CONCORD - Nicholas Walker, 29, formerly of Litchfield pleaded guilty to possession of stolen mail, announced United States Attorney Scott W. Murray.
According to court documents, on Feb. 20, 2018, the Litchfield, New Hampshire Police Department received several reports that the driver of a Chevrolet car was stealing mail from residential mailboxes on Windsor Drive, Chamberlain Drive, and Duck Pond Circle in Litchfield. Some witnesses were able to describe the driver of the car. One witness reported several digits of the New Hampshire license plate attached to the car. Several minutes later, a Litchfield Police Officer saw an unoccupied silver Chevrolet car with a license plate number containing several of the reported digits parked outside a gas station in Hudson, New Hampshire.
While looking into the car, the officer saw items of mail with different addresses printed on the outside. The defendant’s jacket and keys were on the roof of the car. When the defendant returned to the car, he told the officer that he drove to the gas station but would not state where he had been. The officer seized that car and obtained a warrant to search it. While executing the search, the officer found several envelopes that were stolen from the residential mailboxes in Litchfield.
Walker will be sentenced on Feb. 12, 2019.
“The public needs to be confident in the integrity of the mail," said U.S. Attorney Murray. “In order to sustain this confidence, we will prosecute those who steal from the Postal Service. I commend the work of the citizens and law enforcement officers in this case whose quick actions led to the arrest and prosecution of this defendant."
“This investigation is an example of teamwork between our customers, the Litchfield Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office," said U.S. Postal Inspection Service Inspector in Charge, Joseph W. Cronin, Boston Division. “Postal Inspectors will continue to work aggressively with our law enforcement partners to combat any reports of mail theft. The U.S. Mail remains one of the most secure means of transmitting personal information."
The case was investigated by the Litchfield, New Hampshire Police Department and the United States Postal Inspection Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert M. Kinsella.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
