Alsip Man Among 11 USPS Employees Accused Of Stealing Mail

CHICAGO — An Alsip man is among eleven U.S. Postal Service employees who were arrested following an 18-month investigation, federal authorities said. The former employees, who at the time worked as mail carriers in the Chicago area, are accused of stealing credit cards from the mail they were entrusted to deliver.

Stephon Johnson, 33, also known as “Steph” and “Stuff,” is charged with conspiring to steal mail and committing unauthorized access device fraud. Johnson and another postal employee, 28-year-old Davey Hines, of Naperville, also known as Li’l Dave — said to be one of the ring leaders — are accused of stealing USPS customers’ personal identifying information, including addresses, dates of birth, heights, weights and Social Security numbers. The information was used to fraudulently activate the stolen cards to make purchases at various retailers, according to the federal complaint.

The investigation, dubbed “Operation Cash On Delivery,” covered the period of June 2018 to December 2019. According to the federal complaint on several dates during this time, Johnson and Hines exchanged customers’ personal information.

In October 2019, Johnson allegedly used the stolen credit cards to make fraudulent purchases of $1,440 and $1,532 at Best Buy, and about $1,457 at Meijer’s, the feds said.

Many of the employees were arrested Feb. 25 and have begun making appearances in federal court.

“Individuals who attempt to steal from the mail or illegally access personal identifying information must be held accountable,” U.S. Attorney John Lausch said in a news release. “Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute these serious offenses.”

The other former USPS employees charged in the conspiracy probe are:

Rebecca Okunoren, 28, of Chicago
Jessica Jefferson, 32, of Broadview
Monique D. Love, 29, of Chicago
Myiesha Weaver, 34, of College Park, GA
Dominique Sykes, 28, of Chicago
Billye Harris, 26, of Harvey
Terrance Scales, 29, of Chicago
Loreal Ross, 31, of Chicago
Brittnay P. Shepard, 28, of Chicago

Hines, Harris, Johnson, and Ross also face charges of unauthorized access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.