During the mail theft investigation probe, most of the stolen financial instruments were found stacked inside stolen vehicles. However, the investigation led to 22000 Block of Palomar Road in Nuevo where the arrests of four suspects were made.
Mailboxes and Cluster Mailboxes are the property of the United States Postal Service. This is a federal agency that controls postal services. The agency is the main victim of mail theft because of mailbox breakage. However, the mail theft problem and mailbox breakage become the burden of owners and Homeowners Association.
When mailboxes are broken into, the owners assume liability and the Homeowners Association of the area assume repair of the broken and damaged mailboxes. Therefore, the Postal Service only gives guidelines on how to deal with mailboxes theft, but the physical responsibility rests among a group of owners.
The Postal Service advise owners to report any suspected breakage in progress by calling 911 that should reach the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. On the other hand, if a crime has already been committed, residents are advised to call the Corona Police Department by calling 951-736-2330. Any broken mailboxes should be reported to the Homeowners Association and neighbor where applicable to alert them of the damage and possible danger of being victims.
The Postal Service has the responsibility of the neighbors to develop a mailbox breakage theft watch program. Residents should ensure that their mailboxes and cluster mailboxes are strong and secure. The location of the mailboxes should be in proximity to the well lite area visible by close residents.
Owners should assign neighbors who are in proximity to the mailboxes with surveillance cameras to keep watch on the activities around their mailbox centers. Homeowners Association has much responsibility for ensuring that there are prevention measures around their resident’s mailboxes.
The Menifee Police Department is having a word of caution to mail theft problem. It is urging Menifee residents to be vigilant and cautious with their mailboxes and ensure they put into practice all mail safety measures and recommendations that have been presented. More importantly, residents are encouraged to track and remove their mails from the mailboxes as soon as possible.
It is important to remember that the postal services are not offering extra security in risky areas for mailboxes safety and this responsibility is the burden of residents.
