U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that Anthony Sharp, 31, of Euclid, Ohio, was sentenced on Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021, by Judge Donald C. Nugent to 10 years in prison after Sharp admitted to stealing packages from the U.S. Mail that he suspected contained drugs.
Sharp pleaded guilty in August of 2021 to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession with the intent to distribute controlled substances, money laundering and theft of mail.
According to court documents, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG) began an investigation into Sharp, a Cleveland Postal Service Manager, based on suspicion that Sharp was profiling U.S. Mail suspected to contain cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine and stealing the packages.
In July of 2021, USPS OIG special agents and postal inspectors observed Sharp arrive at a Cleveland Postal Service processing facility to help sort Express Mail. Sharp was then observed removing three packages from the mail stream and placing them in a hamper to be transported to his facility. Once the Express Mail was sorted, Sharp was observed loading all the Express Mail for his facility, including the three packages suspected of containing drugs, into his vehicle.
Sharp was then observed leaving the facility, opening several parcels and arriving at the postal facility that he managed. Later, Sharp left the facility and was detained during a traffic stop. A search of his vehicle produced the three packages which were opened and contained methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl. Law enforcement officers also observed additional Express and Priority Mail parcels opened in the trunk of the vehicle.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General and U.S. Postal Inspection Service. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Margaret Sweeney and Kathryn Andrachik.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
