to and investigate any mail-related election crimes.
